Turnix sylvatica - The Andalusian hemipode is a buttonquail and resembles a typical quail, but the two are not related. Buttonquails can be found in the warmer grasslands throughout the world. The Andalusian hemipode averages 15 centimeters in height and is well camouflaged for living in tall grass savannahs. It prefers to escape from danger by running away, but it can fly. The female initiates courtship and builds the nest; the male protects the nest, incubates the eggs, and tends to the hatchlings.
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Morocco and most of Northern Africa had been part of the Phoenician sphere of influence until they were displaced by Carthage. Following the Roman victory over Carthage in the Third Punic War, 149 to 146 BC, Morocco became a Roman province referred as Mauretania Tingitana. The decline of Rome opened Northern Africa to invasions by Vandals and Visigoths. Islamic control of Morocco was firmly established with the arrival of Uqba ibn Nafi of the Umayyad Caliphate in 670 AD.
