15 Birds That Start With Q

Birds’ names justified their characteristics and their qualities. Scientists have kept their names according to their prominent characteristics, which is more outshines than other characteristics. For example, golden-crested Myna as these species have yellow golden color heads and faces.

This article will try to discover the top 15 birds whose name starts with Q, along with their scientific names, lifespan, size, native place, and other interesting facts about them. So let’s dive into these unique names of birds.

List Of 15 Birds That Start With Q

This section will provide our readers with the top 15 birds that start with Q and their other characteristics, such as scientific names, size, native place, lifespans, distribution, habitats, food habits, etc.

1. Quetzal

• Scientific name: Pharomachrus mocinno
• Lifespan:  20 to 25 years
• Native to:  Central and South America
•  Size: 13 to 16 inches 
• Food or Diet: insects, wasps, ants, larvae, frogs, lizards 

Quetzal birds are recognized for their stunning vibrant plumage on their body. Their body is green, along with their back and neck. Quetzal bird’s breasts are red, and their tails are dark brown and black. Their head is yellowish-brown, and their beak is yellow.

This green plumage helps them camouflage themselves into green nature and protect themselves from predators or intruders. They are familiar in America, mostly South and North parts continents.

They are also found in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Mexico during different seasons and times for their breeding or in winter.

They usually live alone in the wild but might get together in one tree for their feeding habits. Female birds give 2 eggs, and their incubation period lasts 18 days.

2. Quail Plover 

• Scientific name: Ortyxelos meiffrenii
• Lifespan: between 1 to 5 years
• Native to: Africa
• Size: 77 mm
• Food or Diet: grass, seeds, insects

Quail Plover bird is also regarded as lark-Plover, lark buttonquail. Maximum of the time, they live on the ground. They are l familiar with East Africa and other African regions, such as the Sahel. Their upper body is nut brown with white patterns, and their belly is white.

They are fond of grassland and thorn scrub and mostly prefer dry habitats for themselves. They are captured alone or in pairs in those habitats as their diet contains seeds, grass, and insects such as beetles, bugs, ants, and worms, mostly found on the ground.

They become active during moonlit nights and sometimes whisper or utter calls.

3. Quaker parrots 

• Scientific name: Myiopsitta monachus 
• Lifespan: around 20 to 30 years 
• Native to: Argentina 
• Size: 29 xm
• Food or Diet: seeds, nuts, berries, fruits,

Quaker parrots are also regarded as monk parakeets, a parrot group species. Their body is bright green, and their breasts are greyish white color with small beaks. They have long tails and little shiny blue patches on their tails.

Although they are mostly familiar in Argentina, they are still found in Brazil, Uruguay, and South America. They build their nests in a tree or a human-made structure with sticks rather than using pre-existing holes in tree cavities.

Their breeding starts between October and February. Females lay 5 to 12 eggs and incubate for 20 to 24 days. After 24 days, the egg will hatch. Both male and female parents feed their young as long as they are not ready to leave the nest.

4. Quelea: Red-Billed Quelea 

• Scientific name: Quelea quelea
• Lifespan: around 2-3 years 
• Native to: Sub- Saharan Africa
• Size: 12 cm
• Food or Diet: grains, seeds, grass,

Red Billed Quelea is also regarded as a red-billed weaver or red-billed dioch. Their upper body has brown and black plumage, orange heads, legs and black face. Their beaks are comparatively red, which is why their name is red-billed.

They are mostly familiar in South Africa in the Sub-Saharan region. Later they fly to the savanna with large flocks. They like tropical, subtropical, dry areas, and grasslands for their habitats. They try to avoid dense forests, rainforests for their habitats.

They migrate or travel long distances to search for their food source. They mostly eat from the ground whatever they have found. They eat around 1-2 mm size seeds for their food habits.

5. Quail: Common Quail 

• Scientific name: Coturnix coturnix
• Lifespan: around 2-3 years
• Native to: Europe and North Africa
• Size: 16-18 cm
• Food or Diet: seeds, leaves, vegetation, insects

Common Quail is also regarded as European Quail, famous for game birds. Their whole body is a brownish and white pattern, with a white eyestripe above their eye.

They are mostly common in Europe, Asia and Africa. They prefer grasslands and dense vegetation for their habitats. They also spend maximum time on the ground. Their voices are often heard most of the time rather than seen.

They hide themselves inside the corps of any field but will not fly. They are not willing to fly, and rather they will hide themselves. During their breeding season, male birds reach the breeding areas first before females.

Their reproduction season starts in the middle of May to late August. Females give incubation for around 20 days.

6. Queen Victoria’s Riflebird 

• Scientific name: Lophorina victoriae
• Lifespan: not found
• Native to: Northeastern Queensland,  Australia 
• Size: around 23-25 cm
• Food or Diet: insects, fruits, 

Queen Victoria’s riflebird is also regarded as a lesser rifle bird or Victoria’s riflebird. This bird is familiar in Northeastern Queensland and Australia. Their body has purple sheen features and a more shiny olive, blue color on the head.

Their throat is metallic green and velvety black combinations. They are not travel birds or migratory birds and prefer to stay in one place throughout the year.

Their food habits include insects and fruits from the trees. When they eat fruits, they hold them on their feet and peel the fruits with the help of their beaks. Male birds perform display dances during their courtship days and flaunt their vibrant, shiny feathers to their opposite mates.

Later Male birds embrace the female bird with their wings.

7. Quailfinch 

• Scientific name: Ortygospiza atricollis
• Lifespan: not found
• Native to: Africa
• Size: around 10 cm
• Food or Diet: primarily seed-eaters 

Quailfinch bird is a similar species of estrildid Finch bird. They are small-sized birds with brown, white speckled breast bodies and short, thick red beaks.

They often like to eat seeds. Besides, they eat fruits, nuts, berries, etc. They love to play and be with their other communities as they are social birds. They are spotted in groups of 50 birds making chirping and fluttering sounds. 

8. Quebracho Crested tinamou 

• Scientific name: Eudromia formosa
• Lifespan: not found
• Native to: Northern Argentina in South America 
• Size: 39 cm
• Food or Diet: fruits, flower buds, leaves, seeds, roots

Quebracho Crested tinamou is a medium-sized bird whose upper body is greyish brown to black combination with a small white patch or spot. Their belly and breasts are greyish-white in color.

They have crests on their heads. They are mostly found in dry forest areas like savanna areas in Argentina and Paraguay. Their diet has flowers, buds, seeds, roots and fruits. They eat their food from the ground level or the low-lying bushes.

9. Quail: Chestnut Quail-thrush

• Scientific name: Cinclosoma castanotum
• Lifespan: not found
• Native to: Australia 
• Size: around 21 to 26 cm
• Food or Diet:

Chestnut Quail-thrush is a small bird which is familiar in Australia. Their body is rich brown chestnut with a black throat, breasts, and white belly. They are often familiar in the Australian region in semi-arid and arid landscapes.

They are fond of low-level vegetation and scrub for their habitats. They are the ground walker birds to search for food. They hide in the bushy area rather than flying. They prefer running from predators rather than flying.

Explore the captivating contrast of black birds with white bellies in my comprehensive guide: 15 Black Birds With White Bellies

10. Queen Whydah

• Scientific name: Visual regia
• Lifespan: not found
• Native to: Africa
• Size: around 13 cm 
• Food or Diet: seeds

The queen whydah bird is also regarded as a shaft-tailed whydah. They are a similar species in the Whydah family. Their upper body is black, and their lower or chests are golden with a red beak. They are familiar in Southern Africa, South Angola, and South Mozambique.

They prefer grasslands, open habitats for their living and nesting. Their prime food or diet is seeds. During their breeding season, Male whydah is not committed to one particular mate; they have several females in the colonies.

11. Quail: Quailfinch indigobird 

• Scientific name: Visual Nigeria
• Lifespan:  not found
• Native to: Gambia, Nigeria, Cameroon
• Size: 10 to 11 cm
• Food or Diet: seeds and grains

Quailfinch indigobird is another similar species of the quailfinch family. Their body combines greenish and black plumage with a belly and chest side brown.
They are known as songbirds because of their melodious songs. They breed in the Gambia, Nigeria, and Cameron during their breeding season. They prefer isolated localities like a river flooded plains for their habitats.

Although their whole food habits are not captured yet, they are fond of seeds and grains. They lay their eggs in the African quail finch nests and add their eggs there. However, they do not destroy their eggs but lay their eggs there.

12. Quail: California Quail 

• Scientific name: Callipepla californica
• Lifespan: between 2 to 3 years 
• Native to: North America
• Size:  25 cm
• Food or Diet: seeds, leaves, berries, insects

California Quail is also regarded as California Valley Quail or Valley Quail. They are the state bird of California, so they are called California Quail. Their body is brown, grey-blue breasts with light brown belly parts. Their head has a dark brown patch or cap with crests (2.5 inches) curving downwards.

They know North America, Australia, New Zealand, Chile, and Argentina. They prefer woodlands, scrub, and grasslands for their habitats. As they are monogamous, they make bonds with one pair throughout the breeding season.

They make a group and find suitable soft soil for their dust bath. They go to sunny places for a proper dust bath with their group mates.

13. Quetzal: Resplendent quetzal

• Scientific name: Pharomachrus mocinno
• Lifespan: around 20 to 25 years
• Native to: Southern Mexico and Central America 
• Size: 36 to 40 cm
• Food or Diet: fruits, wasps, ants, frogs, lizards, snails

Resplendent Quetzal is an average-sized bird familiar in Southern Mexico and Central America. Their body is greenish gold to violet blue color. However, their body is covered with shiny green feathers. They choose lush vegetation and moist rainforest areas for their habitats.

They travel or migrate to lower Montane rainforests to the pre-Montane rain forests in the Pacific slopes for 3 to 4 months between July to October. Their prime diet is fruits. Besides, they consume insects, ants, ford, lizards, and snails.

During their breeding season, they show vocal sounds to attract mates. In contrast, when they see any predators or intruders, they show shy and quiet behavior to avoid and escape the situation.

14. Quelea: Cardinals Quelea 

• Scientific name: Quelea cardinalis
• Lifespan: not found
• Native to: Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Congo, South Sudan, Uganda,  Malawi 
• Size: 10 cm
• Food or Diet:  seeds of grasses, insects, nectar, caterpillars, grasshoppers 

Cardinals Quelea is a small bird around 3.9 inches or 10 centimeters. They are almost like sparrow birds with red faces and necks. Their whole body is brown and white belly with a short, sharp black bill.

They are familiar with Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, and Congo, countries during different seasons.

15. Quail: White-throated Quail-dove

• Scientific name: Zentrygon frenata
• Lifespan: not found
• Native to: Argentina, Bolivia,  Colombia,  Ecuador, Peru 
• Size: 30 to 34 cm
• Food or Diet: not documented 

White-throated Quail-dove is the largest quail dove among other Quail dove species. Their weight is about 311 grams. Their body is brownish grey, other parts such as the breasts are grey, the belly is buff-brown, and their white throat. They are familiar in western Colombia, Eastern Ecuador, Peru, and central Bolivia. They mostly eat what they find on the grounds; however, their diet is not yet.

Conclusion 

To sum up, these top 15 bird names that start with Q have their own characteristics to deal with nature and survive through it. This makes their levels and categories their unique names in the Q alphabetical order. Many bird names start with the P letter with their characteristics and adaptation quality.