Giant mistake figuring out the "per bird" cost.
This is probably true, except for the fact that there are places that run quail hunting operations as a business where well heeled clients pay big money to hunt.
That said, I'd like to see a cost breakdown to show exactly how it can cost $500.00 or even $1000.00 per bird to raise, release, and allow hunters to shoot them. Those figures would certainly have to include, the accommodations, the land, the property taxes, and every little line item right down to the cost of the guns, ammunition, and the gasoline the shooters used to drive to the plantation.
I think it would be a bit like calculating the cost of sending a child to college by starting with the cost of the diapers, baby food, and childhood vaccinations they consumed as infants. If there was really that kind of money trading hands for the shooting of little game birds, I think Monsanto and Cargill would be getting involved in doing it.
By the way, everyone knows that Kentucky Fried Chicken is healthier than wild game that has been killed with deadly poisonous lead shot. And this forum is long overdue for another thread on hinge pin grease, oil, or both... including their effects upon the environment.
I'm pretty sure if prepared the right way game meat is healthier to consume than fried chicken at fast food chain. Not picking on anyone particular, but I find it shocking that people who buy chicken tender specials at burger joints actually think they're eating real chicken meat. 
I mean decent chicken costs about $15 per bird and can't even be purchased at most supermarkets.