A game bird with very attractive plumage and with a characteristic call, forming a key part of the food chain in the ecosystem of Extremadura. It occurs in cultivated land, open country with scattered trees, nesting on the ground in shrubby borders or low scrub close to cereal fields. They prefer to walk than fly, only taking to the wing when flushed. They feed on seeds, young shoots and insects (the latter being important for the chicks which leave the nest upon hatching).