Nesting of Quails. 
Nesting of the Argoondah Quail {Pcrdimia argootidah) 
and White-cheeked Crested Quail 
{Knj)s(icliorty.r lencopnijon). 
By W. E. Tesc'Hbmaker, B.A. 
Our Editor tells me that he has had a request for an 
article on bi-eedin^;^ Quails, so it has occurred to mo that I 
mi^lu coiiiljinc some notes on tliis subject with some account 
ol the nesting of the above two species in my aviaries during 
the past season. The sul)jeet of the manageinent of Ijirds 
is one that ] always approacli with great caution Inr two 
reasons: in tlie iirst place aviculturists, as a class, are ,so 
remarkaltly, so painfully " touchy " that, if one ventures to 
dilTer from their expressed views, the result is frequently a 
passage of arms, and, secondly, individual birds and individual 
aviaries differ so greatly that treatment which answers well 
in one cas(> is often a complete failure in another. Further, 
with regard to this particular subject, my exi)erience is not 
sufficient to enable me to speak with confidence, so I have 
decideci to set down here the views of a more experienced 
aviarist than myself and supi)lement them witii one or two 
suggestions. 
(^)uite the best article on the subject of breeding i^)uail;> 
that 1 have yet come across is one by Mr. 1). Setii Smith, 
which appeared in the A riciilinral Magazine, N'ul. v. (X.S.), 
p. :1U. I will consider the advice given seriufim. 
I. In the first place the writer tells us that Quails 
should have a fairly large run, well turfed and with some 
covert, part of which should be roofed over and sanded to 
provide a place for scratching. I may mention that I have 
rooted up the turf in my own aviaries, leaving a few patches 
here and there for nesting, because I find tliat the grass 
grows so rank in the summer that no l>ir(ls can penetrate it 
unless oik- is continually culling it short. 
II. Secondly, that it is not necessary Ihiit each pair 
should ha\-e a separate aviai\v: Mr. Seth Smith tells us Iha. 
in an enclosure measuring 42 feet x 21 feet no less than 
tlii'ce pairs i-eared young in one season. It should be inention- 
ed, however, that in this article he refei-s chiefly io !^)uailo 
