A proud male as seen near Hoover Dam, the Arizona – Nevada border.
From DesertUSA:
Description
Gambel’s quail are pear-shaped birds with short legs and roundish wings. Both sexes are gray above and buff below, with white-streaked russet sides. Males have a black throat and face and a head plume (called a “topknot”), a red cap and white headband. Females have a less prominent plume and lack black coloration and red head cap. The birds have a 14-inch wing span and average weight of six ounces.
Range
The species’ range is focused in the Sonoran desert of Arizona and Mexico, but it extends into southern New Mexico, up and down the Rio Grande, up the Colorado River drainage into Utah’s canyon country, and west to California and southern Nevada. Read more…
2 Guys Photo 
I love the colours.
Beautiful bird. Didn’t know they were in Arizona. Thanks for the info too Ed.
Gorgeous!
so beautiful; I’ve never see so colorful a quail. They are so amusing. My brother says silliness is their only natural protection — coyotes just fall over laughing when they see quails running along with those silly topknots bobbing
Ha Ha ha… I love that! Sillyness as a protection! thanks for sharing that Thelma!