Northern Bobwhite

Northern Bobwhite

The Northern Bobwhite, Virginia Quail or (in its home range) Northern Bobwhite Quail (Colinus virginianus) is a ground-dwelling bird native to Canada, the United States, Mexico and the Caribbean.

The preferred Northern Bobwhite habitat is open pine forests, overgrown fields, shrubby areas and grasslands. These birds respond well to areas managed with prescribed fire – like Coal Creek Farm – which helps to maintain an open, grassy ground layer.

Are you raising Northern Bobwhite Quail? Then you know that females can lay about 12 to 16 eggs, and a pair of birds may raise one or two broods annually. Both males and females incubate a brood of Northern Bobwhite chicks for 23-24 days, and the young leave the nest shortly after hatching. Most of their diet consists of seeds, but they also eat leaves, buds, flowers, fruits, berries and small invertebrates.

The Northern Bobwhite call is a loud whistled “bob-white” that sweeps upward in pitch; the song is used mostly by unmated males during breeding season.

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