Nesting of Quails. 
of the genus Cofurnix and it is signifieant that the latter 
have no spurs. Many— indeed most— of the Quails are born 
fighters and one would be lucky, I think, if one as a rule 
bred more than one species in one enclosure. 
III. The association of two females with one male 
answers well. 
IV. If there is only one female, remove the male after 
incubation has commenced because he may worry the female. 
I have found the male very useful: he will protect the nest 
from other birds, brood the young, find insects for the young, 
brood the weakly young whilst the hen takes the strong ones 
out foraging or vice versa and, should the female die, he Avill 
rear the young single-handed. 
V. When the young are hatched, drive the female and 
young into a run 6 feet x 4 feet, boarded all round, with 
one end to open and part of top removable for feeding, and 
cover i^art of top with brushwood: the run must lie ]daced 
on a level piece of grass. I have no doubt that this method 
would answer very well in cases where the adults are thorough- 
ly tame and steady, but it must be remembered that many 
species are naturally and constitutionally wild, and nothing will 
ever make them tame. I tried Mr. >Seth Smitli's method 
with my Crested Quails in 1909 and this is what happened. 
The adults were brooding the young very closely when we 
commenced to drive them towards the run but, as soon as 
they saw that we intended to move them, they dashed away, 
kicking the young over right and left, took wing and hurled 
themselves like feathered bombs against the far end of the 
netting. The young in the mean time scattered and hid in 
the thickest of the grass. However, we netted the adults and 
incarcerated them in the I'un, leaving them for half an hour 
to simmer down; we then caught the young one by one and 
took them in to warm at the kitchen Are. We then cautiously 
introduced them into the run, Imt the result was not what 
we had hoped. The adults tore madly up and down the run 
trampling the young underfoot and leaping up wildly against 
the netting and, had we not instantly removed the young, they 
\voul(i have been all dead in a very few moments. 
T think the above method would answer excellently 
when the adults are steady— indeed it is the one which would 
