Species

Upland 34Migratory 4

34 of 34 classified species shown

Upland

Continuous open seasons, read the same way in every state.

#1Ring-necked pheasantRing-necked pheasant is an adaptable bird with no single cover type: grassy roadsides and ditches for spring nesting, hayfields as they green up, and dense cattail marsh or stiff native grass for winter. Cover use shifts by season more than any one habitat matters.44 statesUpland

#2Northern bobwhite quailNorthern bobwhite needs early-successional habitat: weedy fields, thinned pine woods, fallow field borders, and hedgerows, wherever disturbance has reset the ground to brushy young growth. Birds shelter in dense cover and walk out into adjacent open ground to feed.42 statesUpland

#3Ruffed grouseRuffed grouse depends on young, dense deciduous forest, especially aspen roughly 6 to 16 years past a cut or disturbance. Birds concentrate at edges, where young regrowth meets older timber or a brushy swamp, rather than in open ground.39 statesUpland

#4Greater sage-grouseGreater sage-grouse is entirely sagebrush-dependent, using open leks within dense sagebrush stands for breeding, wet meadows and irrigated pasture for brood-rearing, and tall, dense sagebrush on windswept ridges for winter. It can't persist where sagebrush is removed.11 statesUpland

#5Sharp-tailed grouseSharp-tailed grouse uses a grassland-brush-woodland mosaic: mixed-grass prairie with shrub patches for cover through the growing season, then a shift to riparian corridors and woodland edge for winter food and shelter. Leks need open ground with clear sightlines.14 statesUpland

#6Greater prairie-chickenGreater prairie-chicken needs large, contiguous tracts of tallgrass and mixed-grass prairie bordered by cropland, with short display ground, taller nesting grass, and disturbed brood ground all close together. Fragmented small patches don't hold a viable flock.13 statesUpland

#7ChukarChukar live in steep, dry, rocky country: canyon walls, talus slopes, rimrock, and cheatgrass hillsides, usually within reach of a spring or seep. This is terrain-first hunting; expect a serious climb wherever chukar are found.24 statesUpland

#8Gray (Hungarian) partridgeGray (Hungarian) partridge is an edge species of open farm country: hayfields, small grain, and row crops broken up by fencerows, shelterbelts, and grassy margins. Coveys are sedentary, rarely ranging more than a mile from home.23 statesUpland

#11Spruce grouseSpruce grouse lives only in boreal conifer forest, spruce, fir, and jack pine, concentrating along water sources, clearings, and tree-line edges where sunlight reaches the ground. It's famously tame, the classic "fool hen," and often won't flush at all.11 statesUpland

#12Dusky grouseDusky grouse shift elevation by season: open mixed conifer and aspen edges lower down in spring and summer, then dense closed-canopy conifer forest higher up for fall and winter. Hunt the elevation that matches the month.10 statesUpland

#13Gambel's quailGambel's quail key on brushy desert washes and arroyos, mesquite, catclaw, and cactus cover cutting through open desert flats. Coveys don't need daily water but are commonly found near it, with numbers tracking winter rainfall.9 statesUpland

#14California quailCalifornia quail live in patchy brush country, chaparral, oak-woodland edges, riparian thickets, and farmland margins, always within an easy walk of water. Coveys shuttle daily between heavy brushy cover and more open, grassy feeding ground.9 statesUpland

#15Scaled quailScaled quail lives in sparse, arid grassland and shrubland with scattered mesquite, cholla, and prickly pear over otherwise open ground. Coveys run rather than hold, covering open country beneath brush rather than sitting tight in dense cover.7 statesUpland

#16White-tailed ptarmiganWhite-tailed ptarmigan spends its entire life above treeline in open alpine tundra, rock, low shrub, and snowbank at elevations over 14,000 feet in places. Even within that zone it shifts to willow-lined basins for winter food and cover.7 statesUpland

#17Sooty grouseSooty grouse lives in Pacific coastal mountain conifer forest, favoring canopy gaps and meadow edges where brush meets timber. Birds make a genuine elevation migration, moving to dense high-elevation forest by fall and back down by spring.5 statesUpland

#18Mountain quailMountain quail is a dense-brush bird: chaparral, brushy burns and clearcuts, and conifer-forest edges, always within about a mile of water. Coveys walk a genuine seasonal elevation shift, up to 10,000 feet in summer, lower in winter, rather than migrating by flight.5 statesUpland

#19Montezuma quail (Mearn's quail)Montezuma quail lives on steep oak-savanna and oak-pine mountain slopes with a dense native bunchgrass understory. Coveys are highly sedentary and hold so tight to cover they're notorious for sitting until nearly stepped on.3 statesUpland

#20Lesser prairie-chickenLesser prairie-chicken keys to shortgrass prairie mixed with shinnery oak and sand sagebrush rather than the tallgrass its larger relative favors. Large, unfragmented stretches of that sand-sagebrush/shinnery-oak country are essential; small isolated patches don't hold a flock.5 statesUpland

#21Willow ptarmiganWillow ptarmigan is a year-round subarctic tundra resident keyed specifically to willow, present almost entirely in Alaska. Birds hold to willow-lined waterways and alder thickets on the coastal plain and through subalpine drainages.1 statesUpland

#22Rock ptarmiganRock ptarmigan occupies hilly, rocky tundra, higher and drier ground than the closely related willow ptarmigan even where both overlap. Winter flocks are genuinely nomadic, wandering with weather and food rather than holding a fixed range.1 statesUpland

#23Himalayan snowcockHimalayan snowcock is an alpine specialist living above treeline on open, rocky terrain: talus, escarpments, and alpine meadow between roughly 9,000 and 11,000 feet. Its only established US population is in Nevada's Ruby Mountains and East Humboldt Range.1 statesUpland

Band-tailed pigeonBand-tailed pigeon breeds in coastal conifer rainforest along the Pacific coast and high-elevation pine-oak forest in the Southwest interior. Winter birds concentrate in oak woodland for acorns and at mineral springs, which draw flocks after a fruit-heavy diet.5 statesUpland

Barred DoveBarred dove (Zebra Dove) favors Hawaii's dry lowlands: agricultural fields, pasture breaks, and suburban edge with open, short-grass feeding ground near water. It's Hawaii's most abundant introduced bird, though little modern hunting pressure targets it.1 statesUpland

Black FrancolinBlack francolin lives in dry, open country: croplands, mixed grass and shrub, and weedy field edges, often near a canal or irrigation ditch. In Hawaii it's found on dry western slopes across all six main islands.1 statesUpland

Chestnut-Bellied SandgrouseChestnut-bellied sandgrouse occupies barren semi-desert and dry stubble field. In Hawaii the only established population is on Hawaii Island's dry Waimea-Kohala corridor: open ranchland, lava shrubland, and dry stream-bed country.1 statesUpland

Erckel's FrancolinErckel's francolin is Hawaii's most habitat-flexible francolin, found in dry open ranchland and scrub on several islands but also true forest interior, such as Kauai's Alakai Swamp. It's the most actively hunted of Hawaii's three francolin species.1 statesUpland

Gray FrancolinGray francolin occupies arid, open country: cultivated plains, dry grassland, scrub forest, and thorn scrub. In Hawaii it's established on dry, low-elevation ground on nearly every main island, most commonly in the western lowlands.1 statesUpland

Green PheasantGreen pheasant in Hawaii is likely a color variant within the state's interbred ring-necked pheasant population rather than a distinct target, historically favoring moister, higher-elevation forest on Hawaii Island's slopes. It's hunted the same way as ring-necked pheasant.1 statesUpland

Gunnison sage-grouseGunnison sage-grouse is a sagebrush-obligate species restricted to a handful of small populations in western Colorado and eastern Utah. It has been federally listed as threatened since 2014, and no hunting season exists anywhere in its range.1 statesUpland

Japanese Quail (Coturnix)Japanese quail occupies mid-elevation grassland and open agricultural-adjacent country on several Hawaiian islands. It's a genuinely cryptic, hard-to-detect bird, so its real distribution is patchier and thinner than population estimates suggest.1 statesUpland

Kalij PheasantKalij pheasant, locally called "jungle pheasant," lives in dense subtropical forest on Hawaii Island's leeward slopes, with a newer population on Oahu's Waianae Range. It's the only place it can legally be hunted outside its native Himalayan foothills.1 statesUpland

PeafowlPeafowl in Hawaii live in dry leeward-slope forest where banana poka fruit is available, on Hawaii Island's Puuwaawaa Ranch area and Oahu's Mount Kaala/Makaha Valley. Unlike most Hawaii game birds, they were introduced for ornamental reasons, not hunting stock.1 statesUpland

Plain chachalacaChachalaca is an arboreal bird of South Texas's Tamaulipan brushland, thorn forest with dense stream-corridor underbrush, found only in a handful of Rio Grande Valley counties. It roosts and feeds in the treetops rather than on the ground.1 statesUpland

Spotted DoveSpotted dove favors human-adjacent open country in Hawaii: agricultural edges, gardens, pasture, and urban-adjacent scrub rather than dense forest. It's one of the state's most numerous introduced birds, though hunting pressure on it stays light.1 statesUpland

4 of 4 classified species shown

Migratory

Federal framework — season windows differ state by state.

#9Mourning doveMourning dove is a habitat generalist found wherever open farmland, scattered trees, and reliable water meet, from cut grain fields to riparian edges. Birds travel daily between a roost, a feeding field, and water, so activity concentrates along those flight lines.49 statesFederal framework

#10American woodcockAmerican woodcock favor damp, early-successional cover: alder swales, regenerating cuts, and creek-bottom edges where the soil stays moist enough to hold earthworms. Look along the margins of young aspen or hardwood regrowth rather than deep in the thickest brush.38 statesFederal framework

Rail (Virginia rail & sora)Rail live in dense marsh: cattail and bulrush stands over a few inches of water and soft mud. Virginia rail favor brackish marsh interior, while sora range more broadly into wet pastures and flooded fields during migration.30 statesFederal framework

Wilson's / common snipeSnipe use wet, open ground rather than dense marsh: muddy pond and river edges, damp fields, and wet meadows where they probe soft mud for food. Look at the margins, not the marsh interior.35 statesFederal framework

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