Home Forums Birds & Dogs Upland Game AZ quail

My daughter and son in law finally escaped California, and now live in the Phoenix area. I'm hoping next year to go down and take him quail hunting. I'd appreciate any info any if you would be willing to offer as far as best time of the year and areas to look. Not your secret spot, but more general. Is there any place where scaled and gambels overlap, especially near Phoenix?

Thanks in advance.

weather and moisture will control quail. One year can be execellent the next not so good. Your daughter and son in law will need to let you know the conditions. Lots of public land to hunt quail in the area. You guys that do not tell us where you live are very hard to give advise to.

There are 4 species of quail in AZ.

While they do overlap, scale quail and Gamble quail do not overlap very near Phoenix. They do though in the southeastern quadrant of AZ.

Gamble are the most common quail in AZ.

Generally, quail populations are very dependent on winter and spring moisture as that is when they are having young, and when there is abundant grasses, bugs, and seeds. If it is a dry winter, there is not much grasses, bugs, and seeds.

Mearns quail are more so dependent on summer monsoon moisture than the other four quail species.

Quail season is early October through early February.

Reba, I live in Colorado. Have experience with scaled, never hunted gambels, so that would be my preference.

Flagstaff, thanks. Generally, how hot is around Thanksgiving? If we focused on one species, which would be closer to Phoenix? What kind of habitat would we be looking for?

Temps in Phoenix at Thanksgiving will be in the 65-75 range.

Gambrel will be the species near Phoenix.

Habitat will be rolling hills covered in desert flora. Meaning cactus of various types (prickly pear and other types), brittle brush, and mesquite and palo Verde trees.

While it’s been years since I have hunted quail in the Phoenix area, you can PM me and I can give a few spots that used to hold quail. No promises you will find them though. Quail quantity are highly dependent on this winter and spring rains. Let me know how far you are willing to drive from where you will be staying.

Snake break your bird dog if you are bringing one. Bring hemostats to pull prickly pear needles. Carry water for you and your dog.

And stay outta areas with much cholla cactus!

Bobmn, did the snake aversion last fall. The other stuff I always carry, cause,

Flagstaff, cholla is the number one thing I look for when hunting scales around here. I'll pm you when we get closer to coming (next fall). We probably won't want to drive too far for family reasons.

Thanks for your replies so far.

Sounds good

I hunted with dogs in what we down here call Teddy bear cholla cactus (not the jumping cholla cactus).

Never again. Holy _____. That is some nasty ____.

I prefer to hunt gambels where there are stock tanks nearby especially in the early part of the season. Park in the vicinity and make loops coming back to the water. A dog can get really hot in October, and November. Carrying water is good but allowing a dog to sit in water is much better.

The cactus and rocks are tough on the dog's feet. Either put boots on them or hunt them one day with a couple of days off to recover, especially after the first few times out. Over time a dog will learn to avoid much of the cactus. Deep grass and prickly pear will fill the front edges of a dog's legs with the hair-like spines and a few larger spines. Once the dogs learn about prickly pear they only get a few fine thorns on each outing. Cholla fields are to be avoided. Nothing worse that running two or more dogs and they hit an area like that. All you end up doing is removing the cholla spines with little hunting.

Good luck on your future quail hunts in Arizona

We just got a great deal of rain around the state the past few days. Gambels, Scaled and Mearns are going to do well next season.

I have been hunting mearns lately. Here are two pics of typical mearns country. Watching the dogs work is so much fun!

Azshooter, not doubting you, but is it really that simple? A few days of rain now means good hunting next year?

I've heard that mearns hold better than scaled and gambels. Is that true? How close are they to Phoenix?

No but we have had some rain from the summer monsoon and on. To really help the gambel's and scaled quail we need some rain every month through the fall and winter months.

From very lengthy paper:https://repository.arizona.edu/bitstream/handle/10150/284380/azu_td_6001402_sip1_m.pdf?sequence=1

"Lehinann also concluded that rainfall
alone would not stimulate effective breeding unless it produced feed containing adequate nutrients, including vitamin A sources, which would stimulate vigorous breeding."

"The success or failure of breeding, as well as the yearly fall
abundance of Arizona Gambel's quail, is correlated closely with rainfall."

"there was an apparent correlation between the amount of effective precipitation during the winter and
spring and the length and intensity of the subsequent breeding season."

"The young quail produced in a dry year
appear to have a shorter life-expectancy than those produced in a relatively wet year. In determining the average survival and turnover rate,
Sowls (op. cit. ) trapped and number-banded quail from 1952 through 1956.
Not only was a higher proportion of young birds captured in the years
following relatively high winter and spring rainfall (1952 and 1954), but
the percentage of survival of birds raised in a wet year was significantly
higher. These results suggest that in a dry year the birds produced were
less vigorous and had a higher mortality rate throughout their lifetime
than those hatched in a year of heavier rainfall. Lack of a specific
nutrient might have produced these results; Nestler (op. cit. ) found that
a low intake of vitamin A by captive bobwhite hens before and during egg
production reduced the survival of their young even though the young
received high amounts of vitamin A. "

There are not many studies on mearns. BUT one thing is certain, over grazing plays a large part in the success of the survival of young mearns. Sufficient ground cover is essential to mearns. I also believe that some rain through the fall and winter helps keep soil softer for them to dig up their tubers and bulbs as well as keep the food source healthy. Conversely a deep freeze as we had several years ago kept the ground frozen for well over a week and we had a huge dieoff. Most experts say the monsoon determines the breeding of mearns. We have had fantastic monsoon rainfall the
past two summers. I have seen first hand that mearns are once again increasing.

===========
As for mearns: They are primarily near the border in good numbers they are not near Phoenix. While some are in the mountains in the rim country there are not enough to bother.

They do hold close. If you want to find them you MUST use dogs. There is a learning curve for any dog hunting these birds. They are different. Many times they have given us the slip and never flew! Then can somehow make a turn and walk off from their feeding area and leave the dogs stumped. I have walked by the birds as close as 4 feet and they never flew. The wind was such that when the dogs came near me they immediately caught the scent, went to the spot and pointed. When they flush the entire family group will go up at once in a mushroom formation going out in all directions. That flight makes the uninitiated hesitate. It even gets us seasoned vets from time to time. Once they flush if you note the direction that some went you can try for followups. When it works it is awesome. But sometimes they will give you the slip. Some fly further than you imagined. There is more to say but this might be enough for now. FYI you will never get a mearns hunter to divulge his good hunting spots.

FWIW, I have only been Mearns hunting for one day and I hired a guide for that day. Tail end of the season and a break from javelina hunting. It was one of my favorite days afield. Super cool country. Big working dogs (EPs) that held point until we got there. The dogs spent almost as much time out of sight as they did in. GPS collar let us know they were on point and we headed that way. I really need to get back and give that a go again. That said, my dog Hank would probably not fair well at all on Mearns. lol.

Mearns are the most fun quail there is, period. I once almost stepped on one... He didn't flush until I looked down and just happened to make eye contact with him.

Coincidentally, I would NOT suggest a 12 gauge for mearns!

Ross, how have the numbers been this year? I haven't followed a bird dog since my buddy moved back to Texas.

Gambels is better, Mearns is also better than last few years. Heard scalies are doing better too. Thinking next season with the monthly rains will be even better!

Thanks. I'll have to start planning.

i have mainly hunted gambels. there are areas where you can find all three, southeast arizona, near wilcox i have seen all three in the same day hunting other species. there are a lot of gambels near the golf courses and places where you can't shoot them. i mainly hunt them in december and january. mearns hold real tight, serious mearns hunters i believe use 28 or even a .410.

az shooter- do you use a 20 gauge? 28?

20 or 28, both are ideal.
As an aside, I just had about 20 Gambel's walk through my yard picking tidbits out of my stones (I have Arizona landscaping). I no longer hunt but they are fun to watch.