Cottontop also known as Scaled quail, feathers are versatile in fly tying, serving several purposes. These feathers are ideal for creating soft-hackle collars on wet flies. They can be used throughout the body of the fly or just behind the head. Scaled quail feathers are also effective for making legs and wing cases on nymphs. The various dun colors of scaled quail feathers can be used to cover grey wings. These feathers can substitute for harder-to-find feathers in certain patterns.
The scaled quail (Callipepla squamata), also known as the blue quail or cottontop, is a member of the New World quail family. This bluish-gray bird inhabits the arid regions from the Southwestern United States to Central Mexico. It represents an early offshoot of the genus Callipepla, having diverged in the Pliocene.
Named for its scaly breast and back feathers, the scaled quail is also distinguished by its white crest, which resembles a tuft of cotton. Its nests are grass-lined hollows containing 9 to 16 speckled eggs. When threatened, scaled quails prefer to run rather than fly. Widespread and common throughout its range, the scaled quail is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
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