Quail, Common

Conservation status:

Passage Migrant

Description:

Common, but highly secretive; more often heard than seen, and very hard to flush. In flight size of Starling; rather pointed narrow wings, fast shallow wing-beats, plain wings and striped back; creeps on ground and is a rather compact, very short-tailed gamebird, with noticeably pale buffish white under-body, streaked flanks, and dark- and yellow-striped upperparts. Head pattern black, chestnut and white with a neck-band in male. Female has paler head pattern and lacks neck-band.