Barred Buttonquail

Barred Buttonquail (Turnix suscitator) is a small ground bird resembling a quail, with barred flanks, short bill and no hind toe. Body shape, bill structure, plumage pattern and voice provide the strongest field characters. Age, sex and season may alter its appearance, so identification should combine several features and careful direct field comparisons with similar species in the same habitat (Wikipedia, general species account).

It runs through grass and scrub feeding on seeds and insects; brighter females court males, which incubate the eggs. Its movements and social behaviour vary through the year, with breeding birds generally more dispersed and non-breeding birds gathering where food is concentrated. Japanese records place it within the country's documented avifauna as a resident, migrant or visitor (Wikipedia, general species account; Wildlife of Japan occurrence records).