One of our newest birds at the Zoo is also one of the most beautiful ground nesting birds in the Chihuahuan Desert, the Montezuma Quail, also known as Mearn’s Quail or Harlequin Quail. They live in high elevation habitats and will hunker down in one spot when approached. Like most quail species they eat plants and insects. To help them dig for food they have long, sickle-shaped claws.

Of the four species of quail native to Texas, Blue Quail, Gambel’s Quail and Bobwhite, the Montezuma Quail is the most secretive and difficult to study.   They blend in very well with their habitat and are very easy to miss when walking along a trail.   

At the Zoo our Montezuma Quail live on the side of the Ranch House in the new Chihuahuan Desert Exhibit area. Not to be confused with Harlequin Quail from Africa, these quail are from North America. They are found in shrubland and forest habitats in the mountains of central and southeastern Arizona, central and southwestern New Mexico, and West Texas. In Mexico they are found in mountain areas from Oaxaca north through the interior of Mexico.

One of the favorite places birdwatchers go to look for this bird is at Davis Mountains State Park, 200 miles east of El Paso. A little closer to home they are found in the Lincoln National Forest in New Mexico. To give you some idea of how difficult they can be to find, at Davis Mountains State Park they are listed on the park’s bird checklist as common. Over the past 45 years I have visited this park dozens of time and have never seen one in the wild. Good luck in finding one if you go birding at either location. I strongly suggest that you find some experienced members of the local Audubon Society to help you find the best places to look or ask a park ranger when you arrive.

Montezuma Quail prefer oak savannas or oak-pine woodlands and are very vulnerable to overgrazing. Prior to the establishment of Big Bend National Park the ranchers living there professionally managed the land to help keep the grasslands healthy. Then everything changed in 1942 when they were given free grazing privileges until the park was established in 1944. During this three year period over 40,000 head of livestock including 15,000 goats and 6,000 sheep severely damaged the grassland. By the time the park was created Montezuma Quail were rarely seen. In 1973 Montezuma Quail captured in Arizona were released in Pine Canyon, but since then there have been very few documented sightings. In May of 2005 Montezuma Quail were documented in the high Chisos Mountains, but as of today the species is still listed as in decline.

Rick LoBello, Education Curator