This quail lives on the ground by day in mountain cloud forests in Venezuela.
Its body length is 25–30 cm.
Venezuelan Wood-quails inhabit humid mountain forests in Venezuela. At Henri Pittier National Park researchers studied the vegetation at their foraging sites. Used sites had dense low vegetation, with leaves overlapping near the forest floor.
From July to September 1998, researchers compared vegetation at 20 foraging sites with 22 sites where birds had not been detected. Used sites had more non-palm monocot plants and denser low foliage, while Bactris palms were less frequent.
The authors suggested that dense foliage might help conceal foraging birds from predators. Their observations connected wood-quail feeding sites with both the kinds of plants present and the density of leaves close to the ground.
IUCN Red List (BirdLife listing) · Near Threatened · Global
BirdLife lists Near Threatened globally. The Henri Pittier study identified low vegetation and foliage density associated with foraging sites. Retaining vegetation near the forest floor alongside canopy trees preserves features used locally; repeat observations can help track habitat change.