Originally Posted by Tyler
Growing up here in West Al, there were at least 10 coveys within walking distance of our house. Last wild quail hunt for me was about 1984. My son has become interested in Turkey hunting and makes sure the pine plantations that now occupy the fields I once hunted are burned on a regular basis. Several wild coveys of quail have appeared over the last several years. Too precious to hunt but we are getting there. Just today, frustrated with email and internet issues at the mill, I went to check on the green fields planted just west of the Mill.My Tacoma flushed a covey of over a dozen wild quail.
There is still hope!


I love finding a covey in new place, especially after working to improve the habitat and essentially "setting the table" for them. Little victories like that are definitely a huge motivating factor in efforts to bring them back.

We've found two very young broods over the past week; probably about 10 days to 2 weeks old. Fortunately the weather is still pleasant and they should make it just fine. My son's dog actually caught one of the young birds when they were riding around a couple of days ago. Of course the young birds can't fly far or fast, which makes them very vulnerable to predators at this age. The little bird got away and we hope it will be OK.

I'll be listening for some of the fall covey calls over the weekend. For quail, it's a busy and import time of year.