Associated Species: Other species that may use similar habitat components or respond positively to management for the Montezuma Quail are: Eastern (Azure) Bluebird, Rufous-crowned Sparrow, Canyon Towhee.

Distribution: Montezuma Quail breeding range extends northward from southern, central, and northern Mexico into the United States to the mountains of southwest Texas, southwest New Mexico, and southeast Arizona. In Arizona, birds are most numerous in southern part of the state in the Baboquivari, San Luis, Parjarito, Atascosa, Tumacacori, Santa Rita, Patagonia, Huachuca, Chiricahua, and Peloncillo mountains, with lesser numbers in the Mule and Whetstone mountains. This species can also be found with some regularity below the Mogollon Rim in the areas of Eagle Creek, Blue River, San Francisco River, Black River, and the White River (Brown 1989). Occasionally, they have been found in areas up to 3050 m (10,000 ft) on Escudilla Mountain, Green’s Peak, and Mount Baldy (Phillips, and others 1964).

Ecology: Montezuma Quail begin pairing in late February and March (Yeager 1966, 1967). Males attract females during the pairing period through the use of "buzz" calls. During this time, some fighting occurs between males. Male territories may not be fully established until May or June (Bishop 1964). Actual nesting does not begin until late June, July, or even August. The nesting period closely coincides with the onset of the summer rains. Nests are constructed in dense grass cover and are protected from the elements either by overhanging cover of a tree or tall grasses (Wallmo 1954). Although nest sites can range from cool, moist canyon bottoms to hot arid slopes, dense grass cover is characteristic at most sites. The egg hatching period can range from late July to late September with a peak in early to mid-August (Brown 1989). The chicks immediately leave the nest to forage with their parents. The brood is reared by both parents. Daily activities are usually limited to foraging and roosting within a home range of about 15 acres (Brown 1978). Montezuma Quail feed exclusively on the ground predominantly on bulbs and tubers, particularly the bulbs of wood sorrel and tubers of flat sedges. Other foods include a wide variety of forb (e.g. lupine, spurge, milk pea) and grass (e.g. paspalum) seeds, particularly those which set seed after the summer rains. These plant species provide the bulk of the quails yearlong food supply on which it depends (Brown 1989).

Habitat Requirements: Montezuma Quail habitat in Arizona is comprised predominately of Madrean evergreen woodlands of oaks and pines. The typical landscape is open woodland containing Emory oak, Mexican blue oak, Arizona oak, and less commonly gray oak, Toumey oak, alligator juniper and one-seed juniper. The understory is typically comprised of bunchgrasses such as sideoats grama, cane beardgrass, wolftail, sprangletop, and Texas bluestem (Brown 1989). Optimum habitat has a tree crown cover of about 30 percent with a lush understory of grasses and forbs (Brown 1982). These habitats have a warm temperate climate in which freezing temperatures do not normally occur more than 125 to 150 nights during the year. Summer precipitation is an essential component of Montezuma Quail habitat. The summer rainfall pattern is of key importance in producing the grasses and forbs that provide the food and cover (e.g. nesting cover) for this species. A mean of 10 inches or more precipitation during July through September is needed to produce dense nesting cover and food sources for successful reproduction and survival. Montezuma Quail are also found in riparian communities, occasionally ponderosa pine forests, and more rarely in subalpine forests and meadows. In these situations, the presence of dense bunchgrasses along with sedges and bulbs are also important (Brown 1989).

Management Issues with Conservation Recommendations

Overgrazing of understory grasses and forbs which provide food and cover for Montezuma Quail is the major management issue affecting this species (Brown 1989, Brown 1982). Investigators have agreed that livestock can adversely affect the distribution and density of Montezuma Quail through the destruction of food resources and nesting cover, and that the species has disappeared from heavily grazed areas (Leopold and McCabe 1957, Miller 1943, O’Connor 1939, Wallmo 1954). Management recommendations for Montezuma Quail should be related to the amount of rain fall each year, with grazing and hunting being limited more during years of low rainfall. Loss of the grass component of pine-oak woodlands would be detrimental to Montezuma quail. Using fire to maintain grass and control shrubs from becoming too dense is suggested.

Montezuma Quail management issues are listed in italics. Below each issue are the Arizona Partners in Flight Conservation Recommendations.

Fire