This state's classification carries no date range for the species.
Small naturalized/introduced populations exist in some western Montana valleys, but the species is not included in Montana's statutory upland-game-bird definition (MCA 87-2-101) and carries no season, bag limit, or license requirement in the 2026 regulations.
California quail is present but unregulated in Montana: it is not part of the statutory upland-game-bird definition, so no season, bag limit, or FWP survey program exists. The one well-documented, concentrated population is a naturalized, likely hobbyist-released population in the Bitterroot Valley of western Montana, tracked for over two decades by the Audubon Christmas Bird Count around Hamilton and Stevensville: from 17 birds counted in 2001 to roughly 400 by 2016 and more than 1,600 by 2024. This is an occurrence/range claim, not a harvest-density claim, since there is no hunting season to generate density data.
No formal population survey program exists for this species in this state.
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