Quail (Common Quail)
Coturnix coturnix
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Distribution Britain 804 (+98.5%) Ireland 34 (+3.0%)
Numbers breeding: Britain 300 Ireland 20 European status: 720,000 (0% in Britain and Ireland) British population trend: sporadic — good year during Atlas How likely are you to record it? 56 squares (1.2%) Ranked 113 [101=] |
Quails are tiny, migratory gamebirds whose breeding population fluctuates wildly in our area. Huge numbers are shot on the Continent and this may be the reason for a general decline at the end of the 19th century. Now, in good years which are not very frequent, Quail can be found anywhere suitable for them to breed. Recent Quail years have been 1964, 1970, 1884 and 1989 — when there may have been 2,600 calling males in Britain and 90 in Ireland. In a normal year there may be 100-300 pairs in Britain and fewer than 20 in Ireland. Mixed prospects!
From
The
State of the Nations Birds
Copyright © 2000 by Chris Mead