Cool Critters: Thankful for the California quail – the other game bird

Here we are, approaching Thanksgiving, and the wild turkey is once again the focus of avian attention. But the California quail deserves some of the spotlight as well.

This feathered friend is no taller than a dollar bill, wears a headdress and runs as fast as 12 mph. It also makes a distinctive “ka-KAH-ko!” call. On top of that, the bird’s flavorful, high-protein meat makes it popular among upland game bird hunters, and it is easy to cook at home.

What the gobble?

“California quail are common but unobtrusive,” according to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

In other words, unlike wild turkeys, when these roly-poly fowl hang around town, they do not roost on balconies, tramp through gardens or peck at their reflections in windows.

Of the six quail species that live in North America, the California quail is the one you are most likely to see in the Inland Northwest. Equally at home in city parks and shrubby back yards as it is around farm fields and grasslands, it spends most of the time in groups called coveys.

“My favorite bird is the California quail,” said Madonna Luers of Mead. Considering that Luers is a lifelong birder who is also a board member of the Spokane Audubon Society, that is an impressive endorsement.

Often seen scratching around the ground for seeds, leaf litter, grains and berries, the bird is easy to spot and easy to identify, Luers said.

“It’s a great bird to use for introducing young people to birding,” she explained. “There’s no mistaking them, and there’s no need for binoculars.”

California quail also are entertaining to watch, Luers added, comically moving through ground cover “as if they’re on rollers.” Meanwhile, a forward-curving plume of feathers atop its head bobs and weaves.

But scare these small birds, and they might scare you back. When alarmed, a covey of quail “can rise noisily from the ground, flying in all directions,” according to Idaho Fish and Game, adding that the loud, explosive movement startles predators, making it easier to flee. Bursting into flight like shrapnel on whirring wings, they startle unsuspecting humans as well.

The Pacific Northwest is also home to the mountain quail, which is North America’s largest quail species. This fellow prefers higher elevations, and its population numbers are much smaller than those of its California cousin. It is also secretive and avoids people. And instead of sporting a comma-shaped head plume, the mountain quail’s sticks upright like an exclamation mark. Both species stay through winter, huddling together to share heat when temperatures drop.

This Thanksgiving season, welcome California quail – hikers of the avian world – to your neighborhood. And should you encounter some crossing the street as you drive, be grateful that a honk of your horn will quickly shoo them out of the way. But a group of toddler-sized wild turkeys? Not a chance.