National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute

Forty years ago, the distinctive call of the bobwhite quail could be heard throughout Virginia’s grasslands. Today, their calls are fading.

Answering the Call for Bobwhite Quail

Forty years ago, the distinctive call of the bobwhite quail could be heard throughout Virginia’s grasslands. Today, their calls are fading — silenced by changing farm practices and land development that have led to the quail’s steep population declines. The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute’s Virginia Working Landscapes program has joined a nationwide effort to save this charismatic species and its habitat.

Long-billed curlews are the largest shorebirds in North America, but they are only found along coasts during the winter. They spend their summers breeding in the grasslands of Montana.

Hiding in Plain Sight: Tracking the Long-billed Curlew

Long-billed curlew are shorebirds that spend their summers breeding in the grasslands of Montana. Smithsonian ecologists are equipping them with GPS trackers to learn more about their movements.

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