young in a roundabout way. In nine 

 cases out of ten this artifice will succeed 

 in luring the pursuer away from the 

 vicinity of her young. Both sexes have 

 been known to incubate the eggs and sev- 

 eral instances are on record in which the 

 male finished the incubation of the eggs 

 after the female had been killed. 



The Quail ranges over the eastern 

 part of the United States and southern 

 Ontario, west to eastern Minnesota, Ne- 

 braska, Kansas and Texas ; southward 

 it extends to the Gulf States. The Quail 

 does not migrate but remains a resident 

 at or near its summer home. Late in 

 the fall, however, they change their 

 usual ha-bits and become uncertain in 

 their movements, congregating about 

 habitations — even villages and cities — in 

 large numbers, uttering their peculiar 

 plaintive call, which is so different from 

 the clear, bold note of the spring. At 

 this season they have been known to kill 

 themselves by flying against plate glass 

 windows. These gatherings are prob- 

 ably faint evidences of the migrating 

 instinct, so marked in many of the pas- 

 serine birds. The Quails are very erratic 

 in their movements during the winter, 

 deserting one valley for another on short 

 notice and for no apparent reason. 



The Quail is a favorite game bird and 

 the love of this sport by man has well 

 nigh exterminated this bird in some sec- 

 tions of the country. Under proper reg- 

 ulation the pursuit of this bird in the 

 open season is a perfectly legitimate 'and 

 healthful sport. Who can describe the 

 feelings of the sportsman when a covy 

 of these plump birds is flushed from 

 some thicket; the very ground seeming 

 to pour forth a stream of birds and the 

 air to be full of them for a second ; and 

 then 'all is over, for they disapear as 

 quickly as they come. The sportsman 

 must indeed be quick (and not become 

 rattled) if he would bring down one of 

 these brown- feathered creatures, as they 

 dash quickly out of sight in every direc- 

 tion. Even when the hunter is exper- 

 ienced and is looking for this very thing, 

 the surprise of their sudden apearance 



is enough to disconcert him for the mo- 

 ment. So close do these birds lie that 

 one can almost step upon them before 

 they will fly. 



In the early part of the last century 

 the Quail was one of the most abun- 

 dant of birds, following the pioneer as 

 he cleared the forest and in many in- 

 stances building their nests and rear- 

 ing their young in close proximity to 

 his dwelling. Then they had but few 

 enemies and as a result their numbers 

 increased largely. In later years they 

 have been so relentlessly and persist- 

 ently hunted, not only with guns, but 

 with dogs and traps, that their numbers 

 have been sadly reduced. Added to its 

 human foes, which seem bent on exter- 

 minating' it, the Quail has to contend 

 against certain natural enemies such as 

 foxes, cats, weasels, skunks, and even 

 snakes which feed upon the contents of 

 the nest. It is earnestly to be desired 

 that laws may be enacted in all states in 

 which this bird is found, which shall 

 prohibit the killing of the Quail until 

 they have had time to recover from the 

 ruthless slaughter which has been, and 

 is even now, going on against them. The 

 Quail is one of the farmers friends and 

 he should take every means of protect- 

 ing them, at least upon his own prem- 

 ises. 



A word about the common name of 

 this bird. The name Quail is now con- 

 fined to a group of Old World birds 

 much smaller than the subject of this 

 sketch, and our bird should be called a 

 Partridge. However correct this name 

 may be, it will probably be difficult, if 

 not impossible, to change the name of 

 such a familiar bird, and to the sports- 

 man and farmer it will ever be known 

 as ''Quail" and ''Bob-white." 



In Flordia this common bird is re- 

 placed by another and smaller variety 

 (colinus virginianiis floridanus) which, 

 however, has about the same habits as 

 its northern relative. Another variety 

 (texanus) is found in southern and west- 

 ern Texas and in northern and western 

 Mexico. Collin's Thurber. 



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