Upland Game Identification
Identification Tips:
Length: 10 inches
Sexes similar
Stocky, ground-dwelling quail with short, rounded wings
Short, thick, red bill
Red eyering
Black band above bill, through the eye and across upper neck
Buff face and throat enclosed by black necklace
Blue-gray crown, nape, breast and back, with a brownish suffusion on the back
White belly
Black bars on pale flanks
Rufous outer tail feathers visible in flight
Red legs and feet
Immatures similar to adults
Chukars resemble other members of the genus Alectoris, being mostly gray all over with a black band from the eyes, down to below the neck. They also have several black bars on the flanks. The sexes are similar, with the female having a smaller knob on the legs than the males. Males also appear to be somewhat larger as well. Both sexes share the bright red bill and legs. Chukars have been known to hybridize with other members of the genus.
Similar species:
Gray Partridge has a rusty face without a black necklace, a duller bill and reddish bars on the flanks.
Chukars inhabit open, rocky, sagebrush-grassland areas on dry mountain slopes and canyons. They also inhabit areas with Mormon tea, bitterbrush, currant and rabbitbrush. In the southern portions of their range, they may be found in saltbush-grassland habitat but generally avoid pinion-juniper climax habitat. During hot weather, they concentrate near water provided by springs, seeps and small perennial and intermittent streams. They will disperse when the surrounding vegetation greens up after a rain. In winter, they need south-facing slopes, free of deep snow.