Definition of "phasianid" in English

adjective

1. Of or relating to semiflightless, gallinaceous game birds, such as pheasants, quails, peafowl, junglefowl, and guinea fowl.

   • The chukar, a bird of the phasianid family, is distributed in Israel across a sharp climatic cline from Mediterranean regions in the north to extremely arid areas only ~200 km away in the Negev Desert.

2. Specifically, belonging to the zoologic family Phasianidae, or associated with species falling under that taxonomic hierarchy.

   • The megapode is viewed as a ‘specialised’ galliform, having extended the phasianid incubation period and producing superprecocial hatchlings that have developed in the egg for a further four weeks.

noun

1. Any semiflightless, gallinaceous game bird.

   • It is a medium-sized phasianid: males can weight even 600 grams and are bigger than the females. Moreover, unlike the females, they have ergots on the claws.
   • Typical of many phasianid birds, guinea fowl are capable runners that have strong burst-flight capacities but little endurance in flight.