T1IK WL.^i.. 475 



186. THE QUAIL. 

 Tetrao Coturnix, LIN. La Caille, BUF. Die Wachtel, BECH. 



Description. This well-known bird is little more than 

 seven inches in length. The beak is short ; blackish brown 

 in summer, greyish in winter, and resembling in form that of 

 the Partridge ; the iris is olive brown ; the feet a whitish flesh 

 colour. The upper part of the body is spotted with blackish 

 brown and rust colour, with a few small white stripes ; the 

 throat blackish brown, and encircled by a double streak of 

 chestnut brown. The lower part of the neck and the breast 

 are pale rust colour, marked by indistinct longitudinal stripes ; 

 the belly dingy white; the shanks reddish grey; the pen 

 feathers dark grey, crossed by narrow streaks of rust colour. 

 The tail is dark brown, with transverse stripes of rust colour 

 and white, and very short. 



The female may be distinguished by the fact, that the throat 

 is white, and the breast, like that of a Thrush, spotted with 

 black. 



Habitat. The Quail, which is found throughout the eastern 

 hemisphere, is a bird of passage ; arriving in Germany in May, 

 and departing about the end of September. It chiefly fre- 

 quents the fields of grain ; and especially those of autumn-sown 

 wheat. 



In confinement, it may either be allowed to range the room, 

 where it is remarkable for cleanliness, and a gentle and engaging 

 disposition, or it may be kept in a cage especially designed for it. 

 This should be two feet in length, one foot in breadth, and one 

 foot two inches in height, and may be made of any desired shape. 

 There should be three openings in it ; two for air and light, and 

 the third for the drinking glass ; the floor, which should be 

 covered with sand, ought to be made to draw out, like the food 

 trough ; and the cage must be covered with green cloth, as the 

 bird, which frequently springs upwards, might injure its head 

 against a wooden roof. In such a cage as this, especially if hung 

 near the window, the Quail will sing far better than if allowed 

 to hop about the room, when its attention is diverted by a multi- 

 plicity of objects. 



When a male, without a mate, is allowed the range of the 

 aviary, it is advisable to confine him during the pairing season 

 in June ; as he will often pursue other birds with great ardour, 

 especially those which have a grey plumage like his own. Larks 



