doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com 28 bores and Georgia quail

I have 94 acres of twenty year old pine trees. Just had them third row thinned a couple years ago. There is a very good habitat for quail here but I am hesitant to buy and release them. I don't know how many would survive. I plant small grains every year for turkey and deer so there would be food. Quail are expensive to buy. Any thoughts on it?


JHolland

Nothing ventured, nothing gained. A friend in Southern Iowa released some, and they have held on for at least 3 years. They even gained numbers before sliding back. Now, they seem to have increased slightly again.



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I have a friend that early releases about 1600 in late August each year. He has developed excellent habitat, plants grain sorghum strips for them and does supplemental feeding during the season as well. He has birds that survive and hatch broods the next year, every year. But . . . . he practices strict predator control. We get into a covey of last year's birds occasionally and they're really cagey survivors!

Just watched this video again and have a question. What is it that the semi autos have slung under the barrel? Looks to be a flashlight??? If so, why?? I have seen this in several videos and just decided today to ask.

What is your neighbor's land like, and do they have any quail on them? I have 400 acres in central Alabama, and I have hunted on it every year since the mid 60s. We had a lot of quail when I was a kid, and then we had a lot again in the late 70s after most of it was clearcut. Once the planted pines were about 5 years old, the quail population went way down and has never recovered.

About 20 years ago, I made a real effort to restore the quail and turkey population. I had 22 acres of the pines clearcut and turned those areas back into fields, planted field borders, started a yearly prescribed fire plan for the timber land, and planted lots of wildlife plots of various things. We have seen a definite improvement in the turkey population, but not the quail. From my experience, and a great deal of reading and talking to others, I believe it's possible to really help the turkeys on a small farm, but you need a lot more land to make a positive impact on quail. I don't know the minimum size, but I think it's into the thousands of acres.

In places where a lot of landowners are managing for quail, improving a small farm can make a difference. If you are in an area where nobody else is doing it, I don't know if it's possible. For some reason that I don't fully understand, the quail need to be part of a large population to thrive.

We still have a few around and it's not unusual to see one in the summer, but a huntable population just doesn't exist. I think you could have a lot of fun releasing pen raised birds and hunting them over the next few weeks, but I doubt it's going to do much towards establishing what could become a wild population. I have thought of doing this too, and probably would if I still had a dog. Try it and tell us how it works out.

ShotKam or a similar product Perry
https://shotkam.com/products/shotkam-gen-4

I have no use for a ShotCam. Best way I can think of to ruin a good memory is by seeing the truth. 🤣🤣🤣

I have long believed that the single most destructive change, regarding bobwhite quail populations, is the change over from varied traditional crops, on smaller farms/plots - to larger and larger stands of plantation pines. i have family in north louisiana who are second generation tree farm operators...and hunters - and i understand the economic basis for that model of operation. but, as coosa stated, once the trees begin to canopy the ground (i'd say 6-8 years), there is less and less food available - and then follows a looong stretch where the forest becomes almost sterile.

the good old days of wild quail hunting was linked to checkerboarded terrain, with fields and forests interspersed, and small land holders growing a much broader range of row crops. many other elements are involved in the rooting out of quails - but the lack of widely available foodstuffs is crucial.

Thanks Drew. Might be fun to try one.

This is the best book I’ve found on managing land for bobwhite quail. They describe the minimum acreages you need, how it relates to the bigger landscape around you, etc. I’m really enjoying reading it.

https://talltimbers.org/product/tall-timbers-bobwhite-quail-management-handbook/