Bird Album
Common Quail
Coturnix coturnix (Linnaeus, 1758)
16–18 cmLength34 cmWingspan96 gWeight
A small quail concealed in crops, it is often heard but not seen.
Busiest months: April–May · Most records: Portugal, Spain, Israel
Looks like Japanese Quail
How to identify
Field marks
- Long, slender yellowish-white supercilium extends to the nape
- A single black eyestripe runs through the eye
- Upperparts dark brown, marked with yellowish-white spear-shaped streaks
- Wings long and pointed; tail short
Male, female and young
Sexes similar in size, with slightly different colors; the female is usually a little heavier.
Voice
The male gives chirping calls in groups of three, heard as “wet-my-lips”, mostly in the morning and evening, sometimes also at night.
Similar species
Where and when it's recorded
Common Quail has been recorded at 984 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 104 countries and regions.
Records by month Northern Hemisphere
Where it's recorded most
- Paul do Cabo da PraiaPortugal1,030 records
- Lezíria Grande de Vila Franca de Xira – área geralPortugal866 records
- Balsa de Zolina/EzkorizSpain473 records
More places
- Wamm FarmsUnited Arab Emirates465 records
- Ria de Aveiro – Canal de Mira – troço Areão-VagueiraPortugal346 records
- Aras Kuş Halkalama İstasyonuTürkiye335 records
- International Birding and Research Center Eilat (IBRCE)Israel320 records
- Laguna de Gallocanta RN – ÁreaSpain267 records
- Lagunas de Villafáfila RNat – ÁreaSpain266 records
- ZPE Castro Verde – Vale GonçalinhoPortugal248 records
Countries and regions with the most records
eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.
About
The common quail (Coturnix coturnix) or European quail is a small ground-nesting game bird in the pheasant family Phasianidae. It is mainly migratory, breeding in the Palearctic and wintering in Africa and southern India.
Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia
Questions
How big is the Common Quail?
The Common Quail is about 16–18 cm long, with a wingspan of 34 cm and weighs around 96 g.
Where does the Common Quail live?
Its breeding range: Africa, Indian Ocean, Palearctic: Europe and Central Asia. It is most often recorded in Portugal, Spain and Israel.
When is the best time to see the Common Quail?
At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in April and May (Northern Hemisphere).
Is the Common Quail endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the Common Quail as Least Concern.
What does the Common Quail eat?
Main food: Seeds.
What family is the Common Quail in?
It belongs to the family Pheasants & Allies (Phasianidae), order Galliformes.
At a glance
- Length
- 16–18 cm
- Wingspan
- 34 cm
- Weight
- 96 g
- Habitat
- Towns & farmland
- Diet
- Seeds
- Lifestyle
- Active on the ground
- Migration
- Migratory
- Conservation
- Least Concern
More measurements
- Wing
- 106 mm
- Tail
- 38 mm
- Bill
- 16 mm
- Tarsus
- 24 mm
Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.
Range
Africa, Indian Ocean, Palearctic: Europe and Central Asia
Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2
Classification
- Order
- Galliformes
- Family
- Pheasants & Allies Phasianidae
- Genus
- Coturnix
Other birds in the genus Coturnix
Japanese QuailCoturnix japonica
Harlequin QuailCoturnix delegorguei
Rain QuailCoturnix coromandelica
Stubble QuailCoturnix pectoralis
Udzungwa Forest PartridgeXenoperdix udzungwensis
Ferruginous PartridgeCaloperdix oculeus
Crested PartridgeRollulus rouloul
Black PartridgeMelanoperdix niger
Hill PartridgeArborophila torqueola
Sichuan PartridgeArborophila rufipectus
Download illustration
Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from a reference photo by Анна Голубева. ↗
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