Adaptability of the Chukar Partridge to Missouri Conditions

Abstract

The chukar partridge (Alectoris graeca chukar) was introduced into Missouri in 1934 when the Windsor Game Farm, operated by the Game and Fish Department, purchased two pairs and an extra cock from a California breeder. There then was considerable interest in chukars in Missouri, and the Department planned to raise enough for an extensive stocking program. When the new Conservation Commission was established in 1937, there were approximately 1,000 chukars on hand, all descendants of the original pairs. Their disposal was referred to the newlyestablished Missouri Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit. Ordinarily neither the Commission nor the Research Unit would have been interested in such a problem, but the birds offered an opportunity to study experimental releases and the establishment of the species, should the latter occur. With the cooperation of associated departments in the University of Missouri, a study was planned of the life history, ecology, diseases, hatchery techniques, management, and adaptability of the species. The writer made the field investigations, with general assistance from Dr. Rudolf Bennitt of the University of Missouri and Dr. Paul D. Dalke of the U. S. Bureau of Biological Survey. The study began in September 1937. There were several initial justifications for the work: the available birds represented a considerable investment; they had received a good deal of publicity and sportsmen were interested; elimination of the ruffed grouse, prairie chicken, and wild turkey from most of their former ranges had left vacant niches which might possibly be filled by the exotic species; and there was an excellent opportunity to study the factors determining the success or failure of an apparently desirable exotic game bird, propagated artificially and released on Missouri range. Finally, if the birds were to be used, there was need to establish them under a system that would permit control if they became undesirable. The detailed life-history study was brief because the birds released in 1937 and 1938 tended to wander in widelyscattered groups. This was disadvantageous in two ways: They refused to settle down, so their range preferences could not be learned, and in no place were they sufficiently numerous to provide adequate data. By the end of the first year, one possible justification for their introduction had largely disappeared. With recovery from the 1934-36 drought and the use of changed farming practices, prairie chickens and bobwhite quail increased to where the latter were abundant on almost every type of range and the I Contribution from Missouri Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit. U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, American Wildlife Institute, Missouri Conservation Commission, and University of Missouri cooperating.