Brown Quail

Brown Quail

Synoicus ypsilophorus

Silhouette: Edwin Price · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Brisbane

In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%

2,054 Verified sightings at Brisbane
381 In all 12 parks From 2019 to 2026
November Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Brown Quail

The brown quail (Synoicus ypsilophorus), also known as the swamp quail, silver quail and Tasmanian quail, is an Australasian true quail of the family Phasianidae. It is a small, ground-dwelling bird and is native to mainland Australia, Tasmania and Papua New Guinea and has been introduced to New Zealand and Fiji. Widespread and common throughout its large range, the brown quail is evaluated as being of least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

Although previously classified in the genus Coturnix, phylogenetic analyses have found it to form a monophyletic grouping with several other quail species, all of which have since been grouped in the genus Synoicus. It is thought to be the sister species to the Snow Mountain quail (S. monorthonyx), which was previously classified in the genus Anurophasis. Wikipedia →

Sounds

Song0:59

Australia · 2020

© Marc Anderson · XC1070970 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Uncertain0:28

Australia · 2021

© nick talbot · XC689257 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Song0:30

Indonesia · 2017

© Ross Gallardy · XC409803 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Booderee National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
~10%
2 Ningaloo Marine Park 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%
3 Royal National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%
4 Cape Range 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%
5 Springbrook National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%
6 Nitmiluk National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%
7 Kakadu National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%
8 Noosa National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%
9 Blue Mountains National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%
10 Lamington National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%
11 Hattah-Kulkyne National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%
12 Great Otway National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Brisbane 🇦🇺 Australia
~10%
2 Sydney 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%
3 Melbourne 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%
4 Perth 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

# Zoo / Centre Country
1 Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park 🇦🇺 Australia In captivity
2 Birdworld Kuranda 🇦🇺 Australia In captivity
3 Kuranda Koala Gardens 🇦🇺 Australia In captivity

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Brown Quail in Brisbane?

With luck

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Brown Quail sighting in Brisbane on a given day, based on 2,054 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 69th most-seen of the 237 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Brown Quail in Brisbane?

November to February

In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Brown Quail in Brisbane on a given day, against about 10% in March to October, the lowest months. Those are among Brisbane's wettest months, with about 130 mm of rain a month against 40 mm in July.

What time of day is best to see a Brown Quail?

Between noon and 3 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Brown Quail sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Brisbane the best place to see a Brown Quail?

Yes

Of the 4 cities where we can rate Brown Quail sightings, Brisbane has the highest daily chance: about 10%. Next come Sydney (Australia, under 5%) and Melbourne (Australia, under 5%).

Where does the Brown Quail sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Brown Quail is recorded against all the birds logged in Brisbane (2,054 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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