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Quail

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The wheat quail, or European quail (scientific name: Coturnix coturnix) is a small gallinaceous bird, cousin of chickens and pheasants, but especially of partridges, of which it is a close cousin.

A male and a female quail

Living in the meadows and fields, where it was once very abundant, it was hunted for its flesh, and was sometimes farmed. Today, it is rather its cousin, the Japanese quail, that is raised. The common quail is a migratory bird, which has been hunted a lot in the past. It is now threatened.

Food[edit | edit source]

A male quail It feeds mainly on seeds, but also insects, caterpillars, snails and larvae. If the quail is raised, it is possible to give it dried mealworms, or not (possible for breeding, these are mealworm larvae).

A quail on a stamp