partridge Perdrix perdrix in the family Phasianidae, an important game bird of Europe and C. Asia, often called grey partridge (to distinguish it from other partridges, of the genus Alectoris, described further on in this entry). The range of the species is from N. Spain up to the British Isles, Sweden, and Russia; and eastwards to Turkey and parts of W. and C. Asia. Thus it is known in most European countries, but in numbers which fluctuate and are in steady decline in regions, such as England, where modern agricultural methods are reducing the amount of suitable habitat.
