Nesting Ecology Health And Survival Of Scaled Quail In The Southern High Plains Of Texas PDF Download

Scaled quail populations have declined over the last half century, with Gambel's quail populations showing signs of decline in recent decades. Current climate projections predict a temporal shift in the monsoon season of the desert southwest. This highlights the importance of understanding the relationship between seasonal rainfall patterns and population size for desert quail. I studied sympatric populations of scaled and Gambel's quail on White Sands Missile Range in the Chihuahuan Desert for two breeding seasons to better understand the mechanisms behind this relationship and to further describe their habitat use. My objectives were to examine 1) effects of precipitation and temperature on demography and nesting ecology, and 2) resource selection and habitat characteristics for nest sites and brood-rearing areas. I tracked scaled and Gambel's quail using VHF transmitters to estimate adult survival and nest survival, and to characterize nest site selection, brood habitat selection, nesting and re-nesting rates. Differences between the timing and amounts of monsoonal precipitation occurred between the two years. Seasonal precipitation models for estimating adult survival had some support but were not distinct from the null model. Adult survival during the breeding season was estimated to be 48% - 51% for scaled quail and 29% - 30% for Gambel's quail. I found support for a positive association between spring precipitation and daily nest survival for scaled quail. Re-nesting rates for both species were positively associated with more spring and summer precipitation and earlier monsoons. I found strong evidence of selection at nest sites for both species. Scaled quail selected nest sites with more grass cover and visual obstruction (100%). Gambel's quail selected nest sites with more shrub cover and less bare ground. Brood-rearing habitat was characterized by higher amounts of vegetation, cover, and visual obstruction for scaled quail, while Gambel's quail selected for more shrub cover and less bare ground. Gambel's quail preferred areas with higher shrub densities, taller vegetarion, more shrub cover, and less grass cover than scaled quail.