Japanese Quail vs Stubble Quail

Japanese Quail

Coturnix japonica

Medium95 gGrassland

The morphology of the Japanese quail differs depending on its stage in life. As chicks, both male and female individuals exhibit the same kind of plumage and coloring. Their heads are tawny in color, with small black patches littering the area above the beak. The wings and the back of the chick are a pale brown, the back also having four brown stripes running along its length. A pale yellow-brown stripe surrounded by smaller black stripes runs down the top of the head. The plumage of the Japanese quail is sexually dimorphic, allowing for differing sexes to be distinguished from one another. Voice: Some 28 different call types have been distinguished based on the circumstances in which they are used and the various behaviors that are exhibited during the call. The call types of the Japanese quail differ between male and female, the same stimulus resulting in differing vocalizations.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Recorded by Oriental Stork · Song · 大宁水库及其东部永定河废弃河道,Beijing,China, China · CC0

Photo: Kirill Tsukanov · CC0

Stubble Quail

Coturnix pectoralis

Medium102 gGrassland

The stubble quail is a ground dwelling bird that is characterised by its dark brown feathers with a cream coloured strip down the centre of each feather giving rise to stripes down the length of the bird. It is a plump species that is larger than other native quails. Male birds will mature at about 18.0–18.5 cm long and females are generally slightly larger. Adult males weigh around 100g and the females around 110g with all birds having a wingspan of between 25–33 cm.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Patrick_K59 · CC BY 2.0

Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Japanese Quail and Stubble Quail.