If not a partridge in a pear tree....

Please click to enlarge for a better view!

If not a partridge in a pear tree.....then how about a bob white on a hay bale?
I had not been out to the strip pits in a little while so decided to make a run through this evening late. As I have said before I am not seeing near the critters that I was seeing, but still managed a few captures. I took about a dozen of this bob white...they all were similar so I just chose these two to show.

I was almost through my first run when I was headed down the hill and happened to glance at this these bales of hay and almost didn't see him perched up there. I took several pictures from my Rav4, but then got out...the top picture is the first I took and the bottom one is a cropped version of the last one I took of him. And it is a male...notice the white stripe above the eye and I call it a white beard.

I think most of us know the standard bob white call...and I did do that and he was stretching and looking. But there is another call that I used to could do that would for sure bring them in close...my brother George was who taught it to me. I have never heard anyone else do it, and I have been searching the internet trying to find an audio of it, but the only one I can find is the standard bob-white one, but I did find where they have several different calls.

I do think they are a handsome little bird....and does anyone else remember the book, Robert, the Quail? I read that when I was a kid and don't really remember much about it, except that I really liked it. Anyway, seeing this fellow brought it to mind, and maybe next time I am at the library I will look for it.