Mexican Speckled Quail are a hard-to-find and rare color mutation of the native Northern Bobwhite Quail. They share all the characteristics that make the Bobwhite Quail so popular for raising, hunting, breeding, as well as eating. But instead of being colored in the drab browns and beiges of the traditional Bobwhite, Mexican Speckled Quail are colored in gold with black speckling.
Mexican Speckled Quail are usually raised more for enjoyment or on small farms rather than for release and sport as their coloring is so striking and rare. They are beautiful little fowl. Both sexes have a golden or buff background over most of their bodies but with well-placed black speckles. Females have tawny lighter-colored heads with a band of dark brown spilling over the neck from the back of the head. Males have the characteristic black and white striping on the face, but with mahogany accents that also extend over the wings and mix with darker speckling.
When breeding Mexican Speckled Quail, they will breed true but there is also a chance for getting offspring that are snowflake. "Snowflake" means the birds will be are white with black speckling.
Adult Mexican Speckled Quail weigh 6-8 ounces and usually measure 11 inches long. These are hardy birds with strong legs and stout beaks. They lay solid white eggs.
Mexican Speckled Quail are typical of Bobwhites being both hardy and adaptable, making them easy to raise. They are efficient production birds - producing both meat and eggs in a short period of time. They take up little space and could be great alternative production animals for an urban farm or homestead.
