Fun French Partridge Facts For Kids

The French partridge (Alectoris rufa) is also known as a red-legged partridge. To help distinguish this bird from the English or gray partridge, the French partridge is a buff, fat, round bird native to the United Kingdom and is also found in lowland and farmland areas of southwestern Europe.

These birds are naturally found in France, Iberia, and Italy but were introduced to England and Wales as a game species.

Full-grown red-legged partridges are sandy brown with a pinkish belly. Their other defining physical qualities include an extravagant gorget (a patch of color on a bird's throat) of black streaking, bold rufous (reddish-brown color), and black flank bars. These birds also have pink legs and a red beak that stands out in the wild.

These birds often flock together in groups of 20, waddling over grassy fields and pastures. Their brownish color works as camouflage against predators since it makes this bird almost invisible against wildlife vegetation.

These birds usually mate for life, preferring to remain with a single partner and simultaneously produce two broods that allow them to replenish their species despite their popularity as game birds. Moreover, they are not very rare as they can be easily seen in their distribution areas.

In this article, you can find out about the history, distribution, French partridge color, French partridge hatching eggs, French partridge eggs, French partridge price, French red-legged partridge eggs, raising French red-legged partridge, French partridge feathers, the French partridge diet, and the French partridge appearance.

Check out our leghorn chicken and canyon wren articles to read about other species.

French Partridge Interesting Facts

What type of animal is a French partridge?

The French partridge classifies as a bird.

What class of animal does a French partridge belong to?

The French partridge belongs to the Aves class of animals.

How many French partridges are there in the world?

The French red-legged partridge is fairly common in areas that are not reserved for hunting. While these birds are primarily used as game birds, these birds are annually restocked with captive-bred birds.

This keeps this species fairly safe in spite of the decline in their native population. The global population is currently estimated to be in the range of 9,950,000-13,700,000 mature birds.

Where does a French partridge live?

The French partridge, also known as the red-legged partridge, can be found in Western Europe, particularly in eastern Scotland, France, Spain, and the Atlantic Islands. It was also introduced throughout Great Britain, such as England, around 200 years ago as a game species. This bird thrives and breeds in rather dry areas like lowlands, often in captivity.

What is a French partridge's habitat?

The red-legged partridge is distributed in and around lowland and farmland areas. Their populations stay away from wildlife forests, both wild and wet areas. These birds are also occasionally found in orchards, open stony regions, plantations, and other types of dry flatlands. Their habitats can range throughout woodlands and flatlands.

Who do French partridges live with?

Before mating, these birds tend to roam around and form pairs within a flock of the same species, but these birds prefer to remain monogamous with their mate after mating. They tend to form flocks in non-breeding seasons.

How long does a French partridge live?

Wild partridge birds, in general, do not live for many years. Red-legged partridge birds usually don't live for longer than two years.

How do they reproduce?

Red-legged partridges usually breed around spring, with a few exceptions according to different ranges. Before their breeding process, these birds form mates.

Since the pairs are usually monogamous and the birds remain with their breeding partner for the rest of their lives, the male chooses the nest site and builds the nest. The female lays her eggs in the ground nest.

The incubation period lasts for around 23-24 days by the female alone, and the male occasionally takes over when she is absent.

After hatching, the young chicks are tended to by both parents. These young chicks are able to fly after 15-20 days. Moreover, after these 15 days, these young chicks can even start foraging for food. Red-legged partridge pairs usually lay two clutches in one breeding season, keeping their population relatively high. 

What is their conservation status?

The red-legged partridge is classified as Near Threatened, especially in Britain. These birds are not native to the area and the natural range is restricted to three European countries, Spain, Portugal, and France where their numbers are steadily declining. These birds are bred in captivity to keep their numbers even.

French Partridge Fun Facts

What do French partridges look like?

The French partridge color is from light to dark brownish in coloration. Their rufous pink tail coverts contrast with the black upperparts. These birds are distinguished from other birds by a bright red beak, white neck, red legs, and bright tan-colored iris.

How cute are they?

The red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa) is a relatively pleasant-looking, buff bird with very extravagant features like red legs, an ornate plumage, a white throat, and boldly barred flanks.

How do they communicate?

The French red leg partridge communicates through a harsh and repetitive 'goCHAK-CHAK-CHAK goCHAK goCHAK-CHAK' or a three-syllable call 'ka-chu-chu'.

How big is a French partridge?

A red-legged partridge is 18.8 in (47 cm) long, meaning they are almost as big as prairie chickens.

How fast can a French partridge fly?

These birds usually prefer to run when disturbed but also have a tendency to burst into flight if taken by surprise. This bird's flying form usually involves whirring wing beats in the air and it glides down to the ground.

How much does a French partridge weigh?

A wild red-legged partridge weighs up to 1.1 lb (500 g).

What are the male and female names of the species?

Both male and female sexes of the red-legged partridge are referred to as the French partridge or the red-legged partridge.

What would you call a baby French partridge?

Baby or young partridges are called chicks, while a group of baby red-legged partridges is called a brood.

What do they eat?

The red-legged partridge is an omnivore, meaning they derive nutrition from vegetation found in nature like roots and seeds. They also search for small insects like ants and grasshoppers, especially in the summer. 

Are they poisonous?

No, the red-legged partridge is not venomous to humans or any other species since their primary diet consists of seeds and leaves, although it likes to eat insects as well. This bird prefers to eat insects in the summer.

Would they make a good pet?

No, the red-legged partridge would not make a good pet. It might seem like this bird can be domesticated, but its belongs to the wild and its natural habitat.

Did you know...

The red-legged partridge does fly but often chooses to run very fast when shocked, surprised, or in search of food.

Red-legged partridges are not native to Britain and were introduced to East Anglia in 1770 using stocks of eggs from France. They now outnumber the native species, gray partridge, in Britain.

Red-legged partridges often cohabitate with rabbits.

Red-legged partridges possess the ability to lay two clutches in the same breeding season since the hen incubates one and leaves the other for the cock. Due to this, they breed faster in captivity and are therefore ideal for hunting purposes.

Do partridges mate for life?

Red-legged partridges are one of the few species of birds that mate for life, but as a species, all partridges mate for life. Despite this, their courtship strategies and traditional mating methods differ.

Are French partridges endangered?

Red-legged partridge populations come under the Near Threatened classification according to the IUCN since they are game birds. However, these birds have the capacity to breed quickly and efficiently. Therefore, many of them are bred in captivity to make sure that their population remains high.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! For more relatable content, check out these mountain chickadee facts and bobwhite quail facts for kids.

You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our free printable bird coloring pages.

Second image by Pierre Dalous