Numbers fluctuate locally depending on weather and food availability. In general, moves upslope in summer and downslope in winter in major mountain ranges. May. Occasionally up to 3 broods. Usually lays 1 egg per clutch, sometimes 2. Young fed crop milk by parents initially.
Weather affects distribution locally.
A small percentage of the state's population is taken by hunters each year. Life histories of North American gallinaceous birds. Bolander, G. L., and B. D. Parmeter. 1978. Birds of Sonoma County, California, an annotated checklist and birding gazetteer. DeSante, D. F., and D. G. Ainley.