California quail

American  

[kal-uh-fawrn-yuh kwayl, -fawr-nee-uh] / ˌkæl əˈfɔrn jə ˌkweɪl, -ˈfɔr ni ə /

noun

1. a grayish-brown, slightly bluish true quail, Callipepla californica, with a distinctive forward-curving plume, or topknot: inhabiting woodlands and shrubby areas of western North America, it is often confused with the Gambel's quail, but the California quail has a somewhat shorter topknot and, on the male, a dark brown cap.

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Etymology

Origin of California quail

An Americanism dating back to 1825–35

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

California quail

And what about the California quail, the state bird, running for cover at a pace slower than that of the advancing fire?

From Washington Post ● Nov. 16, 2018

Mice and California quail feed on newly exposed seeds on the ashen ground, and they are hunted by owls and hawks.

From Slate ● Nov. 14, 2018

A place in the United States where Gambel’s and California quail occur together.

From New York Times ● Dec. 28, 2011

This year's youth-only hunt for ducks, geese, pheasant, California quail, bobwhite and chucker is set for Sept. 24-25.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 4, 2011

The large-billed bird may be intended for a raven; the other the California quail.

From Illustrated Catalogue Of The Collections Obtained From The Indians Of New Mexico And Arizona In 1879 Second Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1880-81, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1883, pages 307-428 by James Stevenson