20S INSECTIVOROUS BIRDS 



STUBBLE QUAIL, 



Cotiiruix pectoralis, Gld. 



Co-tur'niks pek-to-rd' lis. 

 Coturnix, a quail ; pectus, the breast ; alis. pertaining to. 



CoTURNix PECTORALIS, Gould, "Birds of Australia," fol,, vol. v., 



pi. 88. 



Geographical Distribution, — Areas 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. 



Key to the Species. — Outer web of primaries uniform brown, not 

 barred and marked with buff. 

 Male — Throat dull brick colour. 



i^emaZe— Black bands on the feathers of the breast not con- 

 fluent in the median line, but separated by a buff isthnms. 



The Australian Quails are divided into two orders — one 

 with each member having a hind toe, the other with each 

 member not having a hind toe (an exception, i.e., Plain 

 Wanderer). In the first order we have the Stubble, 

 Brown, and King Quails ; in the second, seven Hemipodes 

 and the Wanderer named. In a comparison with the 

 quails of the world, it appears we have only one true quail. 

 However, for our economic purposes the Button Quails 

 (Hemipodii) are sufficiently good. 



The Stubble or Pectoral Quail, averaging 4J ozs., is the 

 largest of our so-called quails, while the King or Chestnut- 

 bellied Quail is the smallest. So small is the latter that 

 the total weight of a female \veighed in the Government 

 Entomologist's office was found to be less than \\ ozs. 



The Stubble and Brown species very often occupy the 

 same paddocks in open grassed country, while the King 

 species keeps more to scrub lands. The food is principally 

 seed and insects. 



With the ending of the " close season " for shooting game, 



