Quails of Stavropol Region: Autumn Food Habits

Quails (Coturnix coturnix (Linnaeus, 1758)) are the only migratory Galliformes species. Quails are nestling ground-dwelling birds, feeding on seeds and crawling insects. Wild quails inhabit many parts of Russia. Quail farming is quite popular because quail meat is low in calories and possesses a number of beneficial properties, e.g., it is rich in proteins, contains little fat and virtually no carbohydrates, etc. As a rule, quails winter in Transcaucasia and Southern Europe; however, they sometimes prefer to stay in southern regions for the winter. This article introduces the autumn food habits of quails in the Central Ciscaucasia. The research relied on the analysis of stomach contents of 156 birds killed by hunters or hit by vehicles in several districts of the Stavropol Region. The material was collected in the autumn in 2008–2021. In the Central Ciscaucasia, quails are mesophiles and inhabit abandoned wheat and pea fields. The population fluctuates from year to year, depending on spring weather conditions. Their optimal nestling grounds include irrigated fields and areas near canals and ponds. In the steppe regions, they prefer agricultural areas, e.g., orchards, vineyards, holiday villages, sheep sheds, green belts along fields, roads, and railways, etc. Being phytophages, they rely on plant and, to a lesser extent, animal forage. In the autumn, they feeding on green plants, wheat grain, seeds of cultivated and wild plants, and insect larvae.