§CArLIEID OUlA~ rL by Sheldon Dingle

TRAINING RECORDS AND CASSETTE TAPES PRODUCED TO BRING RESULTS

A true denizen of the desert is the this. Lack of moisture probably weakens Scaled ( squamata}, the the adult because of poor diet. They only native gallinaceous in the great don't come into breeding condition. arid interior of . It is a good look­ Second, if the quail do lay a few eggs, the ing bird, rather quiet and dignified in its extremely dry weather does not provide Mail Order Price is $7.98 for each item. colors. Leopold, in Wildlife of Mexico, enough humidity to hatch them, and We pay pootage. Send check to: Eagle Records, P.O. Box 1102, Burbank, CA. describes it: third, the drought reduces the amcunt of 91507. Be sure to state color and size Pale gray with a tufted whitish seeds, greens, and insects that the young ofT-Shirt. cresh. Head and neck brownish quail need to survive. gray, paler on throat. Fore back, If the quail have one dry season it sides, and chest steel gray, each sharply reduces their numbers since feather bordered with black, giving quail populations have a forty to eighty ~d.t·'}%\ a scaled effect. Underparts buffy percent "turnover" each year. Hence all \ \ ... ,;_ l ,\.;.;._ gray, the breast feathers scaled, of the birds found the winter after a all ventral body feathers with a drought will be adults and many of them SMin~~~- -- brown streak along the shaft. will die before next breeding season. As in many of quail, the colors The chief food of Scaled Quail is seed. 'Jurquoisine Auiaries differ somewhat in birds from different Studies have shown that the birds eat a Specializing in areas. wide variety of weed seed including GRASS-KEETS The Scaled Quail does best in the Bidens, corn cockle, dove weeds, foxtails, and lushest part of the desert where it finds Panicum, Johnson grass, etc. They also MUTATIONS ground that is mostly bare, annual weeds eat fruits and berries in season. Of course for seed which the bird eats, some surface the quail take full advantage of cultivated RALPH V. SMITH water, and some bushy or cactus cover. grain crops although there is not much 616 So. Fifth Street Most of the year the Scaled Quail are farming in the Scaled Quail range. Insects Montebellow, CA. 90640 found in coveys of ten to twenty birds. of all sorts form an important secondary (213) 728-2263 Occasionally they gather in groups of one source of food, and a third source is the hundred or more. These coveys range other greens. If one were attempting to over very large areas with, of course, each breed these birds in captivity, a knowl­ covey sticking to its own territory. The edge of their natural foods should prove home ranges often overlap at the watering helpful. So You Want To sources which tends to cause an observer Fortunately these birds are not pre­ Breed Your Canary to greatly overestimate the number of sently in danger of extinction. No matter by Charlotte Nierenberg quail in a given area. how much they are hunted in Mexico In early summer the coveys break up they seem to maintain a constant popu­ A guide for the novice. into pairs and nesting occurs during lation. The quail do not suffer much 1une, 1uly, and August. This nesting from predators either, except for owls Step-by-step care, before, during and after breeding. The aim of Mrs. Nieren­ season coincides with the summer rains and hawks. and chase berg is to take the guess work out of the that prevail in Mexico. The rains cause the quail a bit but are not very success­ novice's first attempt at canary breeding, the desert to sprout profusely, providing ful. The Roadrunner- cartoon providing a guide to success. greens and seeds which the young quail format no doubt. This helpful handbook is a must for the get started on. The insect population I know personally two outstanding beginner's library, as well as the ex­ perienced fancier. also explodes during this time of warmth breeders of quail but, alas, these fellows, and moisture and provides a high protein R.O. Taylor and H.R. Mattice, like quail $3.00 Post Paid supplement for the young birds. better than they like people. It is most The summer rains are so important difficult to obtain their avicultural re­ Order From that during a very dry year the quail do cords regarding quail but at least they are A.F.A. Watchbird not reproduce at all. Several quail breed­ producing these beautiful birds for the P.0. Box 1125 ers here in Southern California have enjoyment of many aviculturists. The Garden Grove, CA. 92642 noticed this phenomenon in their captive Scaled Quail is an excellent addition to quail also. There are several reasons for any bird collection. 10