The species is found in sub-Saharan Africa.[2] It ranges from Sierra Leone to Ethiopia, and south to Zambia, and eastward to Kenya.[8] The habitat of the blue quail excludes dry areas. Inhabiting mainly grassland and fields, the birds typically live near rivers or other bodies of water.[8]
Description
The blue quail is 14–16.5 cm (5.5–6.5 in) long and weighs 43–44 g (1.5–1.6 oz).[8] Its legs are yellow. The colour of the eyes varies from brown in the juvenile to red in the breeding male.[2] The species is sexually dimorphic.[2] The male's plumage is mostly dark slaty-blue, with rufous patches on its wings.[9] The male has a black beak,[2] a brown head,[8] and a black and white throat.[9] There is a white patch on its breast. Its flight feathers are brown. The forehead, sides of the head and neck, and flanks of the female are orange-buff. Its crown is brown, with black mottles.[2] The female's beak is brownish. Its underparts are buff, with black bars, and its upperparts have black and rufous mottles and streaks. The juvenile is similar to the female.[2]
Behaviour
The blue quail is migratory, changing regions at the start of the rainy season and again early in the dry season.[2] It eats seeds, leaves, insects, and molluscs.[8] Its voice is a piping whistle, kew kew yew.[9] It also gives the whistle tir-tir-tir when it is flushed.[2] The blue quail is monogamous. The nest is a scrape. Eggs are usually laid at the beginning of the rainy season.[2] Three to 9 olive-brown eggs are laid in a clutch. The eggs have reddish and purplish freckles. They are incubated by the female for around 16 days.[2] The chicks are precocial.[8]
Status
The blue quail has a large range and appears to have a stable population trend. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species has listed the species as least concern.[1]
^McGowan, P. J. K.; Kirwan, G. M. (2020). "African Blue Quail (Synoicus adansonii)". In del Hoyo, J.; Elliott, A.; Sargatal, J.; Christie, D. A.; de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions.
