<P> In addition to the variation in diet there is a considerable amount of variation in breeding strategies among the Phasianidae . Compared to birds in general there is a large number of species that do not engage in monogamy (the typical breeding system of most birds). The francolins of Africa and some partridges are reportedly monogamous, but polygamy has been reported in the pheasants and junglefowl, some quail, and the breeding displays of peacocks have been compared to those of a lek . Nesting usually occurs on the ground; only the tragopans nest higher up in stumps of bushes . Nests can vary from mounds of vegetation to slight scrapes in the ground . As many as 18 eggs can be laid in the nest, although 7 - 12 is the more usual number, with smaller numbers in tropical species . Incubation is almost always performed by the female only, and lasts from 14--30 days depending on the species . </P> <P> Several species of pheasant and partridge are extremely important to humans . The red junglefowl of Southeast Asia is the wild ancestor of the domesticated chicken, the most important bird in agriculture . Ring - necked pheasants, several partridge and quail species and some francolins have been widely introduced and managed as game birds for hunting . Several species are threatened by human activities . </P> <P> The clade Phasianidae is the largest of the branch Galliformes, comprising more than 150 species . This group includes the pheasants and partridges, junglefowl chickens, quail and peafowl . Turkeys and grouse have also been recognized as having their origins in the pheasant - and partridge - like birds . </P> <P> Until the early 1990s, this family was broken up into two subfamilies: the Phasianinae, including pheasants, tragopans, junglefowls, and peafowls; and the Perdicinae, including partridges, Old World quails, and francolins . Molecular phylogenies have shown that these two subfamilies are not each monophyletic but actually constitute only one lineage with one common ancestor . For example, some partridges (genus Perdix) are more closely affiliated to pheasants, whereas Old World quails and partridges from the genus Alectoris are closer to junglefowls . </P>

Bird belonging to the phasianidae family cody cross