A large pheasant-family bird of rocky alpine meadows. Breeding is recorded in the southern Altai of Kazakhstan, where details of its breeding biology remain poorly known.
The sexes look alike. The head and neck are gray, the back is spotted with white, and the belly has white and black areas.
Altai Snowcocks occupy stony high-mountain slopes and feed among sparse vegetation.
Near-daily observations in Su-kor during June–September1978 found families with five to eight young; adults led them uphill when people approached.
By late June and early July, birds descended before dawn toward better vegetation and gradually moved uphill during the day. Dust-bathing was also recorded.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.
The Su-kor researcher proposed a reserve to protect and study the population. Documented family routes and vegetated feeding areas identify relevant habitat features.