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Features: Both male and female mountain quail have a tall, straight, head plume that is black. They also have a chestnut brown throat patch that is bordered by a white stripe. Their head and shoulders are a gray color that fades into olive-brown on their backs. Their sides are brown with several black and white stripes making them a beautiful bird. Habitat: Mountain quail are native birds found on both sides of the Cascades. They thrive in the natural brushlands of southwestern Oregon and are also found in northwestern Oregon when suitable habitat is created by logging, fire or other…

Features: Female pheasants are brown on top and paler underneath. They have black spots on their sides and black bars throughout their tails. The males are much more conspicuous with bright red on their head, a white band around their necks, and an iridescent copper color on their sides and backs. Their tails are long and pointed with barring. Habitat: The ringneck is a farmland species, heavily dependent on cereal grains and other seeds. They also like taller vegetation for cover. Technique: Because pheasants are tied so closely to agriculture, the majority of hunting opportunity occurs on private lands. State…

Features: Both males and females have a bluish bill with a black tip. Drakes are white on the top of the head, green eye stripes, purplish breast and flanks, white belly and wing covert patch, and have an iridescent black/green speculum. The grayish hen shows white on the wing covert patch. Habitat: An abundant overwintering duck, especially in the Willamette Valley and coastal areas. Prefer shallow habitats like wet meadows or marshes where, like geese, they feed on green grass and sedges. Techniques: These ducks are early migrants (September) but can be common in mixed duck bags throughout the season…

Features: Adult males' plumage is black except for white patches on the forehead and nape. The most distinguishing feature is the bill, a swollen white, red-orange, yellow, and black wedge. This highly visible standard advertises male's presence for up to a mile. Dark-billed adult females and subadults are dark brown above and paler brown below, with two indistinct light patches on the cheeks and sometimes on the nape Habitat: The surf scoter does not breed in Oregon but is abundant on salt water along the coast from fall through spring. Look for surf scoters in the Columbia River estuary and…

Features: Male cinnamon teal have a cinnamon-red head, neck, breast and belly. Like blue-winged teal, t hey have a bright patch of iridescent green on the rear of the wing and a bright blue patch on the front of the wing . They also have a distinctive red eye, a black bill and yellow legs and feet. Female and young male cinnamon teal are often confused with female blue-winged teal. Habitat: Prefer shallow, alkaline lakes where they dabble on aquatic plans. Techniques: Most cinnamon teal in Oregon are taken in eastern Oregon in the early season. They are not common…

Features: Hungarian partridge have a gray-brown body with reddish brown barring on their wings, back and tail. Their beak and legs are gray. Habitat: In eastern Oregon, the best partridge populations exist in Columbia and Snake River basin counties. Although some birds may be found many miles from farming areas, the bunchgrass and sagebrush foothills adjacent to wheat and other farmlands provide the best habitat and the most stable populations. Technique: "Huns" are swift and challenging birds to hunt, usually bursting from the cover with a startling squeal and clatter of wings. They are typically hunted incidentally to pheasants or…

Features: The distinctive white band across the base of their bill gives this goose its name. It is medium in size with a gray and brown body. Adults have d ark brown and black spots on their chests and breasts give this goose the "specklebelly" nickname, while the young of the year birds are a nondescript gray with yellow legs and bills. Habitats: The white-fronted goose grazes on a mixture of grasses and grains. It can often be found in agricultural lands. Techniques: Hunting white-fronted geese is not for the faint-hearted. Scouting is necessary. And since they're mostly found in…

Features: During the fall, winter and spring months, males can be quickly identified by their distinctive iridescent green heads. Females are mottled-brown, with a dark brown stripe through each eye, an orange bill with black splotching and have orange legs. Immature ducks resemble adult females until the males develop more colorful plumage in early fall. After breeding season, males develop duller eclipse plumage beginning in June and resemble hens until mid-September. Wings of both sexes have a violet-blue speculum bordered in front and behind by a pronounced white stripe. Habitat: Mallards are the most common breeding and wintering duck in…

Features: A medium-size shorebird, it is stocky with brown and buff coloration. The long, thin bill is a distinguishing feature. Habitats: As a shorebird, the Wilson's snipe is found along bog, marsh and wet meadow edges. It uses its long bill to forage for worms and other invertebrates. Techniques: Hunt along wetland edges. Because their coloration is excellent camoflage, they're difficult to see before flushing. Be quick on the draw and use a light load. They are small birds after all. Header photo by Dave Budeau

Features: The small Ross's goose looks very similar to a snow goose, but with some slight distinguishing features. Like the snow goose, this goose has black primary feathers. But it does not have the black grin of a snow goose on its pink bill. Also, their wing beat is faster and call higher pitched than a snow goose's. Habitats: The Ross's goose can be found in shallow lakes and wetlands while in migration. It feeds on grasses, sedges and small grains. Techniques: Often taken while snow goose hunting, the techniques are similar. Create a white decoy spread with silhouettes, white…

Features: Drakes have a black head with a white spot below and in front of the eye -- rather than the crescent-shaped patch of the barrow's goldeneye -- white neck, breast and flanks and a black back and tail. Hens have a brown head, light neck, breast and belly, brown backs and flanks. Drakes and hens of both common and Barrow's goldeneye have a distinctive golden ring around the pupil. Habitat: It is a common migrant in northeastern Oregon and winter resident of the Snake, Columbia, Klamath, Rogue and Umpqua rivers. Techniques: These ducks travel in small groups of two…

Features: Columbian sharp-tailed grouse are brown-gray with small black and white markings, a white underside, and a short tail that is white at the base. They are a medium-sized grouse. Both the males and females have a yellow-orange comb over each eye. Habitat: Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were historically found in most counties of eastern Oregon. These birds preferred the bunchgrass prairies interspersed with stream bottoms containing deciduous shrubs and trees. This habitat was particularly common in north-central Oregon and the Columbia Basin. Technique: In 1929, Oregon closed its hunting season for sharp-tailed grouse and it has never re-opened. By the…

Features: Blue grouse are large in comparison to most other grouse species. The females are mottled brown, tan, and gray. The males are similar, but with solid blue-gray on the underside and bright orange-yellow combs over the eyes. Habitat: Blue grouse occupy the coniferous forests of western Oregon, the eastern slopes of the Cascades, the Blue Mountains of northeastern Oregon, and the Klamath Basin and south Warner Mountains. Preferred habitat includes timber edges, open timbered slopes, mountain meadows adjacent to springs or other sources of water, and near berry producing areas such as chokecherry thickets. Technique: Effective hunting techniques involve…