I wonder exactly where we should draw the line that separates truly wild quail from released pen raised birds? And do pen raised birds magically achieve wild bird status after surviving go some period of time in the wild? Finally, are there some defining characteristics that would positively identify a shot quail as a truly wild bird?

I ask this because I worked with a guy who had a sideline business of hatching out and raising both quail and pheasants, which he sold mostly to private game farms. So if these private paid hunting preserves buy and release pen raised birds, there is always the possibility that some may beat the odds, and survive until the next year, and perhaps even breed. So at some point, are they to be considered truly wild, and are their progeny truly wild? I'd guess that some of these massive, exclusive, and prosperous quial plantations must do some stocking in addition to their other management.

Back when my state still had decent numbers of ringneck pheasants, our Game Commission at some point began supplementing the dwindling population with stocked birds. One high school buddy's Dad was a Deputy Game Warden who did a lot of the stocking in my County. Once when we stopped at his house for my friend to grab more shells, his Dad came out and examined our bag so far. He told us that he was certain that the two big ringnecks I had shot were wild native birds, and explained that stocked males would have beaks trimmed and spurs clipped off to prevent them from mauling each other in captivity. He also said that the stocked males would not have the size or long tail feathers my birds had. He went on to say that it would be difficult to differentiate a stocked hen from a smaller native hen.

I pretty much switched over to ruffed grouse hunting when it became apparent that native ringnecks were all but extinct. I still am not excited by the prospect of paying extra for a pheasant tag for the privilege of shooting pen raised birds on State Game Lands. A lot of guys have themselves convinced that is hunting, but I'd rather chase wild grouse birds even if it means driving further and coming home empty handed a lot more often.

A true sign of mental illness is any gun owner who would vote for an Anti-Gunner like Joe Biden.