The Bornean Partridge is a pheasant-family bird of hill and montane forest on Borneo. It uses bamboo and thickets on the forest floor and eats both plant and animal matter.
It has a brown back with fine black barring, a cinnamon breast, and a white vent. The Sarawak account notes that some local birds have greyer brows and cheeks and a darker breast.
On Mount Kinabalu, Bornean Partridges forage on the forest floor and cross trails, sometimes feeding along them in the morning or late afternoon. They retreat into dense shrubs when people approach. Their loud, distinctive calls carry through forest where the birds are difficult to see.
A 2014–2015 survey recorded sightings and calls along six existing trails at Kinabalu and Poring over 37 fine-weather days. Bornean Partridges were especially often detected by voice, with more calling records early in the morning.
The same forest also holds Crimson-headed Partridges. Bornean Partridge calls were recorded more often at higher elevations than those of that species. The researchers considered this pattern a clue to differences in how the two birds use mountain forest.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.
The researchers recommend conserving montane forest and comparing occurrence in primary and degraded habitats. They propose supplementing trail observations with camera traps and other methods to understand these elusive birds and assess the effects of forest change.