Gambel's quail

[ gahm-buhls kweyl ]

noun

1. a bluish-gray true quail, Callipepla gambelii, with a distinctive forward-curving plume, or topknot: native to the desert areas of the western U.S., it is often confused with the California quail, but the Gambel’s quail has a somewhat longer topknot and, on the male, a copper-colored cap.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Gambel's quail¹

First recorded in 1850–55; named after William Gambel (1823–49), U.S. ornithologist and botanist