Spent some time talking to the one of the quail biologists, she works out of that CA that is about 50 miles west of Springfield, managed as a quail emphasis area - can't think of the CA name right now. But the birds are there, 12-16 coveys on average in that CA which is about 5,000 acres. She thinks the birds there are very hunter wise, they'll head into the woods to get away from the hunters and dogs, and they'll run rather than fly. Basically the birds that learn how to evade hunters survive and pass down their genes to the next batch. Most guys, including me, won't go back in those thick woods after those birds.
G3 Sportsman show did a rabbit hunt with beagles on that CA, seems I remember them bagging 3 or 4.