bobwhite

[bob-hwahyt, -wahyt]

noun

plural

bobwhites ,

plural

bobwhite .

1. any of several true quails of the genus Colinus, family Odontophoridae, including C. virginianus northern bobwhite, distributed through much of the Americas, having mottled reddish-brown, black, and white plumage: the bobwhite gets its name from its whistling call, which sweeps upward in pitch as an easily discernible “bob-white.”

bobwhite

/ ˈbɒbˌwaɪt /

noun

1. a brown North American quail, Colinus virginianus , the male of which has white markings on the head: a popular game bird

Word History and Origins

Origin of bobwhite¹

An Americanism dating back to 1805–15; imitative of its call

Word History and Origins

Origin of bobwhite¹

C19: of imitative origin

Example Sentences

The system’s greenery still harbors the bobwhite quail and other declining species.

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Northern bobwhite quail, which are roughly the size of a softball, have short legs, short wings and don’t fly much.

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The seasons for ruffed grouse and bobwhite quail are also in their final days.

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The Cedar Rapids Gazette reports that since 1962, the Iowa DNR has been doing a roadside survey of ringneck pheasants and other animals, including bobwhite quail, gray partridges and cottontail rabbits.

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It was a sound that hadn’t been heard in Logan County for close to 50 years - the song of a wild bobwhite quail.

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