BLUE QUAIL OALLIPEPLA SQUAMATA. 441 



other Qna.il, but their cries are quite different. Their note of alarm is a 

 rather faint chirp, scarcely warning the sportsman of their presence be- 

 fore they fly. They scatter in all directions when flushed, and then 

 call each other together by a whistle, very much like that of a man call- 

 ing his dog. According to Newberry the hen has a cluck, much like 

 that of the common hen, when calling together her young brood, about 

 the first of August. The chickens also utter a piping note, scattering 

 and concealing themselves in the grass. * # * * They do not seem 

 anywhere to associate in flocks of more than fifteen or twenty, and from 

 the rugged, shrubby character of the country they inhabit, they are not 

 easily shot, except in the early morning, when they come out into the 

 roads and openings to feed. They live on seeds, berries, and insects, 

 and are very good for the table. As with the other species {L. califor- 

 nicus), more are taken in traps than with the gun. When hunted ia 

 thick brush they generally run some distance before flying, and then 

 rise singly, scattering so that only one can usually be killed at a shot. 

 I have never seen them perch in trees, like the other species." 



BLUE QUAIL.— Callipbpla sqtiamata,* {Vig.) Gray. 



As we have already referred the three Arizonian Quails to as many 

 genera, we may briefly notice some of the points of their structure. 

 That of the Blue Quail is most like Gambel's in bill, wings, tail, and 

 feet, but entirely different in the crest, which, instead of being helmet- 

 like, of club-shaped, recurved feathers, is short, soft, and full, and, 

 though capable of erection in a conspicuous manner, can be laid quite 

 flat, out of sight. The Blue is also called the Scaled Quail, from the 

 peculiar appearance of the plumage of the under parts, which is seem- 

 ingly abnormal in texture or disposition; but this is merely an optical 

 effect of the singular coloration of the feathers, simulating imbricated 

 scales or tiles. A corresponding result is said to appear, from the same 

 cause, in the plumage of the under parts of young Gaunets. The Mas- 

 sena Quail has the crest in general similar to that of the Blue, but differs 

 from this species, as well as from Gambel's, in the structure of the wings 

 and tail. These are both short ; the wing-coverts and tertials are re- 

 markably enlarged, hiding the primaries when the wing is closed, and 

 the tail-coverts are so long as to conceal the true tail-feathers, which are 

 soft and weak. The Massena is of striking and elegant colors, having 

 sharply contrasted round spots upon a rich ground, and other peculiari- 

 ties ; both it and Gambel's are singularly, almost fantastically, striped 

 about the head; the Blue is of plainer, though scarcely less-pleasing 

 tints. Thus each species shows some marked features with one of the 

 other two, but none of consequence with both ; and each has peculiari- 

 ties of its own not shared by either of the others. 



The Blue Quail has another peculiarity, of a different sort ; the two 

 sexes differ but little iu appearance. As a general rule the sexual dif- 

 ferences among gallinaceous birds are very striking — more so, perhaps, 

 than in any other group. Contrary to the rule in our own species, the 

 male is gaudily attired, while the female is of plain and homely appear- 



• Ortyx aquamata, Vig., Zool. Journ. 1830, 375.— Abbrt, Pr. A. N. S. iii, 1847, 221. 



CalUpepla aquamata, Gray, Gen. of B. iii, 1846, 514.— Gould, Monog. Odont. 1850, pi. 19. — 

 McCaix, Pr. A. N. S. v, 1851, 222.— Cass., 111. i, 1854, 129, pi. 19.— Bd., B. N. A. 

 1858, 646.— Coop., B. Cal. 1, 1870, 556.— Coubs, Pr. A. N. S. 1866, 95.— Coues, 

 Key, 1872, 238.— B. B. & E., N. A. B. iii, 1874, 487, pi. 63, fig. 6. 



CalUpepla atremia, Wagl., Isis, xxv, 1832, 278. 



Telrao criatata, De La Llave, Eegistro Trimeatre, i, 1832, 144. 



