CA Mountain Quail Hunting Guide

Also known as: Mountain quail, Plumed quail

The mountain quail is a small ground-dwelling bird in the New World quail family. This species is the only one in the genus Oreortyx, which is sometimes included in Callipepla. This is not appropriate, however, as the mountain quail's ancestors diverged from other New World quails earlier than the bobwhites, no later than 6 mya.

Habitat & Range

It inhabits mountainouschaparralwest of theRocky Mountains, fromBritish Columbiain Canada, and some areas ofWashingtonstate in the United States, toBaja Peninsula, Mexico. It can be found up to 3,000 m (9,800 ft) above sea level. It is anon-migratoryspecies; however some populations may be altitudinal migrants in some mountain ranges. Mountain quails also inhabit lava reefs in the Modoc Plateau of California, in addition to the chaparral and wooded areas of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and Coast Range.

Life History

Themountain quail(Oreortyx pictus) is a small ground-dwellingbirdin theNew World quailfamily. Thisspeciesis theonly onein thegenusOreortyx, which is sometimes included inCallipepla. This is not appropriate, however, as the mountain quail's ancestors diverged from other New World quails earlier than thebobwhites, no later than 6mya.[2] The bird's average length is 26–28 cm (10–11 in), with awingspanof 35–40 cm (14–16 in). They have relatively short, rounded wings and long, featherless legs. These birds are easily recognized by their topknots, which are shorter in the female and change color with the seasons and geographic location of particular populations. They have a brown face, gray breast, brown back andprimaries, and heavily white barred underside. Females display greater brown coloring on their dorsal side, a paler red on their undersides, and wider white barring on the flank than their male counterparts. Mountain quails lose the multi-color primary coverts on their wings as they age, and by 15 months old will only have solid-colored coverts. Mountain quail primarily move about by walking, and can move surprisingly quickly through brush and undergrowth. In the late summer, fall and winter, the adults and immature young congregate into family groups of up to 20 birds. The birds' habits can be secretive. Any flight is usually short and explosive, with many rapid wingbeats followed by a slow glide to the ground.

Status, Trends & Threats

It is not considered threatened by theIUCN, being plentiful across a widerange. However, its success is tied to sufficient habitat, which expands in cooler and morearidclimate.Subfossilremains have been found, for example atRocky Arroyoin theGuadalupe MountainsandShelter Cave,New Mexico, where sufficient habitat no longer exists. The bones date found from the end of thelast ice ageto not much more than8000 BC.[5] A petition to list the mountain quail as endangered or threatened was denied by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 2003. However, outside of California, the birds' habitat has been decreasing in Idaho, Nevada, and eastern Oregon and Washington because of drought and human activity, including agriculture and development. Man-made water developments (commonly referred to as "guzzlers") are one tool that can be used to bolster populations in areas where drought is a significant barrier to the species' success.[6]

Hunting Season

Zone Q1 only: Sep 12 - Oct 16 (mountain quail only period). Oct 17 - Jan 31 (within all-quail season, mountain quail included in daily bag).

References

• California — Mountain Quail