The bobwhite quail is a cute little bird, easily domesticated...that could well appeal to many folks, I reckon....and, of course, tradition can be found under many caps.
Allowing for "birddog breeding" to be set solo at the bobwhite's door would be a trifle alley-like in viewpoint tho.
Of the four mentioned gamebirds and using American in the best sense of the descriptive word...I would pick the pheasant for it's toughness, adapability, resourcefulness and well, good looks.
The ruffed grouse mentioned has pehaps the longest hunting history, certainly the most storied literary base by a country mile and, as with most grouse species, a true wildness that can never be truely caged but...it is a weak bird in many ways as indicated by it's decline in areas of it's range.
Still, it holds my heart in it's thunder.
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