The California quail is a prized game bird and it is found along the coastal western U.S. It is also called the Valley Quail.
This quail lives in a flock of 20-100 birds (called a covey) until mating season when they pair off. Like most quail species they spend time on the ground but easily scare into flight.
It is short and plump. The male has a gray chest with a brown back and wings. Its black throat has white stripes and it has a brown cap on its head. A white stripe crosses its eyes and forehead and it has comma shaped crown feathers that are larger than the females’. The female has a grayish brown head and back with a speckled chest.
These birds prefer grasslands with lots of brush. They mostly eat seeds with an occasional insect or plant bud. They feed in flocks.
The quail pair are monogomous and can raise 1-2 broods a season. The female lays 1-28 eggs in a hollow on the ground. The eggs are incubated for 3 weeks, both parents sharing this duty. After the eggs hatch the chicks leave the nest immediately. They try flying after they are 10 days old. Once they can fly they roost in the trees with the flock.
The California quail became the state bird in 1931.
Here is a printable color sheet .
In 1955 Alaska voted the Willow Ptarmigan its’ state bird. It is a grouse with brown feathers on its neck and back. It has a red comb on its head that gets larger in the summer and spring. It’s body has brown and white feathers intermixed. In the winter it’s feathers turn completely white camoflauging it from predators. The ptarmigan is the size of a small chicken.
The birds live in the tundras and thickets in Alaska and British Columbia. They eat flowers and insects during the summer and during the harsh winter they eat budsand twigs off of Alder/Birch and Willow trees.
The female lays 7 to 10 eggs on a hollowed out area of the ground, usually near rocks or logs. The female incubates the eggs for 3 weeks while the male stays protectively nearby. The chicks leave the nest when they are 10-12 days old. Several families will often flock together and migrate southward.
Enjoy the printable color sheet.
