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Stubble Quail
(Coturnix pectoralis)
Aboriginal name(s): "baraberi" (WA)
Size: 17-20 cm
Weight: 85-125 g
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Similar species |
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Physical description |
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Click here for a physical description
Stubble Quails are small, plump, chicken-like birds with
predominantly dark grey-brown, highly cryptic plumage with grey streaks
and almost no visible tail. The belly is white.
Their plumage is
dimorphic, i.e.
males and
females
are slightly different.
Male
Stubble Quails have a rufous throat and a black chest.
Female
Stubble Quails have a white throat and a boldly
streaked breast. The irises of both sexes are brown,
the legs and feet are yellow; the bill is dark-grey.
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Taxonomy, classification |
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See Stubble
Quail at Wikipedia .
Click here for classification information
Quail vs. Button-quail
Although the two genera of the true quails, Coturnix, and the
button-quails, Turnix,
are outwardly very similar, and therefore often listed together,
there are significant differences between them (which is the
reason why they are in different family groups here).
Genus
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Coturnix
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Turnix
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Common name
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True quails
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Button-quails
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Similar species |
Chicken-like |
Wader-like |
Toes |
4 toes, one of which points backward |
3 toes, all of which point forward |
Nesting habits |
Communal |
Non-communal |
Main incubator |
Female |
Male |
Incubation period |
ca. 21 days |
ca. 14 days |
No. of eggs |
8-12 |
≤ 4 |
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Range, habitat, finding this species |
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Click here for information on habitat
and range
The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and
specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found,
based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to
ebird.org
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The global distribution of the Stubble Quail is available
HERE
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Stubble Quails are endemic to Australia. They are mostly found
in the south-western corner of WA and the South-East of the
Australian continent (NSW and VIC, south-eastern QLD and also
south-eastern SA), from where they can - in favourable conditions -
disperse into the entire western half of WA and the entire
eastern half of the continent, with the exception of Cape York
peninsula. There are also Stubble Quails on some islands along Bass Strait, but
not in Tasmania.
Stubble Quails have a preference for grassland, crops and low shrubland.
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Sightings |
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Click here for sighting information
B. Hensen reports spotlighting a Stubble Quail at Oolambeyan NP,
NSW, in October 2012.
We first heard Stubble Quail calling at Eulah Creek
in March 2014, followed by another visit in April 2015. On both
occasions the birds were not seen, but the males' calls were recorded.
They were next heard at the same location in April 2017.
Substantial numbers of Stubble Quail are flushed in the North-west
Slopes and Plains of NSW annually during the grain harvest.
During the severe drought of 2018-2019 the species retreated into
the Great Dividing Range, to return to inland areas in NSW only
after significant rainfall in early 2020, with subsequent lush
grass growth.
R. Plumtree reports
spotting Stubble Quails at Ensay South, East Gippsland, VIC, in
November 2014.
M. Eaton spotted Stubble Quails at Lake Samsonvale, QLD, in December
2019.
During the 2020/21 breeding season, after 3 years of severe drought
and heat during the summers with subsequently a year of above average
rainfall, an irruption of Stubble Quails was observed
in an area spanning from the Upper Hunter valley to the North-west
Slopes and Plains of NSW. We spotted a number of them, e.g., at
Eulah Creek, 20 km East of Narrabri, NSW.
At the time, no aerial predators, such as e.g.
Spotted Harriers,
were found in the region.
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Photos |
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ADULT |
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MALE |
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Frontal view of a male Stubble Quail at first light; note the
black patch on the upper chest and the rufous cheeks
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Lake Samsonvale, QLD, December 2019]
Lateral view of a male Stubble Quail
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Lake Samsonvale, QLD, December 2019]
Near-dorsal view of a male Stubble Quail - note the dark crown
and the rufous cheeks
(photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Ensay South, East Gippsland, VIC, November 2014]
Dorsal view of a male Stubble Quail
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Lake Samsonvale, QLD, December 2019]
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FEMALE |
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Lateral view of a female Stubble Quail (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Oolambeyan NP, NSW, October 2012]
Lateral view of a female Stubble Quail - note the absence of
a black chest patch (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Oolambeyan NP, NSW, October 2012]
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IMMATURE/JUVENILE |
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Dorsal view of a juvenile Stubble Quail
(photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Buchan Ensay Road, Ensay East, East Gippsland, VIC, December 2014]
Male Stubble Quail looking at the photographer; the chick
is just a few days old
(photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Ensay South, East Gippsland, VIC, November 2014]
Dad Stubble Quail was accidentally disturbed in the process of hay-making
while underway with at least four chicks
(photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Ensay South, East Gippsland, VIC, November 2014]
Here one Stubble Quail chick appears to be climbing onto dad's back
(photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Ensay South, East Gippsland, VIC, November 2014]
Social behaviour: Territorial? |
Mobility: Dispersive |
Elementary unit: Pair? |
As opposed to, e.g., Brown
Quails, we usually observe Stubble Quails on their own or in pairs.
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Call(s)/Song |
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For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The
interpretation of their meaning is our own; are welcome.
More Stubble Quail sound recordings are available at
xeno-canto.org
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These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our
contributors.
The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species
please refer to a field guide.