Along about mid-December, during a relatively warm spell, we got optimistic and bought a basil plant to keep outdoors. It was all downhill from there. The weather not only slowly changed but this winter, most unusually, we had six Pacific cold fronts come through. We’ve had weather, including temperatures below freezing, thunderstorms with hail, and high winds. There were very warm spells in between but it was all too much for our little basil plant.
We planted it in a large, deep terra cotta pot, along with some mixed flowers–which did very well indeed. This pot is about three feet from the sliding glass door that gives entry to the kitchen from our deck. The basil withered and slowly disappeared. But, lo!, it disappeared not only from the dwindles but because in its spot arose a number of huge Swiss Chard leaves which took over the whole back half of the pot. Well, cool, we love Swiss Chard. In fact, your regular author bought a nice bundle of same yesterday and then went out to harvest the enormous leaves (that had clearly come from seeds in the basil cup) to make up a nice mess of greens to go with our fried cod.
She found she could not bring herself to do so. Under the shade of the chard, in an ingeniously arranged bowl in the earth, she found seven Gambel’s quail eggs. Now, why in the world would a quail select a flower pot, just a few feet from our kitchen, as her nesting spot? Hummmmmmm. It might make sense. The coyotes use the field next to us as their primary market of delicacies, among which have to be the scores of quail that live there. We hear their howls during the middle of the night. Smart mother Quail! Her nest is in a fenced courtyard!
From that moment until now, there has been no sighting of mother quail, even at 3 AM when I got up to check. But, wait! Fern told me that there were seven eggs. I found nine this morning. There were ten at midday and a check just now showed eleven eggs. Something very fishy is in the works.
Seeking knowledge, that I did not readily find on the Internet, I telephoned the East Valley Wildlife Center, to which I was referred by the Arizona Humane Society.
All OK! The rig is that a Gambel’s hen does not sit and incubate her eggs until they are all laid–usually about fifteen of them. Only then is it time to get to the sedentary part–with help yet. Dad does his duty and sits as well. The incubation period is 21-23 days. And when they hatch, the chicks, after drying off for a short while, are ready to march off, under the watchful eyes of the proud parents.
We may have to delay our return to Italy. The suspense of not knowing the results of this extraordinary act of creation would be more than we could handle.
Yes, you counted correctly. We’re up to twelve. Stay tuned…
An Ex-Expatriate 
What a charming turn of events! I have been monitoring on-line live feed of a bald eagle’s nest in Iowa and a barn owl’s nest in California, both of which have fledglings in them. To think that my dear friends have their own personal version of this wonder right outside their door – it’s just too delightful for words. Clearly there will be a demand for frequent updates so I expect your departure will be delayed to satisfy your wildlife conservation duties and our eager curiousities. Good thing for the clutch that you can acquire Swiss chard elsewhere and have no apparent taste for quail eggs…
As you now know, events took quite a different turn. While we sad not to see baby quail, we’re happy to know they will have a chance…
I was lucky enough to visit your maternity ward yesterday. Mr. & Mrs. Quail are lucky to have you in loco parentis; I wouldn’t have been able to resist the lure of harvesting the gorgeous Swiss chard so the poor birdies would have been homeless. Anxiously awaiting the birth announcements and antics to follow.
To be honest, I thought about harvesting the eggs! But a wiser head prevailed…
How beautiful! Postpone your return, or you’ll never know … neither will I! 😉
Return not postponed, but all’s well, etc.
Gotta love that! I think Mamma Quail was clever to have co-involved you two.
Not so sure – not so sure about continued existence of Mama, or, if she lives, if she is a responsible parent!
Patiently waiting!!! We got all your cold fronts, the last spawning myriad tornados. Closest hit down about a half mile. No nesting birds here yet. Even the ducks stay away from the pool now.
So sorry about your awful weather – no fun at all to watch tornadoes in the neighborhood!
How cool. I would want to stay and see what happens also. Please keep us posted.
consider it done…