Quail rebounding after a dismal 2018
A fading piece of Americana, bobwhite quail are iconic in Texas.
The tradition of hunting them with friends and family is a social experience that can be second to none.
“Once people do it and experience it, it’s something they’ll never forget. The first flush of wild quail, how your heart jumps in your throat … you feel like you’re about to have a heart attack,” said Robert Perez, upland game bird program leader for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
“All these years I’ve been hunting quail, all the bird dogs I’ve had, the thrill has never left. Every covey flush is always exciting.”
And Texas hunters have plenty to be excited about this season (Oct. 26-Feb. 23) after an abysmal 2018.
Rain deprivation diminished habitat and sent quail populations, already slumping across the board in recent years, toward rock bottom last year. The perpetual boom-and-bust cycle had reached the far side of bust.
This year, things are looking up.
Bobwhite numbers have increased in all of Texas’ ecological regions tracked by TPWD’s annual roadside survey except the High Plains. Numbers are still below average but trending in the right direction.
“I would say across the board … that regions are in a building mode,” Perez said.
The most promising prospects can be found in South Texas, the only ecological region to rise above the mean. The average number of quail seen per route was 13.8, up pretty significantly from 5.1 the year before and higher than the 15-year average of 9.5.
In most counties, a healthy amount of rain and mild temperatures have been a fortunate concoction for quail and the hunters pursuing them. This makes the region as a whole the prime destination this season for bobwhite quail hunters, although Perez says it still can be a mixed bag because of patches of drought-like conditions in Dimmit, La Salle, Webb and Jim Hogg counties.
“South Texas in particular made a pretty significant gain toward getting up back to a boom. So if we get another good year in South Texas, we’re going to be looking at a boom next year. But this year, they’re already above average,” Perez said.
“And above average in South Texas, man, that’s pretty exciting stuff.”
Down on the King Ranch, where some areas weren’t hunted last season as part of a conservative approach amid the population dip, the forecast is optimistic.
“We’re up from last year. We’ve completed our fall helicopter surveys, and across the ranch our numbers are up about 135 percent over last year,” said Bruce Roberts, King Ranch area manager of wildlife operations.
In certain parts of the ranch where timely spring and summer rains have nurtured quail habitat, Roberts says he expects populations similar to the boom year of 2015.
The Rolling Plains, Texas’ other premier region for bobwhite hunting, also is on the upswing, with an increase from 3.7 to 5.3.
The rise is not as pronounced as in South Texas, though, and is still well below the average of 16.5. But habitat overall in the region is adequate, with plenty of doveweed and ragweed to sustain the young and plenty of cover to protect them.
Weather and conditions are ripe for the Rolling Plains to see a slight resurgence, and Perez says the timing of the surveys might have something to do with the underwhelming data.
The roadside surveys, done every year since 1978 to track population trends, are taken during the first two weeks of August, with surveyors stopping every mile along 20-mile routes to record each quail seen or heard. Perez says he and other biologists believe extreme heat coupled with thick vegetation prevented surveyors from spotting more birds.
“When we did our survey, it was just too hot. Those birds aren’t going to be along the roadside. They’ve got to have thermal cover, so they’re in brush thickets to get out of the heat. … I think our numbers are underestimated,” Perez said.
“I think we’re going to be surprised with maybe more birds than what we thought.”
Hunters pursuing scaled quail, also known as blue quail or cottontops, will find their best opportunities if they head west.
Texas’ Trans-Pecos region saw a stout upswing in surveyed scaled quail, going from 10.9 to 25.5, above the 19.6 average. Hunters can pursue blues on public land via the Elephant Mountain and Black Gap WMAs.
“I would say if you are a scaled quail hunter and like to go out west and put on tennis shoes and chase these birds, then there would be a good opportunity for that this year,” Perez said.
The state’s prospects overall should keep improving if Texas’ ecological regions get the right recipe of weather for a few years. A big if.
Also, while weather and habitat may steer the shortterm boom-and-bust cycle of quail populations, it is continual habitat loss that drives the negative longterm trend.
The requisite habitat for quail is convoluted to begin with. Quail need a mix of vegetation for nesting, brooding and loafing; each phase requires a different variation of habitat. And quail need these different habitats in proximity to the others to thrive.
Urbanization, fragmented landscapes, droughts, floods, agricultural practices and invasive species all impact quail habitat, shrinking these spaces and jeopardizing quail’s ability to survive.
For landowners passionate about quail and what their heritage means to Texas, Perez says TPWD knows what to do to turn a piece of property into a place quail could call home. The landowner just needs to be willing to spend on prescribed burns and cutting down trees often.
“We have the knowledge. It’s not not having the ability to create habitat. It’s having the will and the resources and the want to do it,” Perez said.
“What we need is good, native habitat. And we can help you do that. Our biologists can help you do that, our partners can help you do that. Cost-incentive programs. There’s help if people want it.”
Management principles utilized by hunters are also important amid dwindling quail populations.
Guide Jason Catchings, who has quail hunting locations in South Texas and the Panhandle, says he only takes hunters out on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays to give the fields plenty of rest.
“A lot of people try to manage quail only during the hunting season, and that’s a huge mistake. You have to manage every day based on current weather and habitat conditions. One of the most important things is to only shoot a couple of birds from a covey and move on,” Catchings said.
The future of the birds depends on a concerted effort from hunters, landowners and conservationists to protect quail habitat, and in doing so, secure for future generations a pursuit often referred to as the “sport of kings.”
“And don’t you feel rich, a day in the field with a dog and a shotgun?” Perez said.