California Quail
Callipepla californica
The California Quail is the state bird. It is not a threatened species, but economic development has greatly reduced the amount of suitable habitat for it. When I moved to Berkeley, CA in 1974, it was common when walking around the town's streets to see California Quail on the ground. I have not seen any on these streets in many years, and I rarely see them in some of the regional parks where they once were more abundant. Fortunately there remain some good habitat for them, as these recent photos suggest. California Quails are dimorphic, roughly meaning that the males and females look different. The top row of photographs taken by the San Pablo Reservoir show the male, with its black throat mask bordered by a white stripe. The one on the left highlights its back whereas the one on the right highlights its gray chest and scaly belly with some yellow coloration and a chestnut-colored patch. The bottom left photo is of a female, with a plainer throat that lacks the black mask and white striping (also by the San Pablo Reservoir). California Quail often are in flocks called coveys; the bottom photo on the right taken at Inspiration Point in Tilden Regional Park shows a covey with 10 quails visible (more may have been in adjacent shrubbery). (Click on images to see enlarged versions.)