MyKrugerHoliday
Photo: christoph_moning · CC BY 4.0 · source ↗
Common Quail
Afrikaanse Kwartel · Coturnix coturnix
A tiny, secretive gamebird that creeps through grass and crops, far more often heard than seen. A summer-rains visitor and nomad, it appears where grass is lush, feeding on seeds and insects. Its soft, three-note whistling call, often given at dusk and dawn, is the best clue to its presence.
Log your Common Quail sighting — free →How to identify it
Tiny streaky brown gamebird; in flight shows plain wings, unlike the chestnut-winged Harlequin Quail.
Listen for its call
A liquid, three-note whistle - 'wet-my-lips' - from deep in the grass.
Where to see it in Kruger
Grassland and old fields, especially in good rains, staying hidden on the ground until almost trodden on.
Did you know
It is so small and well hidden that you usually only know it is there from its whistling 'wet-my-lips' call.
Often confused with
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