Fun Gambeling

It’s a girl! It’s a boy! It’s a boy, girl, girl, boy, boy, boy, girl! Nine “grandchildren”—our first!

When the accompanying group photo was taken at 10 a.m., their age could be counted in minutes. (Jason, a crawler, had already inched out of the shot. Justin is the one with his eyes still closed.)

Not until I wrote the article for the newspaper did I name any of the quail.
The names Justin and Jason were borrowed from our two youngest nephews.

A family of Gambel’s quail chicks must hatch at the same time or get left behind. So, the 3-week incubation starts after all the eggs have been laid, which itself may take two weeks.

This is not the nest our nine came from, but one
we found elsewhere in the yard. There are usually
about 10-15 eggs in a clutch. Sometimes 1-2 don’t hatch
in time to leave the nest with the others. On a warm day, the
stragglers may hatch without Mom’s help.

Security for the nest is more important than architecture. A few pine needles on the gravelscape at an inside corner near the back door, under a quarter tepee of limbs leaning against the house. Somehow the mother squeezed between the wooden “security bars”—a serendipitous Quail Casa—where she managed to bring to life all nine.

There were so few pine needles comprising this nest, I was tempted to count them!
I removed two of the limbs leaning against the corner to get this shot,
so you can see how cozy and protected our little family was.

Gambel’s are our fanciest Northern Arizona quail; although, we can also have Scaled and Montezuma. (The prolific Northern Bobwhite is an Eastern relative.)

The male Gambel’s is easily identified by a large black spot on his chest and keen, matching black face paint. The female is similar, but soft spoken and without the heavy black makeup.

By noon, our nine were “dry behind the ears,” and off with their parents! That’s their custom—fluff and flee, never to return.

You can detect us a hint f moisture on their heads;
they're about ready to walk away from the nest never to return.
What a sight that would have been!

And walk they do! Though they try to stay out-of-sight  until they can fly, 10 days later, Gambel’s quail always prefer walking, unless forced to run, such as crossing asphalt in 100°+ weather… “Ow, ow, ow, hot, hot, hot,” they seem to squeal with every light step. If you’re a betting person, wager your out-of-town guests they will do anything to avoid flying!

The fledglings seem very modern in their observance of the current custom of living at home until they find a partner they want to live with. And with only 6-8 weeks from birth until they can have offspring of their own, the old folks don’t seem to mind.

For perspective, I broke the first bit of egg shell
into which I tried to slip a quarter.
As you can see, it barely fits.
Now visualize the above-pictured birds in a shell this small...
and walking two hours later!

 

Old Fashioned

Outings begin with the father’s seeking a protective vantage point. At his signal, the mother leads the rope line of chicks, a little distance between them. That is, all except one. There is always one, occasionally two, who will lag. Are they shy? Are they waiting to catch the seeds and bugs that fall from the mouths of their siblings running in front? Or are they hoping to escape the coyote or car that is taking down the avant garde?

The father is off to the right, in the shadows out of the picture. Some of the chicks
were also "out of line" and therefore not pictured.

Driving Lessons

It’s hard not to anthropomorphize these intelligent creatures. Recently I observed a lesson about snakes. As the covey of almost-grown offspring walked with their parents, the dad stopped to show them a snake, a fourth of which was headfirst into Lizard Lounge grabbing a bite to eat.

The brood circled round facing the reptile while the parents earnestly explained. When the snake came up to see who was tailgating, all the quail jumped back. But they didn’t leave. They soon closed back in to resume their examination, and left when they were ready to, not before.

The circle was broken as some quail jumped back when the snake pulled its head out of
the lizard hole. Some are pecking around eating, some look bored, and some look like they want to bolt.
I wonder which are the boys and which are the girls?.

Moral of the Story

The more closely we observe the wildlife around us—whether they’re eating our flowers or not—the better we will understand them. And when we understand one another, we are more patient, kind, compassionate—and better stewards.