Gambel's Quail
2781066
223615122
2008-07-04T22:07:30Z
Lightbot
7178666
Units/dates/other
{{Taxobox
| name = Gambel's Quail
| status = LC
| image = Callipepla gambelii male.jpg
| image_width = 250px
| image_caption = male
| image2 = Callipepla gambelii female.jpg
| image2_width = 250px
| image2_caption = female
| regnum = [[Animal]]ia
| phylum = [[Chordate|Chordata]]
| classis = [[bird|Aves]]
| ordo = [[Galliformes]]
| familia = [[New World quail|Odontophoridae]]
| genus = ''[[Callipepla]]''
| species = '''''C. gambelii'''''
| binomial = ''Callipepla gambelii''
| binomial_authority = [[William Gambel|Gambel]], 1843
}}
The '''Gambel's Quail''', ''Callipepla gambelii'', is a small ground-dwelling bird in the [[New World quail]] family. It inhabits the [[desert]] regions of [[Arizona]], [[California]], [[Colorado]], [[New Mexico]], [[Nevada]], [[Utah]], [[Texas]], and [[Sonora]]; also New Mexico-border [[Chihuahua]] and the [[Colorado River]] region of [[Baja California]]. The Gambel's quail is named in honor of [[William Gambel]], a 19th century [[natural history|naturalist]] and [[explorer]] of the [[Southwestern United States]].
These birds are easily recognized by their top knots and scaly plumage on their undersides. Gambel's quail have gray plumage on much of their bodies, and males have copper feathers on the top of their heads, black faces, and white stripes above their eyes. Gambel's quail can be commonly confused with [[California Quail]] due to similar plumage. They can usually be distinguished by range, but when this does not suffice, California quail have a more scaly appearance and the black patch on the lower breast of the male Gambel's Quail is absent in the California Quail. The two species are [[sister taxa]] which diverged during the Late [[Pliocene]] or Early [[Pleistocene]], 1 to 2 [[mya (unit)|mya]] (Zink & Blackwell, 1998).
The bird's average length is 11 inches (30 cm) with a [[wingspan]] of 14-16 inches (35-40 cm). Its [[diet (nutrition)|diet]] consists primarily of plant matter and seeds. Gambel's quail primarily move about by walking, and can move surprisingly fast through brush and undergrowth. They are a non-migratory species and are rarely seen in flight. Any flight is usually short and explosive, with many rapid wingbeats followed by a slow glide to the ground. These birds have relatively short, rounded wings and long, featherless legs.
In the late summer, fall and winter, the adults and immature young congregate into coveys of many birds. In the spring, Gambel's quail pair off for mating and become very aggressive toward other pairs. The chicks are decidedly more [[insectivorous]] than adults, gradually consuming more plant matter as they mature. Gambel's quail are [[monogamous]], and rarely breed in colonies. The female typically lays 10-15 eggs in a simple scrape concealed in vegetation, often at the base of a rock or tree. [[Avian incubation|Incubation]] lasts from 21-24 days, usually performed by the female and rarely by the male. The chicks are [[precocial]], leaving the nest with their parents within hours of hatching.
There is an annual hunt for this bird in some places. The hunting season usually lasts from October to February.
==Gallery==
<gallery>
Image:Gambel'sQuail.JPG
Image:Callipepla gambelii nbii.jpg
</gallery>
==References==
{{commons|Callipepla gambelii}}
* {{IUCN2006|assessors='''BirdLife International'''|year=2004|id=47103|title=Callipepla gambelii|downloaded=11 May 2006}} Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern
*{{ITIS|ID=175877|taxon=Callipepla gambelii|year=2006|date=9 February}}
* '''Thomson''', M. (2001): [http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Callipepla_gambelii.html Callipepla gambelii]. ''In: [[Animal Diversity Web]]''. Accessed September 26, 2006
* '''Zink''', Robert M. & '''Blackwell''', Rachelle C. (1998): Molecular systematics of the Scaled Quail complex (genus ''Callipepla''). ''[[Auk (journal)|Auk]]'' '''115'''(2): 394-403. [http://elibrary.unm.edu/sora/Auk/v115n02/p0394-p0403.pdf PDF fulltext]
==External links==
*[http://tolweb.org/movies/Callipepla_gambelii/88677 Gambel's Quail videos] (Tree of Life)
*[http://ibc.hbw.com/ibc/phtml/especie.phtml?idEspecie=967 Gambel's Quail videos] on the Internet Bird Collection
*[http://www.sdakotabirds.com/species_photos/gambels_quail.htm Gambel's Quail Photographs] South Dakota Birds and Birding
*[http://www.bird-stamps.org/cspecies/3700800.htm Stamps] (for [[Mexico]], [[United States]]) with RangeMap
*[http://vireo.acnatsci.org/search.html?Form=Search&SEARCHBY=Common&KEYWORDS=gambel%27s+quail&showwhat=images&AGE=All&SEX=All&ACT=All&Search=Search&VIEW=All&ORIENTATION=All&RESULTS=24 Gambel's Quail photo gallery] VIREO: [http://vireo.acnatsci.org/search.html?mode=stored&offset=24 2nd] includes-egg [[Clutch (eggs)|clutch]]
[[Category:Callipepla]]
[[Category:Game birds]]
[[Category:Endemic birds of Southwestern North America|Quail, Gambel's]]
[[Category:Native birds of the Southwestern United States|Quail, Gambel's]]
[[Category:Birds of the Great Basin desert region|Quail, Gambel's]]<!--southwest UTAH, and Western Colorado, and extreme southern Nevada-->
[[Category:Birds of the United States|Quail, Gambel's]]
[[Category:Birds of Mexico|Quail, Gambel's]]
[[Category:Native birds of Western Mexico|Quail, Gambel's]]
[[Category:Birds of the Madrean sky islands|Quail, Gambel's]]
[[Category:Fauna of the Yuma Desert|Quail, Gambel's]]
[[Category:Fauna of the Lower Colorado River Valley|Quail, Gambel's]]
[[Category:Fauna of the Sonoran Desert|Quail, Gambel's]]
[[Category:Birds of the U.S. Rio Grande Valleys|Quail, Gambel's]]<!--HUNTING fauna(!)-->
[[Category:Fauna of the U.S. Rio Grande Valleys|Quail, Gambel's]]<!-- the Great RangeMap/maps, listings, etc at: "www.natureserve.org"(then 'InfoNatura')..... (Old comments by Mmcannis-2006-2007)shows the Rio Grande River valley as an Endemic region for the birds... other species are all down the valleyS, all the way to Brownsville. Different species, in north valleys, versus south on the Gulf. Some desert birds in the middle prairie/scrub regions on NE mexico//swest Texas(as with the Plants)(New Comments MMcannis:adding the recently started "Yuma Desert" at south end of:"Lower Colorado River Valley"(western limit of Range at Eastern COLORADO Desert(west of Colorado River))) -->
[[es:Codorniz chiquiri]]
[[fr:Callipepla gambelii]]
[[hu:Gambel-fogasfürj]]
[[ja:ズアカカンムリウズラ]]