Turnix olivii: Buff-breasted Buttonquail

Buff-breasted Buttonquail - Turnix olivii
( Robinson, 1900 )

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Subspecies:	Unknown
Est. World Population:	1-249, 1-49

CITES Status:	NOT LISTED
IUCN Status:	Critically Endangered
U.S. ESA Status:	NOT LISTED

Body Length:
Tail Length:
Shoulder Height:
Weight:

Top Speed:
Jumping Ability:	(Horizontal)

Life Span:	in the Wild
Life Span:	in Captivity

Sexual Maturity:	(Females)
Sexual Maturity:	(Males)
Litter Size:
Gestation Period:

Habitat:

The few records of Buff-breasted Buttonquail are from stony and grassy savanna woodlands on plains and slopes (Mathieson and Smith 2009, 2017) with sparsely wooded, well-drained, slight-sloping bases of hills important during the breeding season (Mathieson and Smith 2009). Birds identified as this species have also been noted from grassy clearings within rainforest patches (Squire 1990, Marchant and Higgins 1993). Regular burning that maintains open habitats, particularly in the early wet season, may be important for the species (Mathieson and Smith 2009). Four stomachs from near Coen contained seeds and insects (Marchant and Higgins 1993). Recorded clutch size is four eggs laid in dome nests on the ground and tended by the male (White 1922b).

Range:

The species is endemic to north-eastern Queensland, Australia. The only documented locality record in the last decade was from a small area near Mt Mulligan, west of Cairns (Mathieson and Smith 2017), where Painted and Red-chested Button-quail T. pyrrhothorax were recorded concurrently. The type specimen was collected at an unspecified location near Cooktown in June 1899 (Macdonald 1971), while the only specimen record accompanied by an accurate location data was north of Coen in 1922 (White 1922a, 1922b). There are sight records from before 2010 near Mareeba, Mount Molloy, Hann Tableland National Park, Rookwood Station near Chillagoe, the Karumba district and from around Lakefield National Park, Ingham and Iron Range (Mathieson and Smith 2009) but none have been accompanied by evidence.

Conservation:

Conservation Actions Underway
A recovery plan has been prepared (Mathieson and Smith 2009) and research priorities identified (Webster et al. 2021b). Searches for the species are ongoing. A nomination to have the species uplisted from Endangered to Critically Endangered under the NC Act 1992 has been submitted to the Queensland Government for consideration and following this a similar nomination will be done federally under the EPBC Act 1999 (Webster et al. 2021b).

Conservation Actions Proposed
Develop a reliable means of detecting birds. Obtain a photograph and a sound recording. Obtain knowledge of the species distribution, life history and ecology. Determine habitat requirements. Determine habitat use and movements in wild populations using radio-telemetry. Understand the impacts of fire and feral animals on habitat. Follow up all sightings to record ecological details and attempt to improve knowledge of habitat management needs. Undertake fire management at known, suspected and historical locations, including storm burning. Determine an effective conservation management strategy for known populations.