Red seems to be around every day. But the only time he sits still for a photo is when he’s at the Bird Buddy feeder! Otherwise, when I try to get his portrait, he flies away so quickly that I’m left with an empty photo.
This House Sparrow knows how to strike a pose!
Papa Quail keeps watch on his brood. It’s almost baby quail season!
A squirrel likes it when I put out a block of birdseed. They aren’t able to access the bird feeders.
Have you noticed the moon this week? I took photos of it over several days. March 3 was the day it was full.
This was taken on March 1.
A friend of mine texted me from Dubai yesterday. She and her husband were traveling for a safari in Nairobi and had a brief layover there. Which turned into four days! I told her to please let me know what they return safely to the United States! We had dinner with another couple over the weekend who were traveling to Israel this week. They have changed their itinerary and are going to Turkey instead. I think I’d rethink that trip, too.
Which photos do you like best?
Would you be comfortable traveling this week to the Middle East?
I saw Red and Mrs. over the weekend. Plus, an intruder, another male Cardinal. There was a chase between the two bright red birds and it didn’t look friendly. Mrs. was on the fence sitting between her Mourning Dove friends watching the show. The Cardinals dashed around and flew out of the yard. Mrs. flew away, too and I haven’t seen a Cardinal since.
I haven’t been taking many photos, because I only have “ordinary birds” in my yard. But yesterday I sat outside and watched them and decided they are all beautiful in their own way. That reminds me of a song that I posted below.
A Sparrow in the Fire Stick plant.
Mrs. Gambel Quail with her spouse.
A Mourning Dove sat on a branch floating in the air.
A Gila Woodpecker took over the Bird Buddy AI feeder. The blur on the left hand side is saguaro cactus spines.
Mourning Doves on the fence.
Quail playing King of the Mountain, or king of the rock!
I hope you enjoy my backyard “Ordinary Birds.”
Here’s the Grammy Award-winning song by Ray Stevens from 1970. I don’t think this song would be produced today with the opening of children singing “Jesus Loves the Little Children.”
I have one more week of recovery and then my post op appointment. I’m not in pain, but am unusually tired! I guess that is to be expected.
What’s on your calendar this week?
Do you have any favorites of the ordinary birds?
What birds do you view as ordinary where you live?
Gambel Quail babies that is. Monday afternoon, I had my first sighting of baby quail for 2025. There were four babies with one mother and two dads. I wonder where the other mother is? Maybe she’s at the nest with more eggs or fledglings? Four babies is a small brood. I have read that adult quail sometimes co-parent babies with others.
I found a nest last year in a planter with 20 eggs, which made me believe there was more than one mother. Unfortunately, that nest was abandoned because it was next to our garage. The adult quail flew away whenever we drove in or out of the garage. They built the nest while we were out of town.
Fun Quail Facts:
Mating Habits
Gambel’s quails are monogamous birds, meaning that they form pair bonds with a single mate for the duration of the breeding season.
The breeding season typically lasts from March to June, with mating occurring in the early spring. During this time, males engage in courtship displays to attract females.
These displays include a variety of behaviors, such as puffing up their feathers, bobbing their heads, and emitting a distinctive call.
The males may also engage in “tidbitting,” where the male offers foraged food to the female.
Once a female has chosen a mate, the pair will remain together for the duration of the breeding season.
They will engage in preening behavior to reinforce their bond and may engage in duets, where they call back and forth to each other.
The female will then begin to prepare a nest for the eggs, while the male will defend their territory and provide food for both himself and his mate.
Nesting Habits
Gambel’s quails build their nests on the ground, typically in dense brush or vegetation.
The nest is a shallow depression lined with grasses and other plant material and is often hidden from view to protect it from predators.
Gambel’s Quail Nesting Stats
Eggs
10 – 14
Incubation
21 days
Nestling Phase
Follow Adults after Hatching
Broods
1 most common / sometimes 2
Females typically lay between 10 and 14 eggs, which are incubated for approximately 21 days.
During this time, both the male and female will take turns incubating the eggs and protecting the nest from predators.
After the eggs hatch, the chicks begin following the adults, who will continue to brood the chicks.
Good news! The solar panel roof of my AI bird feeder with a camera arrived. I ordered it in January after a covey of quail leaped onto the bird feeder and it fell off the fence into the wash behind our house.
The tiny metal piece that plugged into the camera from the cord to the solar panel broke. It seemed like it would be an easy fix, but the Bird Buddy folks said my only option was to order a new solar panel roof and they’d give me a discount. I waited until June for it to arrive! In the meantime, I charged the camera every few days in the house.
I’ve been disappointed with my birds because two species are bullies and take over. White winged doves and mourning doves. They literally sit at the feeder and eat until it’s empty. So all my photos and videos for the past few weeks have been of big gray birds. I would get the occasional house sparrow which was a welcome treat.
Sunday morning I was shocked and thrilled to see a Cardinal! YAY! Here’s a video:
Video of a Northern Cardinal. It think he’s quite young.
I’m also enjoying a few families of quail, even though our nest of eggs never hatched.
Here’s a video of quail mom, dad and babies visiting our yard:
Quail family in our backyard.
Here’s a House Sparrow getting a turn at our Bird Buddy
What do you have planned this week to enjoy the world around you?
Here’s a quail selfie from my Bird Buddy AI bird feeder.
Twice this week I spotted baby quail. Once was on our morning walk and a mom and dad were followed by the teeniest quail babies I’ve ever seen. They must have hatched that day.
Yesterday afternoon, a family of quail marched into our backyard from the wash. They were a little older and didn’t stay long enough for me to get a video or picture.
I immediately ran to the front of our house to see if our quail eggs had hatched.
Our nest of eggs in a planter of Elephant Feed.
No, the eggs are still there and it’s been a month since I’ve seen a momma or papa quail in the nest.
Unfortunately, the quail chose a planter next to our garage. At first, I’d see quail fly away when I’d pull into the garage or back the car out. Raising the garage door was enough noise to make the parents take flight.
I’m afraid the quail were scared away and they abandoned their nest. Or something could have happened to them. It’s a wild world out there. I’ve read what to do with eggs to get them to hatch. The most sensible advice is to wait and see. I also realize that I’m not opening the garage door very often. Maybe the quail parents are there, but not when I’m there.
Does anyone have advice while I wait for our eggs to hatch? Do you think the nest has been abandoned?
I’m working on my community newsletter and my co-editor Sherry and neighbor Shirley put together fun facts about quail. I learned a lot of quirky things about quail I never knew before.
Here are the facts:
A group of quail is called a “covey.”
Males and females pair for life.
The male has a top knot plume that is actually six feathers together, and is used to intimidate other males.
Their food of preference is wild bird seed, followed by uncooked rice or sunflower seeds.
Nests are mostly in pots or window boxes, and are made by hollowing out the nest in dirt.
There can be a total of 7 to 28 eggs per nest, with the female laying 1 to 2 per day. It is common for two females to share a nest, which is called “egg dumping,” and the female only sits on the nest after all the eggs are laid.
Eggs are speckled brown and arranged in a neat oval called a “clutch.”
Incubation is 25 days at a temperature of 100 degrees, and eggs are turned often.
Before hatching the babies peep inside the eggs.
They are born with a full coat of feathers, eyes wide open, and are able to feed themselves.
They all hatch on the same day and leave the nest immediately, usually in late June.
From MY HOA SPRING 2023 NEWSLETTER — Written by sherry and shirley
This is the nest of quail eggs I discovered in a pot of Elephant Feed succulents. We’re up to at least 20 eggs now!
I told one of my friends I discovered this nest of quail eggs and she asked when I was going to “pick them.” I told her we’re letting them hatch and that I can’t wait to see the babies line up behind their mom and dad and follow them around our yard. They are so cute!
She said, “But quail eggs are so delicious.”
“I can buy them at the farmer’s market.” And I did!
These are the quail eggs I bought at our local farmer’s market. The vendor assured me these didn’t come from someone’s yard, but he buys them from a quail egg ranch. Somehow that makes it better. I can’t imagine stealing the eggs from the quail living in my yard!
I asked the vendor at the farmer’s market what they tasted like and how to prepare them. He said most people hard boil them and put them in salads. He also said they taste exactly like chicken eggs.
I looked up how long to hard boil quail eggs and of course it’s much less time than chicken eggs. 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 minutes. My friend was right — they are delicious!
Have you ever tried quail eggs? If so, what did you think about them?
Would you harvest quail eggs from your own yard? Why or why not?
I enjoyed the shadows of the quail as much as the real birds.
I was watching the quail yesterday in our backyard after I threw a few handfuls of seed on the ground.
I began to notice shadows of the quail walking up and down a tree trunk.
I also loved watching the quail sitting on branches. When I first noticed them they were all on the branches. By the time I got my phone out to record, they had mostly jumped down to the ground.
Last weekend we were too busy. We went out with friends on Friday, Saturday I cooked oxtail soup for neighbors, and Sunday we got invited to watch the football games with friends.
This weekend, I’m looking for quiet time to read and work on taxes.
Have a great weekend!
What plans do you have for the weekend? Do you like solitude or being with people?
