Tammy Parker, age 9, of Austin, Tex., for her question:

HOW MANY EGGS DOES A QUAIL LAY?

Quail is a name given to several different kinds of birds. The best known of these is called the bobwhite. The bobwhite is called a quail in northern and eastern United States and in Canada.

The bobwhite is the only kind of quail native to the area east of the Mississippi River. It builds its nest on the ground and lives in the grass. The female will lay between 10 and 18 eggs in the nest.

Other kinds of American quail that have similar egg laying abilities are: the California quail, Gambel's quail and mountain quail. These birds have crests standing on their heads. They live in Western and Southwestern states.

The Japanese have successfully domesticated the Coturnix quail and now raise them in large numbers for meat and eggs. Hen birds are kept individually in small cages not much larger than the bird itself. Individual birds so confined will lay up to 200 eggs each year.