Report a Quail Sighting!

Your eyes and ears are needed to help “Save the Quail” at the Presidio!

The California Quail (Callipepla californica) is our state bird and the official bird of the City and County of San Francisco. Due to a variety of factors, the population of quail in San Francisco has dwindled to dangerously low levels in recent decades, and the bird is now threatened with local extinction.

The Presidio is home to one of the last quail populations remaining in the city. Yet even in this national park setting, their numbers have dropped significantly over the years. In response, in June 2000 the Presidio Trust joined the Golden Gate Audubon Society’s regional “Save the Quail” campaign, and began volunteer-based efforts to restore quail habitat in the park.

Through an on-going monitoring project we hope to observe how quail use the park.  The information we gain will help us ensure that they remain a part of our living natural heritage.

Help by Reporting a Quail Sighting (Report a Sighting Now!)

Since Fall 2002, the Presidio California Quail have been banded with uniquely colored leg bands allowing individual birds to be distinguished and monitored. We need help from those who use the Presidio – residents, employees, hikers, birdwatchers, and others - to report individual quail sightings using these bands. Details about what to look for, and a convenient way to report your quail sighting, are available on this website.  If you would like a Quail monitoring form e-mailed, faxed or sent to you please contact Damien Raffa at draffa@presidiotrust.gov or call (415) 561-5333.

Contact Us

If you would like more information about volunteer Presidio quail restoration efforts, or have questions about the monitoring survey, please contact Damien Raffa, Presidio Trust Education/Volunteer Program Manager, at (415) 561-4449.

For information about San Francisco’s “Save the Quail” Campaign, contact Golden Gate Audubon at (510) 843-7295 or volunteer@goldengateaudubon.org.