coturnix

American  

[kuh-tur-niks] / kəˈtɜr nɪks /

noun

1. any of several small true quails of the genus Coturnix, especially C. coturnix common quail, or European quail, a widespread game bird of Europe and North Africa, and C. japonica Japanese quail, breeding mostly in East and Central Asia and widely used as a laboratory animal.

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Etymology

Origin of coturnix

First recorded in 1755–60; from New Latin, Latin cōturnīx, coturnīx “quail”