FIRE EFFECTS AND USE
WILDLIFE SPECIES: Cyrtonyx montezumae | Montezuma Quail 



DIRECT FIRE EFFECTS ON ANIMALS : 
No specific information on the direct effect of fire on Montezuma quail
was available in the literature.  Even though this species inhabits
areas that experience moderately frequent fire, it is unlikely that
direct mortality from fire is a major threat to Montezuma quail.  Adult
birds would easily escape fire, and young birds are flightless for only
a very short time.  Nests and young birds may be vulnerable to fire, but
nesting usually occurs when summer rains make fires unlikely.


HABITAT RELATED FIRE EFFECTS : 
Fire stimulates sprouting of Gambel oak, and may therefore result in an
increase in acorn availability [5].  The ponderosa pine-grasslands or
ponderosa pine-Gambel oak woodlands which Montezuma quail inhabits are
maintained by frequent fire.  In many areas of the Southwest, fires in
ponderosa pine-grasslands occurred almost annually during the eighteenth
and nineteenth centuries.  In areas where the landscape is more
dissected, fire-free intervals were generally 25 to 40 years.  Wildfire
suppression, coupled with grazing, has led to pronounced changes in the
character and physiognomy of ponderosa pine woodlands.  Increased shrub
and tree density and conversion of woodland to forest have led to
increased risk of intense, catastrophic wildfires [21].


FIRE USE : 
Prescribed fire can be used to stimulate sprouting of Gambel oak, a
species that may be important in Montezuma quail diets.  Prescribed fire
can be used to maintain ponderosa pine-Gambel oak or ponderosa
pine-grasslands in an open condition, which would improve habitat for
Montezuma quail [21].  Prescribed fire is sometimes used, however, to
reduce cover, density, and frequency of Gambel oak.  According to Clary
and Tiedemann [5], elimination of Gambel oak eliminates wildlife habitat
and represents short-sighted management.


REFERENCES : 
NO-ENTRY

Related categories for Wildlife Species: Cyrtonyx montezumae | Montezuma Quail