98 UPLAND GAME BIRDS 



China and Japan. All the birds to which that name cor- 

 rectly applies inhabit the Old World. 



THE GROUSE FAMILY 



Tetraonidae 



Our dear old friend the COMMON QUAIL is now called 

 BOB-WHITE l in all the modern bird-books, but to about 

 fifty million Americans it is yet, and ever will be, the Quail. 

 It is our longest-known and most widely known American 

 game bird, and it is almost wholly a United States bird. It 

 is at home from Maine and Florida to Texas, the west- 

 ern border of Oklahoma and South Dakota. In very many 

 eastern localities, however, it has been almost exterminated 

 by excessive shooting. Unfortunately, no northern state per- 

 mits any of its few remaining Quail to be trapped and ex- 

 ported, and as a rule southern Quail cannot withstand the 

 rigors of the northern winter. In addition to this, there has 

 been much "Quail disease" among the southern flocks, and 

 their importation is hazardous. In 1913 the state of New 

 York granted its Quail a five-year close season, excepting 

 on Long Island. 



The call of the Bob-White is one of the most cheerful 

 sounds in nature, and for carrying qualities it is far-reaching. 

 From the heart of a hazel thicket one hears his loud, shrill 

 call, saying "CLERKS/ CLERKS/ CLERKS/" un- 

 til everything rings again. On the hurricane deck of a high 

 stump, or the top rail of a fence, he poises himself, points 

 his bill at the sky, swells out his white throat and whistles 



1 Co-li'nus virginianus. Average length, 10 inches. 



