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Elected representatives in government are in charge of the policy and funding that can make or break saving threatened species. Their decisions and actions matter.

New England has or used to have 45 threatened animals within its boundaries. One of them is me, the Black-breasted Button-quail.

We took care to attach appropriate images that are as close to representative of each species as our resources and the availability of images allowed. However, we could not ensure perfect accuracy in every case. Some images show species that share the same genus but not at the species or subspecies level.

Photo of Black-breasted Button-quail

Black-breasted Button-quail

Turnix melanogaster

Status: Vulnerable

The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) lists threatened species under six categories:
Extinct, Extinct in the wild, Critically Endangered, Endangered, Vulnerable, Conservation dependent. Read more about these categories

Turnix melanogaster is found across 29 electorates.

The Black-breasted Button-quail is a large, plump, pale-eyed button-quail. It is similar in size to the Painted Button-quail. The male Black-breasted Button-quails are about 18 cm long, with a wingspan of 32-35 cm, and weighing 65g. The females are larger, weighing 100g. The sexes differ in plumage, and there is no seasonal variation. Males have finely patterned backs and wings with brown, black, grey and white mottling. The face and throat are whitish and the breast is black with numerous white half-moon markings. The female is similar in all respects except for having a black face and throat, a larger dark area over the upper and lower breast and heavier white half-moon markings on the upper and lower breast. The bill is grey and the legs are pale yellow. Juveniles resemble males but are duller.¹

Explore more about this species on the Atlas of Living Australia

Adverse fire regimesAdverse fire regimes

Climate change and severe weatherClimate change and severe weather

Habitat loss, fragmentation and degradationHabitat loss, fragmentation and degradation

Invasive species and diseasesInvasive species and diseases

Explore more about the threats facing species on our Resources page.

New England has or used to have 101 threatened plants found within its boundaries. Some of these might not be as photogenic as the Black-breasted Button-quail but they're just as important.

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