This 17-step guide will show you how to draw a quail, a beautiful small bird. Quails are known for their rounded bodies, short tails, and unique forward-curving feather plume on their heads. In this tutorial, I’ll walk you through each stage to help you capture their gentle form and characteristic markings.
About the Quail
- Category: Ground-dwelling bird
- Habitat: Grasslands, fields, and woodland edges
- Notable feature: A curved head plume
- Color pattern: A mix of gray, brown, cream, and black tones
- Body shape: Rounded with short wings and a plump chest
Try to keep the quail’s body soft and natural. The plumage should follow the direction of the bird’s shape – short curved strokes work best to suggest texture without overcomplicating the design. This pose shows the quail standing calmly, which highlights its rounded form and balanced structure.
If you want to add some more bird drawings to your collection after finishing this sketch, check out the guides for a Kiwi, a Canada Goose, a Golden Eagle and a Blue Bird.
About This Quail Drawing Guide
This tutorial follows the SketchOk color system for clarity:
- Red: New lines added in each step
- Black: Completed lines from previous steps
- Grey: Basic sketch structure and proportions
How did your quail turn out? Once you’ve worked through all 17 steps and feel good about the result, you can share your finished sketch in the comments under the pinned post on Pinterest. And if you want a fresh batch of guides like this one on how to draw a quail delivered to your inbox each week, the signup form is waiting at the top of the page.