NORTHERN BOBWHITE

(Colinus virginianus)

eBird provides this description of the Northern Bobwhite:  Heavily patterned, rich brown body. Males have black and white face. Females have buffy face. Found in scrubby areas and brushy woods. The only quail native to eastern North America. Populations declining sharply. Listen for distinctive “bob-WHITE” whistle.  All About Birds offers this description:  An emphatic, whistled bob-white ringing from a grassy field or piney woods has long been a characteristic sound of summers in the Eastern countryside. It’s quite a bit harder to spot a Northern Bobwhite, as the bird’s elegantly dappled plumage offers excellent camouflage. They forage in groups, scurrying between cover or bursting into flight if alarmed. Bobwhites have been in sharp decline throughout the past half-century, likely owing to habitat loss and changes in agriculture, and they are an increasingly high priority for conservation.

I saw my first Northern Bobwhite at the South Shore Unit of Choke Canyon State Park on the afternoon of June 21, 2020.  I was driving from the dam to the main picnic/boat launch area when I spotted a male/female pair of this bird.  Although I immediately parked and carefully tried to get close, they were very wary and in short order were into the thick brush and out of sight. 

Male/female pair of Northern Bobwhite, South Shore Unit of Choke Canyon State Park, June 21, 2020.
Male on the left, female on the right. They were always heading away from my attempts to get close!
The best I could manage of this male Northern Bobwhite.


“Cool Facts” About the Northern Bobwhite From All About Birds…

  • Because of its history as a game bird, the Northern Bobwhite is one of the most intensively studied bird species in the world. Scientists have researched the impacts of various human activities, from pesticide application to prescribed burning, on both wild and captive bobwhites.
  • Northern Bobwhites are divided into 22 subspecies, some of which were formerly considered to be separate species—such as the Masked Bobwhite, the Rufous-bellied Bobwhite, and the Black-headed Bobwhite. Although the females mostly look alike, the males vary dramatically from one subspecies to the next.
  • Northern Bobwhites were thought to be monogamous until researchers began radio-tracking individuals to follow their activities. It turns out that both male and female bobwhites can have multiple mates in one season.
  • The bobwhite genus is represented by more than 700 known fossils, dug up in sites ranging from Florida to Arizona to the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico. Some of these fossils are at least 2.5 million years old.
  • The oldest Northern Bobwhite on record was 6 years, 5 months old. They have short life spans but make up for it with prolific breeding abilities. Under good conditions, a bobwhite pair can produce 2 or 3 broods, totaling 25 offspring or more, in a single breeding season.