Object Status:
Extant
Accession Date:
By 1799
Primary Source Reference:
Charles Willson Peale, Lecture on Natural History 30. (ca. 1799). Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University Archives, coll. 40. / https://ansp.org/research/library/archives/0000-0099/coll0040/
Additional Source Text:
Charles Willson Peale (1741-1827) wrote, in his 30th Lecture (ca. 1799): "[No.] 1133. Chinese Quail. Edwd. t. 247. Lath. II. 2. p. 783. n. 25. Buff. Caille des Philippines, pl. enl. 126. f. 2. Tetrao sinensis Linn." (Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University Archives, coll. 40)
Peale wrote, in "A Walk Through the Philad[elphi]a Museum" (1805–1806): "The quail of Europe (T. coturnix) is considerably smaller than the American quail but the Chinese quail (T. Sinensis) is still smaller. Authors give accounts of immense quantities of them [T. coturnix] being taken on the west coast of the Kingdom of Naples – and the neighbouring Countries, which it is said leave no doubt of their being the same kind of Birds which the divine hand of providence directed in such quantities as to cover the Camp of the mourning Israelites (Exod: XVI.13.)" (Historical Society of Pennsylvania, coll. 0481
Specimen Type:
Dead/preserved
Current Common Name:
King Quail
Current Scientific Name
Phasianidae | Excalfactoria chinensis
