• Summary
• Text account
• Data table and detailed info
• Distribution map
• Reference and further resources

Justification of Red List category
This attractive partridge is endemic to the island of Hainan, in southern China. It has a small population thought to number fewer than 10,000 mature individuals, with each subpopulation hosting probably 500-2,000. It is inferred to still be declining due to ongoing pressure on its habitat, and an additive impact of hunting. It is currently therefore listed as Vulnerable. It occurs however in a number of protected areas, giving hope that its population trend, if these areas are sufficiently safeguarded from logging and hunting, may soon stabilise.

Population justification
The population size of this species has long been considered moderately small with McGowan et al. (1995) and Li Xiangtao (1996) both considering the species to number (perhaps much) less than 10,000 individuals. Surveys undertaken in the 1990s at Bawangling Nature Reserve led to a calculated density of 6-8 birds/km², which was then extrapolated to produced a total estimate of 3,900-5,200 birds across an area of c.650 km² (BirdLife International 2001). There is however evidence that Bawangling may host higher densities of Arborophila ardens than other sites. At Nanweiling Nature Reserve, for example, the species' density was calculated in 1990 as only 2.59 birds/km². Moreover, tagged birds at Bangwangling had smaller home ranges (3.87±0.42, n=13 individuals) than those at another site, Yinggeling Nature Reserve (7.70±1.04, n=9 individuals), implying the former site may host the species at a higher density; thus, the use of 6-8 birds/km² across the species' entire range may generate a population size scenario that is overly optimistic.

There is approximately 1,200 km² of suitable habitat within this species' elevational range (the value used in BirdLife International [2001] was too pessimistic). To this densities of 3-8 birds/km² are applied reflecting the uncertainty discussed above, leading to a population size of 3,600-9,600, rounded here to 2,500-9,999 reflecting some additional uncertainty regarding the number of mature individuals (vs individuals, which includes juveniles etc.).

Trend justification
Historically, this species has lost significant areas of suitable habitat in response to forest loss, and is no longer found at some localities it once occupied (BirdLife International 2001). Declines are inferred to be ongoing due to continued (albeit slowing) forest loss, which has continued to occur at the lowest elevations of its altitudinal range (Global Forest Watch 2024). The rate of decline is not set here, given considerable uncertainty about this species' tolerances (it has been described as being highly dependent on closed-canopy forest [BirdLife International 2001, Yang et al. 2023] and also tolerant of logged forest [Lewthwaite et al. 2021]), and the absence of data on the impact of hunting and egg-collecting (Rao et al. 2017). Nonetheless, given it is apparently able to persist in heavily-hunted landscapes (Lewthwaite et al. 2021), it is likely the species is declining only slowly.

Arborophila ardens is endemic to Hainan Island, off the south coast of China (Lewthwaite et al. 2021). Reports from the mainland province of Guangxi in the late 1970s were never substantiated (He Fenqi in litt. 2012). 

It is likely restricted to primary, tropical evergreen forest, both broadleaved and mixed coniferous-broadleaved, usually between 200 m and 1,300 m; also tolerates forests that are selectively logged and hunted (Lewthwaite et al. 2021).

Historically, this species has lost significant areas of suitable habitat in response to forest loss, and is no longer found at some localities it once occupied (BirdLife International 2001). Declines are inferred to be ongoing due to continued (albeit slowing) forest loss, which has continued to occur at the lowest elevations of its altitudinal range (Global Forest Watch 2024). There is also some evidence that this species is hunted locally (BirdLife International 2001), although to this pressure it is apparently resistant (Lewthwaite et al. 2021). There are also anecdotes of egg collecting (see, e.g., Rao et al. 2017), although the impact this is having is probably negligible. Historically some evidence that birds were also trapped for the market trade, in addition to food (Wei et al. 2006), but it is unclear whether this is ongoing.

Conservation Actions Underway
It is a nationally-protected species in China. Substantial areas of its remaining range lie in protected areas (UNEP-WCMC and IUCN 2024).

Conservation Actions Proposed
Conduct public awareness programmes on the plight of the threatened and endemic forest wildlife of Hainan, and attempt to reduce hunting through public education and the enforcement of relevant legislation. Assess the ability of the protected area system to safeguard the species in the long term, and add new forests where necessary. Enhance the protection status of existing protected areas (e.g. from county to provincial level) wherever possible, and establish corridors between blocks of suitable habitat.

c.28 cm. Typical, generally grey-brown, partridge with distinctive head pattern. Distinctive, mostly blackish, head with boldly contrasting white ear-covert spot, narrow whitish supercilium and striking rufous-orange necklace separating black throat from grey breast. Similar spp. Chinese Francolin Francolinus pintadeanus, which occurs in more open or scrubby habitats, has chiefly white-spotted, blackish (in male, duller in female) plumage, white throat and larger white cheek patch, rufous supercilium, and rufous undertail-coverts. Voice Pairs give far-carrying territorial duet comprising two-note (falling then rising) whistles, often repeated.

Text account compilers
Berryman, A.

Contributors
Wei, L. & He, F.

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Hainan Partridge Arborophila ardens. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/hainan-partridge-arborophila-ardens on 23/12/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 23/12/2024.