Blue-breasted Quail
Synoicus chinensis
Tiny, round quail of lowland plains, grassy hillsides, and farmland. Generally uncommon and often glimpsed only briefly as it flushes from almost underfoot. Male gorgeously attired, with a blue head and breast, deep cinnamon belly, and neat black-and-white throat markings. Female brown with a paler belly and a plain face; compare to the strong white brow of the larger Japanese Quail. Males give a descending, plaintive whistle, “tew-tew”, and a raspy, snoring call.
Identification
Male king quail occur in many colors, including blue, brown, silver, maroon, dark brown, and almost black. They have orange feet that are hard and able to withstand a continuous life on the ground like many other game birds. Females are similar to the males, but do not occur in shades of blue. They can live up to 13 years in captivity but typically only 3–6 years.[citation needed] In the wild. they may live only 1.5 years. The eggs of king quail are a light, creamy-brown colour and slightly pointed at the "top", roughly ovular in shape. Male quail give a descending whistle and a raspy "snoring" call.
Taxonomy
Six subspecies are recognized:<p>The species has had a complex taxonomic history, being classified into the genus Coturnix, then Synoicus, then Excalfactoria. Phylogenetic evidence supports it belonging in an expanded Synoicus that, alongside the blue quail (S. adansonii) also includes the Snow Mountain quail (S. monorthonyx) and brown quail (S. ypsilophorus).<p>The subspecies S. c. victoriae was formerly named C. s. australis (Gould, 1865), but the reclassification of the species into Synoicus caused this designation to be preoccupied by the Australian subspecies of the brown quail (S. y. australis), leading to the epithet being changed to victoriae (Mathews, 1912).
- Scientific name
- Synoicus chinensis
- Authority
- (Linnaeus, 1766)
- Order
- Galliformes
- Family
- Phasianidae
- Genus
- Synoicus
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
King quail are not listed as threatened on the Australian Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.<p>This species is listed as threatened on the Victorian Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act (1988). Under this Act, an Action Statement for the recovery and future management of this species has not been prepared.<p>On the 2007 advisory list of threatened vertebrate fauna in Victoria, this species is listed as endangered.
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Sooty Thicket-Fantail
Rhipidura threnothorax
A medium-sized, long-tailed bird of lowland forest thickets, often near streams. All over sooty-gray plumage, with a short white eye-brow, white throat and a black chest with white dots. Likes to stay in cover, where it often twitches and fans its tail. Similar to Black and White-bellied Thicket-Fantails but Sooty has a black belly, and lacks the white wing bars and white tips to the tail. More often heard than seen. Most commonly given call is three explosive, downslurred notes “tyu-tyu-tyu!”.
Japanese Thrush
Turdus cardis
Elusive thrush, seldom seen far from cover. Favors well-shaded streamsides, gullies, and valleys in broadleaf hill forests during the breeding season, but can be found in sparser habitats in the non-breeding season. Adult male sharply marked and beautiful if seen well, combining coal-black upperparts with a snow-white belly punctuated with dark speckles. Immature male gray above, belly tinged orange. Female medium brown above with white underparts marked with both dark speckles and an orange suffusion; can be confused with female Gray-backed Thrush, but dark markings in Japanese extend to lower belly (restricted to the throat in Gray-backed). Rich, lengthy song often very repetitive.
Northern Gannet
Morus bassanus
Large seabird of the Atlantic with long, pointed bill, wings, and tail. Adults bright white with cream-colored head and black wingtips. Takes several years to reach adult plumage; juveniles are all sooty-brown and slowly acquire more white as they mature. Nests in enormous colonies on cliffs in the North Atlantic. Spends most of its life at sea, although often fairly close to land, so they are often visible from shore or on whale watching boats. Dives torpedolike into the ocean for fish. Gathers in large feeding flocks, but sometimes solitary.
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