Does anyone in here Quail Hunt?

Are there any Quail hunters in the house?

Never been but i want to go dangit!

👍 me...not wild birds tho they about disappeared round here

Present.

Though released birds only. "Clay pigeons with wings."

Yes, which is to say I hunt pen raised and early release birds. Sometimes at quail plantations and other times we buy the birds and put them out and have a friend with quail dogs hunt with us. We have about seven coveys of wild birds on our place, but we've never hunted them. We are improving habitat and hoping that they begin to expand and create additional coveys.

What town?

I've run across a few "wild" coveys on our farm over the last few years while deer hunting.

They've been the first wild birds that I have seen in a long time.

We used to have enough of them back in the 1980s to hunt, but obviously things changed.

Quail hunting is a lot of fun, especially when you're toting a 28 gauge. I wish I could afford to go a lot more than I do.

jb20 - Hunt pen raised birds in Morgan County and quail plantations at different spots around Alabama. Wild birds are in Barbour County.

If they jump up while rabbit hunting then yes. Use to have a place in Athens we would rabbit hunt and had a cuvvy always busy up. Best shot I've made was a two shot double of flushed quail with a pump Mossberg.

Pen raised birds when it aint too wet, Although the last few years it has sucked cause its been so damn wet all winter. I have my own dog. Hoping to get him out in february

I love upland bird hunting, but as many others have mentioned I've never been able to find any quail out in the wild down here. I would LOVE to be able to go kick around in the woods down here and have a chance at flushing a couple birds. I go to northern Vermont every fall for a couple weeks of grouse and woodcock hunting in the big woods, amazing times!

There are a lot more Ex quail hunters than quail hunters. I wish they would come back

I have done a little of the pen-raised stuff and have taken very sparingly from a few wild coveys where I hunt. I really enjoy bird hunting, but I'd rather hunt something wild if I'm going to do it.

Its about the dogs for me....if I wanted to shoot itd be skeets 😃 some fly good but I hate it when I have to soccer kick one to fly

I bought a short hair puppy for my wife and son as a christmas present 2 yrs ago and he seemed to be natural at pointing so I have sorta fallen into bird hunting. I love to watch the dog work. just wondering who else around hunted trying to meet more people that hunt and where they go to hunt there release birds.

We do quail hunting, unfortunately its pen raised birds as well, though towards the end of season there are a few that make it and get to hunt them like wild birds.






We like to have the hunters shoot a lot so we put out a lot of birds.

NICE

I used to do a fair amount of it. But I have never shot any pen raised birds. Probably why I have given up on it in the past decade. Kids and fewer birds....I'll blame the kids.

They gone.

Oh Man Dano..... I been known to eat a few.....

Love to quail hunt. We have traveled to other states looking for birds. Wish they would come back here.

FIL used to hunt the big bean fields on Sand mountain yrs ago......Him and a one arm man named Bill......Used to wear em out too......Man I miss and loved those guys they quit going years ago cause the birds just played out.....

There is a guy that puts out couple thousand or more a year across rd from us and I've yet to see any around..weve had a couple coveys few years ago but I havnt seen em in a while..

I use to go all the time, we put birds out though. I don’t believe I’ve seen a covey of wild quail in years.

Only pen raised birds for me but I love watching the dogs work!

Quail are making a comeback in the wild. Morris and I know a place with 25-30 large coveys of wild birds. I haven’t been there in 5-6 years so no telling what’s there now. I know two more places with several coveys each

It's amazing to think that any survive. They are ground nesting birds and are near the bottom of the food chain, especially eggs and chicks. Hogs, bobcats, coyotes, opossums, raccoons, foxes, snakes, fire ants, hawks and other raptors, wild dogs/cats, black painters, el chupacabras, maybe the occasional hunter and especially caulds eat quail or quail eggs. Good news is that the pine plantation boom of the 80's - 90's are on the second or third thinnings or are being converted and creating some more traditional habitat. Burning is becoming more commonplace on private property and the replanted long leaf habitat creates ideal cover, brooding and food resources for quail. It will never be where it was, but there may be some areas that see a decent recovery under the right conditions.

Dang you just about nailed it with the predator list but forgot one HUGE one and that is RoundUp!

Not just Quail.

https://www.audubon.org/news/north-america-has-lost-more-1-4-birds-last-50-years-new-study-says

We hunt pen raised like everyone else in Alabama.
Predator control and land management would go a long way in Alabama if it was a collective effort

We had a guy bring quail to our property yesterday and had a hunt. Released 80 birds we killed 56 of them.

Very accurate statement.

I found quail on 5 different WMAs in the state last year. Some of them are not easy walking, but pen raised birds have made us hunters soft.

If people want to help in AL call the National Forest Service and let them know we need smaller burn blocks. The habitat in the NF system is so close, but the burn sizes impedes progress. It applies to Turkeys as well, but not as harmful to them. Additionally, call the Alabama Department of Conservation and express your interest in Quail management on public lands. "The squeaky wheel gets the grease".

There are 9 Quail Forever chapters scattered across the state right now. Please consider getting involved.

It's so fun, but I'd be happy with 5 wild birds. It's a shame they're basically all gone. It went south about 1980.

Same here.

Yes. We still have some wild birds where i live and on our lease..It is old reclaim and quail do well there. I do most of my quail hunting at my in-laws in TX. Place is loaded and hunt coveys. Even get a shot at a ring neck pheasant every now and then.

I haven't killed a quail since I was a kid, late 70's early 80's????
I also don't see the enormous flocks of redwing blackbirds that
used to show up in late fall, that was absolutely mesmerizing.
Times have definitely changed. I miss the freedom of being able
to roam where ever with my pellet gun.

need To find somebody around Clarke County with a dog. We got a place that seems to have a good many wild birds. We jump them pretty often on this place we lease next to our family land. At one time we had over 50 out feeding between 2 food plots. Also got some woodcock. Keep saying I’m gonna hunt them but I won’t be back up till turkey season.

That is awesome spec season ends February 28th here in AL. I like hearing that there are still some wild bird covey's in good numbers in places in the state. That gives hope that one day they might make a come back.

Hunting 13 what part of Texas did you hunt? Where at in Alabama is your reclaim lease land?

What part of Clarke County you in I got 2 dogs and I would like to get on some timber doodles.

Blackbirds by the millions in southern MO and Northern Arkansas. Blacken the sky.

Used to know where some wild birds were but never hunted them as they seemed few and far between except this one area. Felt like we needed to leave them alone.