Overview
The brown quail is a plump, stocky bird. The colour is quite variable over the bird's wide range. The male is reddish-brown speckled with black on the head and upper neck and mainly reddish-brown on back and wings. The underparts range from buff or rufous to brown, but always with fine black chevron-shaped barring. The tail is short, dark brown with yellowish barring. The female is similar but rather paler. There are small black spots on the shoulder of the female and the upperparts are barred with dark chevron-shaped markings.
Taxonomy
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Bird
- Family
- Odontophoridae
- Genus
- Coturnix
- Species
- ypsilophora
Habitat
The brown quail is distributed in agricultural areas, wet grasslands, shrublands, Spinifex savannah, and freshwater wetlands
Diet
Grasses, seeds, shoots and small invertebrates.
Behavior
The brown quail is a ground-dwelling bird that prefers to hide or run rather than fly. It is found in small groups. If the group is startled and take to the air, the birds scatter by flying in different directions, regrouping when the danger has passed. Brown quails form breeding pairs in the spring. There is an extended breeding season with clutches of half a dozen or more eggs being laid in a shallow scraped nest lined with grasses on the ground, often concealed in a grass tussock or shrubby bush. These are incubated by the female for the three-week incubation period. The newly hatched chicks are precocial and are cared for by both parents for a while, with the male taking on the caring role after two weeks to allow the female to start on the next clutch of eggs.
Hunting
Hunted across its range.
Conservation Status
Listed as Least Concern by IUCN.