Fall and winter diets of mountain quail in Southwestern Oregon

Ninety mountain quail crops were collected in the autumn of 1994-96 and the winter of 1998-99 to determine diets of mountain quail (Oreortyx pictus) in the southwestern Cascade Mountains of Oregon, USA. Mountain quail consumed items from 61 plant taxa, but the bulk of their diet was composed of 13 major plant genera or species. Legumes were the most prominent food consumed by mountain quail. In the autumn, deervetch species accounted for 47% of the total dry weight and were found in 58% of the crops. Hairy vetch (Vicia hirsuta) constituted 38% of the dry weight of crops collected during the winter and occurred in 50% of the crops. Other legumes commonly eaten during the autumn were black medic (Medicago lupulina), clover (Trifolium spp.), peavine (Lathyrus spp.), and Scot's-broom (Cytisus scoparius). California hedge-parsley (Caucalis microcarpa), manzanita (Arctostaphylos spp.), and hawthorn (Crataegus spp.) were frequently used in the winter. Mountain quail ate greater quantities of grasses and green foliage in the winter, but berries were consumed more during the autumn. In autumn and winter, insects were frequently found in crops, but composed <=3% of the total volume of the diet. Mountain quail in southwestern Oregon are opportunistic foragers that seasonally shift diets to take advantage of prevailing food abundances.Pope et al "Fall and winter diets of mountain quail in Southwestern Oregon." Northwest Science. 2002; 76(3): 261-26