California Quail in June

June is the height of the nesting season. Most resident and migrant species are raising young, migration is essentially over, and bird activity peaks at dawn. By late June the first fledglings of the year are everywhere — clumsy, loud, and constantly begging.

For the California Quail specifically, June is a summer month inside the nesting season — one of the most active and demanding periods of this bird's year. Across the 7 states and provinces where California quail occur, what the bird is doing this month depends heavily on latitude — the details below break it down by band.

Southern states

absent

Mid-latitudes

year-round resident

Northern states & Canada

absent

In June, California quail are absent in the South, year-round resident across the mid-latitudes, and absent in the northern states and Canada. That north–south split is the defining feature of this month: where you live changes which version of this bird you're looking at.

June is inside the California Quail nesting season. Nest: shallow ground scrape. Clutch 12–16 eggs, incubation 22–23 days, 1–2 per season.

The season is broadly synchronized across the range this month. During the nesting months, adults switch to protein-rich foods for their young, become more secretive around the nest site, and often visit feeders in quick, purposeful trips rather than lingering.

• Seeds, some insects

State bird of California; coveys need brushy cover next to open feeding areas.

Expect to see adults carrying food away rather than eating it — they're feeding nestlings. Fledglings visiting feeders with their parents are a June highlight.

Full California Quail diet guide → · Best feeder for California quail →

In June, the best watching is around food rather than the nest — adults make repeated foraging trips and are most visible at dawn and dusk. Give nesting birds space: if a bird is carrying food or scolding you persistently, you're close to a nest and should back off.

The state guides below show exactly where in your region California quail are expected this month and which native plants hold them in a yard.

British ColumbiaCaliforniaIdahoNevadaOregonUtahWashington