quail

johnner1

just a quick question.

is there a season for quail in ireland.
can they be shot i was giving the springer a run yesterday and he put up about 20 in a barley field.
it got me thinking should i get a box of 8s or 9s:D

jwshooter

johnner1 wrote: »

just a quick question.

is there a season for quail in ireland.
can they be shot i was giving the springer a run yesterday and he put up about 20 in a barley field.
it got me thinking should i get a box of 8s or 9s:D

more than likely they were red leg patridges or maybe grey s ,i have not heard of any one with quail for a while you should enquire from the local gpa as they might have a management project on going

jaffa20

:mad::(:eek:

johnner1

would a red leg partrige be as small as a snipe or there abouts.
these lads took off with an alarm call and landed about 50mts away.

light speckely colour with a very stumpy tail its the first i ever seen them and i immediatley taught quail.

johnner1

hi jaffa.
just tried to look at image it wont open to anything.

jwshooter

johnner1 wrote: »

hi jaffa.
just tried to look at image it wont open to anything.

by chance were they golden plover ,could have flighted on the moon and were tired

John Griffin

johnner1 wrote: »

just a quick question.

is there a season for quail in ireland.
can they be shot i was giving the springer a run yesterday and he put up about 20 in a barley field.
it got me thinking should i get a box of 8s or 9s:D

You are most likely right about what you saw. They are a protected species and do not have an open season. They are summer vistors to Ireland. Can you please PM me their location. You are privileged to see them, please don't shoot them:eek::). Read on below for more info on them.



Text written by: Allen & Mellon Environmental Ltd, N.Ireland.



Quails are tiny migratory game birds whose numbers fluctuate greatly year to year and in some years none are recorded at all. These small game birds are reluctant to fly and are more likely to be discovered because of their ‘wet-my-lips’ call. No quail have been reported breeding in Northern Ireland for some years. A small but annual breeding population occurs around Athy, County Kildare.
In brief
No quail have been reported breeding in Northern Ireland for some years, but can turn up in suitable habitat anywhere
Usually found in cereal fields, but also on unimproved grassland
Best time to see them is late spring and summer
The quail is both a UK and Ireland BOCC Red listed species
Reasons for decline/extinction are not well known, but may be linked to wholesale netting around the Mediterranean during migration and changes in agricultural practice.

Species description
The quail is the smallest member of the game bird family and is not much bigger in size than a starling. The combination of its small stocky body and pointed wings make it quite distinctive. The upper parts are brown streaked and barred with buff, while its under parts are a warm buff-orange. It inhabits crop fields and is secretive and difficult to flush. When flushed it usually only flies a short distance before dropping back into cover. Its presence is normally detected by its distinctive call ‘quick-wi-whik’ repeated several times and often rendered as “wet-my-lips”
Life cycle
Quail arrive in Ireland as early as late April but more frequently in late May. They leave for their wintering ground in Africa in late summer. The nest, usually a lined scrape on the ground, contains between 7 to 12 eggs and these are laid during late May and June. The young leave the nest within a few hours and are attended by the female exclusively. Quail are normally single-brooded.
Similar species
Grey partridge, red-legged partridge, young pheasants and corncrake have similar behaviour and occupy similar habitats. When flushed, young pheasants have a very ungainly non-directional flight compared to the fast whirring flight of quail.
How to see this species
Quail could turn up in suitable habitat anywhere and are usually found in cereal fields, but also on unimproved grassland. As you are fairly unlikely to see quail in Northern Ireland, the alternative is to visit its stronghold in the Republic of Ireland, near Athy. Good years, when quail arrive in much greater numbers (for reasons that are as yet unknown), can enhance one’s chances of seeing or hearing this enigmatic little game bird.
Current status
Since 1953, it has only been recorded sporadically with less than 30 occurrences reported. Data obtained from the Breeding Atlas (1968-1972) indicates that breeding was proven around Ballymoney, County Antrim, suspected near the east coast of Lough Neagh, County Antrim and possibly took place on Rathlin Island, County Antrim, the east coast of Lough Neagh, County Antrim and near Strabane, County Tyrone. Data obtained during the Breeding Atlas (1988-1991) indicated a record from near Ballymoney, County Antrim sometime during the relevant period. The history of the quail in Ireland is somewhat curious. From the twelfth century to the end of the eighteenth century, the quail was a common bird in Ireland, indeed much commoner in Ireland than in Britain. Presently, the quail is regarded as a rare summer visitor to Britain and Ireland, but in the past it was commonly shot during the winter months and was plentiful enough to be regarded as a resident. Around 1865, numbers started to diminish and by 1880, it was believed to be almost extinct in Ireland. However, in 1892 and 1893, the quail reappeared throughout Ireland and was thought to have bred in County Londonderry in 1893. During the period 1890-1910, there are records from an array of sites in Northern Ireland with strongholds in County Down. In 1904, it was recorded in considerable numbers and clearly bred in many locations but by 1922, the species was classed as an ‘irregular summer visitor’.
Why is this species a priority in Northern Ireland?
Red Listed on the UK BOCC list
Red listed on the Ireland BOCC list.

Threats/Causes of decline
There appear to be few documented details for the reasons in the decline in numbers of breeding quail in Ireland. Elsewhere the decline has been associated with agricultural intensification, disappearance of uncultivated areas and widespread use of pesticides. It is also subject to strong hunting pressure in some Mediterranean regions and is badly affected by increasing drought in the region.

johnner1

thanks john for such a detailed reply.

i didnt realise they were such a rare sight in thease parts.


i brought a birder friend of mine to the spot this evening and not a sniff of them and we covered a fair bit of the ground.
as i said i never seen them before but i am 99.9% positive they were quail what else could they have been nothing comes to my mind.
all of the picture comes together/ cereal fields time of year etc.

Mellor

As most of us won't have seen a quail before, and even some of the others mentioned,
heres a few mug shots


Quail (there are plenty of variations, this is a brown quail)


Snipe


Golden Plover


Red Legged Partridge


Grey Partridge

foxhunter

I have some japanese quail or i had till they escaped a couple of weeks ago.
Just wondering will they survive in the wild ? .
They are out about two weeks now and i hear the call every so often they haven't strayed too far from home.

E. Fudd

I had the same a few years ago foxhunter!

They survived the summer for me, I only know cause the dog used to set on them up the top of the garden every now and then. Dont think they made it throught he winter though!
Some layers ain't they!

Vegeta

Yup never saw a quail in my life, thanks for the pics Mellor and the info JG.

foxhunter

E. Fudd wrote: »

I had the same a few years ago foxhunter!

They survived the summer for me, I only know cause the dog used to set on them up the top of the garden every now and then. Dont think they made it throught he winter though!
Some layers ain't they!

I never got any eggs they are only this years young ones .
Id say the neighbours think they are in the jungle or something when they start calling.

E. Fudd

When they start laying they realy start - 2 or three eggs a day per bird!
And very easy to hatch in an incubator!

foxhunter

E. Fudd wrote: »

When they start laying they realy start - 2 or three eggs a day per bird!
And very easy to hatch in an incubator!

Maybe we could introduce a couple of thousand of them to all the barley and wheat fields that cant be cut because of the rain and then get a special dipensation from the powers that be to shoot them.:D:D

Da Frog

Good memories for me. That's the first bird i shot for my first opening a good few years back. 5 minutes after the starting time and they flushed from between my wellies. 2 shots, 2 birds. If you miss them though it is very easy to find them qagain as they fly a 100 meters and land.

cavan shooter

I think partridge behave that way too i.e flight and land, flight and land and there in lies a problem. i.e some trgger happy chappy in your club could go through a covey very quickly, good discipline is needed.