Editing Common quail

{{Short description|Species of bird}}
{{Speciesbox
| name = Common quail
| image = Coturnix coturnix, Fraunberg, Bayern, Deutschland 1, Ausschnitt.jpg
| image2 = Common Quail (Coturnix coturnix) (W1CDR0001390 BD1).ogg
| image2_caption = Male (nominate subsp.) in Germany, and the advertising call in England
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name="iucn status 13 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=BirdLife International |date=2018 |title=''Coturnix coturnix'' |volume=2018 |page=e.T22678944A131904485 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22678944A131904485.en |access-date=13 November 2021}}</ref> (Global) 
| status2 = NT
| status2_system = IUCN3.1
| status2_ref = <ref name="iucn status 13 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=BirdLife International |date=2018 |title=''Coturnix coturnix'' |volume=2018 |page=e.T22678944A131904485 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22678944A131904485.en |access-date=13 November 2021}}</ref> (Europe)
| genus = Coturnix
| species = coturnix
| authority = ([[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], [[10th edition of Systema Naturae|1758]])
| synonyms = *''Tetrao coturnix'' {{small|Linnaeus,&nbsp;1758}}
| range_map = CoturnixCoturnixIUCNver2019-2.png
| range_map_caption = Range of ''C. coturnix''{{leftlegend|#00FF00|Breeding|outline=gray}} {{leftlegend|#008000|Resident|outline=gray}} {{leftlegend|#007FFF|Non-breeding|outline=gray}} {{leftlegend|#FF80FF|Possible extinct & Introduced|outline=gray}} {{leftlegend|#FFFF00|Extant & Introduced (resident)|outline=gray}}
}}

The '''common quail''' ('''''Coturnix coturnix'''''), or '''European quail''', is a small ground-nesting [[Galliformes|game bird]] in the pheasant family [[Phasianidae]]. It is mainly migratory, breeding in the western [[Palearctic]] and wintering in Africa and southern India.

With its characteristic call of three repeated chirps (repeated three times in quick succession), this species of [[quail]] is more often heard than seen. It is widespread in Europe and North Africa, and is categorised by the IUCN as "least concern". It should not be confused with the [[Japanese quail]] (''Coturnix japonica)'', native to Asia, which, although visually similar, has a call that is very distinct from that of the common quail. Like the Japanese quail, common quails are sometimes kept as [[poultry]].

==Taxonomy==
The common quail was [[Species description|formally described]] by the Swedish naturalist [[Carl Linnaeus]] in 1758 in the [[10th edition of Systema Naturae|tenth edition]] of his ''[[Systema Naturae]]'' under the [[binomial nomenclature|binomial name]] ''Tetrao coturnix''.<ref>{{cite book | last=Linnaeus | first=Carl | author-link=Carl Linnaeus | year=1758 | title= Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis | volume=1 | edition=10th | page=161 | publisher=Laurentii Salvii | place=Holmiae (Stockholm) | language=la | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/727068 }}</ref> The specific epithet ''coturnix'' is the [[Latin]] word for the common quail.<ref>{{cite book | last= Jobling | first= James A | year= 2010| title= The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names | url= https://archive.org/details/Helm_Dictionary_of_Scientific_Bird_Names_by_James_A._Jobling | publisher = Christopher Helm | location = London | isbn = 978-1-4081-2501-4 |page =[https://archive.org/details/Helm_Dictionary_of_Scientific_Bird_Names_by_James_A._Jobling/page/n120 120]}}</ref> This species is now placed in the [[genus]] ''[[Coturnix]]'' that was introduced in 1764 by the French naturalist [[François Alexandre Pierre de Garsault]].<ref>{{ cite book | last=Garsault | first=François Alexandre Pierre de | author-link=François Alexandre Pierre de Garsault | year=1764 | title=Les figures des plantes et animaux d'usage en medecine, décrits dans la Matiere Medicale de Geoffroy Medecin | volume=5 | language=fr | location=Paris | publisher=Desprez | at=Plate 686 | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/33606631 }}</ref><ref>{{ cite journal | last1=Welter-Schultes | first1=F.W. | last2=Klug | first2=R. | year=2009 | title=Nomenclatural consequences resulting from the rediscovery of ''Les figures des plantes et animaux d'usage en médecine'', a rare work published by Garsault in 1764, in the zoological literature | journal=Bulletin of Zoological Nomenclature | volume=66 | issue=3 | pages=225–241 [233] | doi=10.21805/bzn.v66i3.a1 | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/part/377172 }}</ref><ref name=ioc>{{cite web| editor1-last=Gill | editor1-first=Frank | editor1-link=Frank Gill (ornithologist) | editor2-last=Donsker | editor2-first=David | editor3-last=Rasmussen | editor3-first=Pamela | editor3-link=Pamela Rasmussen | year=2020 | title=Pheasants, partridges, francolins | work=IOC World Bird List Version 10.2 | url=https://www.worldbirdnames.org/bow/pheasants/ | publisher=International Ornithologists' Union | access-date=3 October 2020 }}</ref> The common quail was formerly considered to be [[conspecific]] with the Japanese quail (''Coturnix japonica'').<ref>{{ cite book | editor-last=Peters | editor-first=James Lee | editor-link=James L. Peters | year=1934 | title=Check-List of Birds of the World | volume=2 | publisher=Harvard University Press | place=Cambridge, Massachusetts  | page=92 | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/14482905 }}</ref> The ranges of the two species meet in Mongolia and near [[Lake Baikal]] without apparent interbreeding and in captivity the offspring of crosses show reduced fertility.<ref name=moreau>{{ cite journal | last1=Moreau | first1=R.E. | last2=Wayre | first2=P. | year=1968 | title=On the Palaearctic quails | journal=Ardea  | volume=56 | issue=3–4 | pages=209–227 | url=http://ardea.nou.nu/ardea_show_article.php?nr=1077 | url-access=registration }}</ref>{{sfn|Cramp|1980|p=503}} The Japanese quail is therefore now treated as a separate species.<ref name=ioc/>

Five [[subspecies]] are recognised:<ref name=ioc/>
* ''C. c. coturnix'' ([[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], 1758) – breeding in Europe and northwest Africa to Mongolia and north India, wintering in Africa and central, south India
* ''C. c. conturbans'' [[Ernst Hartert|Hartert]], 1917 – [[Azores]]
* ''C. c. inopinata'' Hartert, 1917 – [[Cape Verde Islands]]	
* ''C. c. africana'' [[Coenraad Jacob Temminck|Temminck]] & [[Hermann Schlegel|Schlegel]], 1848 – sub-Saharan Africa and the three islands
* ''C. c. erlangeri'' [[Otto Eduard Graf von Zedlitz und Trützschler|Zedlitz]], 1912 – east and northeast Africa

==Description==
The common quail is a small compact [[gallinaceous]] bird {{cvt|16|-|18|cm|in|frac=2}} in length with a wingspan of {{cvt|32|-|35|cm|in|frac=2}}.{{sfn|Cramp|1980|p=496}} The weight is {{cvt|70|to|140|g|oz|frac=4}}. It is greatest before migration at the end of the breeding season. The female is generally slightly heavier than the male.{{sfn|Cramp|1980|p=503}} It is streaked brown with a white eyestripe, and, in the male, a white chin. As befits its migratory nature, it has long wings, unlike the typically short-winged gamebirds. According to Online Etymology Dictionary, "small migratory game bird of the Old World, late 14c. (early 14c. as a surname, Quayle), from Old French ''quaille'' (Modern French ''caille''), perhaps via Medieval Latin ''quaccula'' (source also of Provençal ''calha'', Italian ''quaglia'', Portuguese ''calha'', Old Spanish ''coalla''), or directly from a Germanic source (compare Dutch ''kwakkel'', Old High German ''quahtala'', German ''Wachtel'', Old English ''wihtel''), imitative of the bird's cry. Or the English word might have come up indigenously from Proto-Germanic."<ref name=Hume1880/>

==Distribution and habitat==
This is a terrestrial species, feeding on [[seed]]s and [[insect]]s on the ground. It is notoriously difficult to see, keeping hidden in crops, and reluctant to fly, preferring to creep away instead. Even when flushed, it keeps low and soon drops back into cover. Often the only indication of its presence is the distinctive "wet-my-lips" repetitive song of the male. The call is uttered mostly in the mornings, evenings and sometimes at night. It is a strongly [[bird migration|migratory]] [[Aves|bird]], unlike most [[game bird]]s.

The common quail has been introduced onto the island of [[Mauritius]] on several occasions but has failed to establish itself and is now probably extinct.<ref>{{ cite journal | last1=Safford  | first1=Roger | last2=Basque | first2=Rémy | year=2007 | title=Records of migrants and amendments to the status of exotics on Mauritius in 1989–93 | journal=Bulletin of the African Bird Club | volume=14 | issue=1 | pages=26–35 [30] | doi=10.5962/p.309797 | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/51745887 | doi-access=free }}</ref>

==Behaviour and ecology==
===Breeding===
[[File:Coturnix coturnix MWNH 2037.JPG|thumb|200px|upright=0.5|Eggs]]
Males generally arrive in the breeding area before the females. In northern Europe laying begins from the middle of May, and with repeat laying can continue to the end of August. The female forms a shallow [[Bird nest#Scrape|scrape]] in the ground {{cvt|7|-|13.5|cm|in|frac=4}} in diameter which is sparsely lined with vegetation. The eggs are laid at 24-hour intervals to form a clutch of between 8 and 13 eggs. These have an off-white to creamy yellow background with dark brown spots or blotches. Their average dimensions are {{cvt|30|x|23|mm|in|frac=8}} with a weight of {{cvt|8|g|oz|frac=8}}. The eggs are incubated by the female alone beginning after all the eggs are laid. The eggs hatch synchronously after 17–20 days. The young are [[precocial]] and shortly after hatching leave the nest and can feed themselves. They are cared for by the female who broods them while they are small. The young fledge when around 19 days of age but stay in the family group for 30–50 days. They generally first breed when one year old and only have a single brood.{{sfn|Cramp|1980|pp=501-502}}

==Relationship to humans==
{{See also|Quail as food}}
The common quail is heavily hunted as [[game (food)|game]] on passage through the [[Mediterranean]] area. Very large numbers are caught in nets along the Mediterranean coast of Egypt. It is estimated that in 2012, during the autumn migration, 3.4 million birds were caught in northern Sinai and perhaps as many as 12.9 million in the whole of Egypt.<ref>{{Cite journal | last1=Eason | first1=P. | last2=Rabia | first2=B. | last3=Attum | first3=O. | date=2016 | title=Hunting of migratory birds in North Sinai, Egypt | journal=Bird Conservation International | volume=26 | issue=1 | pages=39–51 | doi=10.1017/S0959270915000180 | url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/284560515 | doi-access=free }}</ref>

This species over recent years has seen an increase in its [[biological reproduction|propagation]] in the United States and Europe. However, most of this increase is with [[hobbyists]]. It is declining in parts of its range such as Ireland.

In 1537, Queen [[Jane Seymour]], third wife of [[Henry VIII]], then pregnant with the future King [[Edward VI]], developed an insatiable craving for quail, and courtiers and diplomats abroad were ordered to find sufficient supplies for the Queen.

===Poisoning===
If common quails have eaten certain plants, although which plants is still in debate, the meat from quail can be poisonous, with one in four who consume poisonous flesh becoming ill with [[coturnism]], which is characterized by muscle soreness, and which may lead to [[Rhabdomyolysis|kidney failure]].<ref>{{Cite journal | last1=Korkmaz | first1=İ. | last2=Kukul Güven | first2=F.M. | last3=Eren | first3=Ş.H. | last4=Dogan | first4=Z. | date=2011 | title=Quail consumption can be harmful | journal=Journal of Emergency Medicine | volume=41 | issue=5 | pages=499–502 | doi=10.1016/j.jemermed.2008.03.045| pmid=18963719 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal | last1=Tsironi | first1=M. | last2=Andriopoulos | first2=P. | last3=Xamodraka | first3=E. | last4=Deftereos | first4=S. | last5=Vassilopoulos | first5=A. | last6=Asimakopoulos | first6=G. | last7=Aessopos | first7=A. | date=2004 | title=The patient with rhabdomyolysis: Have you considered quail poisoning? | journal=CMAJ | volume=171 | issue=4 | pages=325–326 | doi=10.1503/cmaj.1031256 | pmid=15313988 | pmc=509041 | doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | last=Ouzounellis | first=T. | title=Some notes on quail poisoning | journal=JAMA |date=1970 |volume=211 | issue=7 | pages=1186–7 | pmid=4904256 | doi=10.1001/jama.1970.03170070056017}}</ref>

==In culture==
In the Bible, the [[Book of Numbers]] chapter 11 describes a story of a huge mass of quails that were blown by a wind and were taken as meat by the Israelites in the wilderness.<ref>Numbers 11:31-35</ref>

==Gallery==
<gallery>
A common quail in Lebanon, crop.jpg|Head of female of the nominate subspecies
Weibliche Wachtel (Coturnix coturnix).jpg|Female
Quail from the Crossley ID Guide Britain and Ireland.jpg|ID composite
Head of Coturnix coturnix - Herbert Goodchild.jpg|Head of nominate subspecies
Head of Coturnix capensis - Herbert Goodchild.jpg|Head of ''Coturnix coturnix africana''
</gallery>

==See also==
* [[Quails in cookery]]

==References==
{{Reflist|refs=
<ref name=Hume1880>{{cite book |last1=Hume |first1=A.O. |last2=Marshall |first2=C.H.T. |title=Game Birds of India, Burmah and Ceylon |year=1880 |publisher=A.O. Hume and C.H.T. Marshall |location=Calcutta |page=148 |volume=II |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/131457#page/5/mode/1up}}</ref>

}}

==Sources==
{{refbegin}}
*{{ cite book | editor1-last=Cramp | editor1-first=Stanley | editor1-link=Stanley Cramp | year=1980 | chapter=''Coturnix coturnix'' Quail | title=Handbook of the Birds of Europe the Middle East and North Africa. The Birds of the Western Palearctic | volume=II: Hawks to Bustards | place=Oxford | publisher=Oxford University Press | isbn=978-0-19-857505-4 | pages=496–503}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Coturnix coturnix}}
{{Wikispecies|Coturnix coturnix}}
* [http://sabap2.adu.org.za/docs/sabap1/200.pdf Common quail species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds]
* [http://www.oiseaux.net/oiseaux/photos/caille.des.bles.html Common quail photos] at Oiseaux
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20161108171802/http://aulaenred.ibercaja.es/wp-content/uploads/144_QuailCcoturnix.pdf Identification guide (PDF; 3.4 MB) by Javier Blasco-Zumeta & Gerd-Michael Heinze]
* {{BirdLife|22678944|Coturnix coturnix}}
* {{Avibase|name=Coturnix coturnix}}
* {{InternetBirdCollection|common-quail-coturnix-coturnix}}
* {{VIREO|European+Quail|European Quail}}
* {{IUCN_Map|22678944/166185991|Coturnix coturnix}}
* {{Xeno-canto species|Coturnix|coturnix|Common quail}}

{{Taxonbar |from=Q28358}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Coturnix|common quail]]
[[Category:Quails|common quail]]
[[Category:Birds of Eurasia]]
[[Category:Wintering birds of Africa]]
[[Category:Wintering birds of South Asia]]
[[Category:Birds described in 1758|common quail]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus|common quail]]
[[Category:Toxic birds]]
[[Category:Animals in the Bible]]
[[Category:Jane Seymour]]
[[Category:Book of Numbers]]