The northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus), also known as the Virginia quail or (in its home range) bobwhite quail, is a ground-dwelling bird native to Canada, the United States, Mexico, and Cuba, with introduced populations elsewhere in the Caribbean, Europe, and Asia. It is a member of the group of species known as New World quail (Odontophoridae). They were initially placed with the Old World quail in the pheasant family (Phasianidae), but are not particularly closely related. The name "bobwhite" is an onomatopoeic derivation from its characteristic whistling call. Despite its secretive nature, the northern bobwhite is one of the most familiar quails in eastern North America, because it is frequently the only quail in its range. Habitat degradation has contributed to the northern bobwhite population in eastern North America declining by roughly 85% from 1966 to 2014. This population decline is apparently range-wide and continuing. There are 20 subspecies of northern bobwhite, many of which are hunted extensively as game birds. One subspecies, the masked bobwhite (Colinus virginianus ridgwayi), is listed as critically endangered with wild populations located in the northern Mexican state of Sonora and a reintroduced population in Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge in southern Arizona.
Taxonomy The northern bobwhite was formally described in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae under the binomial name Tetrao virginianus. Linnaeus specified the type location as "America" but this has been restricted to the state of Virginia. Linnaeus based his account on the "American partridge" that had been described and illustrated by the English naturalist Mark Catesby in his book The Natural History of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands. The northern bobwhite is now one of four species placed in the genus Colinus that was introduced in 1820 by the German naturalist Georg August Goldfuss.
Subspecies
There are 20 recognized subspecies in four groups. One subspecies, the Key West bobwhite (C. v. insulanus), is extinct. The subspecies are listed in taxonomic order:
Eastern group C. v. virginianus (Linnaeus, 1758) - Virginia bobwhite - eastern North America from Ontario south to northern Florida (includes former subspecies marilandicus and mexicanus) C. v. floridanus (Coues, 1872) – Florida bobwhite – peninsular Florida †C. v. insulanus (Howe, 1904) – Key West bobwhite – the Florida Keys (extinct) C. v. cubanensis (GR Gray, 1846) – Cuban bobwhite – Cuba and Isla de la Juventud; introduced to Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, and the Turks and Caicos islands C. v. taylori (Lincoln, 1915) – plains bobwhite – South Dakota to northern Texas, western Missouri and northwestern Arkansas C. v. texanus (Lawrence, 1853) – Texas bobwhite – southwestern Texas to northern Mexico C. v. aridus (Lawrence, 1853) – Jaumave bobwhite – west-central Tamaulipas to southeastern San Luis Potosí C. v. maculatus (Nelson, 1899) – spot-bellied bobwhite – central Tamaulipas to northern Veracruz and southeastern San Luis Potosí Grayson's group C. v. graysoni (Lawrence, 1867) – Grayson's bobwhite – west-central Mexico C. v. nigripectus (Nelson, 1897) – Puebla bobwhite – eastern Mexico Black-breasted group C. v. pectoralis (Gould, 1843) – black-breasted bobwhite – eastern slopes and mountains of central Veracruz C. v. godmani (Nelson, 1897) – Godman's bobwhite – eastern slopes and mountains of central Veracruz C. v. minor (Nelson, 1901) – least bobwhite – northeastern Chiapas and Tabasco C. v. thayeri (Bangs and Peters, 1928) – Thayer's bobwhite – northeastern Oaxaca Masked group C. v. ridgwayi (Brewster, 1885) – masked bobwhite – north-central Sonora; reintroduced to Arizona C. v. atriceps (Ogilvie-Grant, 1893) – black-headed bobwhite – interior of western Oaxaca C. v. harrisoni (Orr and Webster, 1968) – Harrison's bobwhite – southwestern Oaxaca C. v. coyoleos (Müller, PLS, 1776) – Coyoleos bobwhite – Pacific Coast of Oaxaca and Chiapas C. v. salvini (Nelson, 1897) – Salvin's bobwhite – coastal and southern Chiapas C. v. insignis (Nelson, 1897) – Guatemalan bobwhite – Guatemala (Rio Chiapas Valley) and southeastern Chiapas (includes former subspecies nelsoni) The Cuban subspecies of hybrid origin between southeast Mexican birds introduced early by either the Spanish or possibly in the pre-Hispanic era by the Taíno people at some point between the 12th and 16th centuries, and later introductions in the 18th-20th centuries from the southeastern United States. The holotype specimen of Ortyx pectoralis is held in the collections of the National Museums Liverpool at the World Museum, with accession number D3713. The specimen died in the aviary at Knowsley Hall, Lancashire and came to the Liverpool national collection via the 13th Earl of Derby's collection, which was bequeathed to the people of Liverpool in 1851.
Description The northern bobwhite is a moderately-sized quail, and is the only small galliform native to eastern North America. The bobwhite can range from 24 to 28 cm (9.4 to 11.0 in) in length with a 33 to 38 cm (13 to 15 in) wingspan. As indicated by body mass, weights increase in birds found further north, as corresponds to Bergmann's rule. In Mexico, northern bobwhites weigh from 129 to 159 g (4.6 to 5.6 oz) whereas in the north they average 170 to 173 g (6.0 to 6.1 oz) and large males can attain as much as 255 g (9.0 oz). Among standard measurements, the wing chord is 9.7 to 11.7 cm (3.8 to 4.6 in), the tail is 5 to 6.8 cm (2.0 to 2.7 in) the culmen is 1.3 to 1.6 cm (0.51 to 0.63 in) and the tarsus is 2.7 to 3.3 cm (1.1 to 1.3 in). It has the typical chunky, rounded shape of a quail. The bill is short, curved and brown-black in color. This species is sexually dimorphic. Males have a white throat and brow stripe bordered by black. The overall rufous plumage has gray mottling on the wings, white scalloped stripes on the flanks, and black scallops on the whitish underparts. The tail is gray. The clear whistle "bob-WHITE" or "bob-bob-WHITE" call is very recognizable. The syllables are slow and widely spaced, rising in pitch a full octave from beginning to end. Other calls include lisps, peeps, and more rapidly whistled warning calls.
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