Montezuma Quail Similar Species Comparison
Main SpeciesMontezuma Quail
Male
Small-headed, round-bodied quail with a very short tail. Males have a harlequin facial pattern, a deep chestnut breast, and white spots on their sides.
© Susan Wrisley / Macaulay LibraryArizona, April 08, 2018Male
Small-headed, round-bodied quail that can be difficult to see well. Males have a harlequin pattern on the face and white dots on the side of its body.
© Jay McGowan / Macaulay LibraryArizona, July 29, 2016Male
Forages by scratching the ground for seeds, grass roots, acorns, and insects. Typically uses surrounding dense vegetation or large rocks for cover while foraging.
© Timothy Barksdale / Macaulay LibraryNew Mexico, April 01, 1997Not all videos have sound
Female
Small-headed, round-bodied quail with a very short tail. Females are cryptically marked in browns with whitish lines and a ghosting of the male's facial pattern.
© Lucas Bobay / Macaulay LibraryArizona, August 04, 2015Female
Small-headed, round-bodied quail with a very short tail. Females are cryptically marked in browns with whitish dots and lines. They have a ghosting of the male's facial pattern.
© Jay McGowan / Macaulay LibraryArizona, July 29, 2016Similar SpeciesScaled Quail
Adult
Scaled Quail typically occurs at lower elevations than Montezuma Quail. Scaled is sandy brown overall with delicate scaling on the neck and underparts, unlike Montezuma's dark brown color with heavy white spotting.
© Jeffrey Moore / Macaulay LibraryTexas, April 15, 2014Similar SpeciesNorthern Bobwhite
Male (Masked/Southwestern)
Male "Masked" Bobwhite have fully black heads and reddish-brown underparts. They lack the white face and extensive white spots of Montezuma Quail.
© Jan Hansen / Macaulay LibraryChiapas, May 24, 2016Similar SpeciesNorthern Bobwhite
Female
Female Northern Bobwhite have a buffy throat and stripe over the eye, unlike the swirled white-and-black face pattern of male Montezuma Quail or the subdued brownish face of female Montezuma.
© Cory Gregory / Macaulay LibraryMissouri, June 07, 2017Rotate Your Device to Better Compare
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Species in This Family
New World Quail(Order: Galliformes, Family: Odontophoridae)
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