Gambel's quail

American  

[gahm-buhls kweyl] / ˈgɑm bəls ˈkweɪl /

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.

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Etymology

Origin of Gambel's quail

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

Example Sentences

While pondering how man-made rubbish can still find its way far into no-man’s land, a covey of Gambel’s quail flushed off to my side.

From New York Times • Jul. 25, 2017

Gambel’s quail occur at lower elevations to the east of California quail, where there are higher temperatures and less rainfall.

From New York Times • Dec. 28, 2011

Knowing where the elegant quail are at Pedregal, I can afford to leave for a few days to investigate this putative subspecies of Gambel’s quail.

From New York Times • Dec. 28, 2011

Compared with the Callipepla quail, Gambel’s quail has an extensive distribution through part of each of the North American deserts: Sonora, Chihuahua, Mohave and Great Basin.

From New York Times • Dec. 28, 2011

Also I'd indicated prairie dogs and squinch owls and Gambel's quail and road runners and a couple of coyotes and lizards and other miscellaneous fauna.

From The Killer by White, Stewart Edward