fishinwrench Posted November 20, 2022 Share Posted November 20, 2022 The only "predator" that I've ever seen snatch a quail is a hawk. But foxes and coyotes are all anybody ever assumes. The old bird hunters I grew up around used to say that turkeys would eat quail eggs. And when MDC did their big turkey trade deal back in the late '70's all the bird hunters threw a big fit about it. All I know for a fact, is that back when quail numbers were excellent there was A LOT of foxes and coyotes.....so I'm not convinced that they are the cause of depleted quail numbers. Kayser, Terrierman and tjm 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ness Posted November 20, 2022 Share Posted November 20, 2022 I haven't researched it at all, but the glory days in the 50s, 60s, and 70s, seem to coincide with the low populations of hawks. I don’t think it’s the only factor, but I think it’s a major factor. Seems like I see a hawk on about 1 out of every 10 telephone poles these days. CRP certainly gave things a boost, but it’s been in decline for years. All the people I used to hunt with in western KS for pheasant/quail have given it up. I joined a club several years ago but quit that about three years ago due to some club BS. The hunting wasn’t that great anyway. The last few years have been preserve hunts close to home. It’s ok but I miss the camaraderie of the big group and the challenge of hunting wild birds. nomolites and Terrierman 2 John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terrierman Posted November 20, 2022 Share Posted November 20, 2022 11 minutes ago, ness said: I haven't researched it at all, but the glory days in the 50s, 60s, and 70s, seem to coincide with the low populations of hawks. I don’t think it’s the only factor, but I think it’s a major factor. Seems like I see a hawk on about 1 out of every 10 telephone poles these days. CRP certainly gave things a boost, but it’s been in decline for years. All the people I used to hunt with in western KS for pheasant/quail have given it up. I joined a club several years ago but quit that about three years ago due to some club BS. The hunting wasn’t that great anyway. The last few years have been preserve hunts close to home. It’s ok but I miss the camaraderie of the big group and the challenge of hunting wild birds. Who knew we had the last of the good old days. When I was a kid, this time of the year fried quail, mashed potatoes, gravy, corn, green beans and some kind of pie for dessert was nothing out of the ordinary - but still special - Sunday dinner. My uncle had a '59 Dodge with those huge fins that he put vents into the trunk for the bird dogs. We would go with him and his cousin and walk for what seemed like forever. But somehow we always made it home for dinner. Those days now seem so far away and gone forever, almost like they never happened. But they did. bfishn, BilletHead, nomolites and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ketchup Posted November 22, 2022 Share Posted November 22, 2022 What other game bird roost’s on the ground? Poor quail really don’t have a chance. TinBoats BassClub. An aluminum only bass club. If interested in info send me a PM. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terrierman Posted November 22, 2022 Share Posted November 22, 2022 1 hour ago, Ketchup said: What other game bird roost’s on the ground? Poor quail really don’t have a chance. Pheasants come to mind. Chukar and grouse are ground nesters. Grouse do roost in trees. Chukar do not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tjm Posted November 22, 2022 Share Posted November 22, 2022 Not game birds but 5 hours ago, Ketchup said: What other game bird roost’s on the ground? Poor quail really don’t have a chance. What game bird doesn't nest on the ground? Only wood ducks and doves that I can think of. And crows if you count them as game birds. Game birds nesting on the ground include ducks, geese, grouse, prairie chickens, turkeys, pheasants, rails, partridge, snipe, woodcock, chukar, ptamigan that I can think of. Other ground nesting birds; killdeer, whip poor will, larks, sandhill cranes, sandpipers, plover, warblers, meadowlark, bobolink, native sparrows, yellowthroat, towhee, nighthawks, chuck-will’s-widow, most shore birds (I think) And there are also the under ground nesters including kingfishers, burrowing owls, bank swallows Terrierman 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BilletHead Posted November 22, 2022 Share Posted November 22, 2022 58 minutes ago, tjm said: Not game birds but What game bird doesn't nest on the ground? Only wood ducks and doves that I can think of. And crows if you count them as game birds. Game birds nesting on the ground include ducks, geese, grouse, prairie chickens, turkeys, pheasants, rails, partridge, snipe, woodcock, chukar, ptamigan that I can think of. Other ground nesting birds; killdeer, whip poor will, larks, sandhill cranes, sandpipers, plover, warblers, meadowlark, bobolink, native sparrows, yellowthroat, towhee, nighthawks, chuck-will’s-widow, most shore birds (I think) And there are also the under ground nesters including kingfishers, burrowing owls, bank swallows I think Ketchup said roost and not nest. Baby turkeys before flight feathers are very venerable for a while and even when they are able to fly cannot get very high for at first. I seen some little ones go to roost and they were about the size of a quail and only got up a foot or two at the most. Those little birds are still easy targets from ground predators. Ketchup and Terrierman 2 "We have met the enemy and it is us", Pogo If you compete with your fellow anglers, you become their competitor, If you help them you become their friend" Lefty Kreh " Never display your knowledge, you only share it" Lefty Kreh "Eat more bass and there will be more room for walleye to grow!" BilletHead " One thing in life is for sure. If you are careful you can straddle the barbed wire fence but make one mistake and you will be hurting" BilletHead P.S. "May your fences be short or hope you have long legs" BilletHead Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terrierman Posted November 22, 2022 Share Posted November 22, 2022 On 11/20/2022 at 4:58 PM, fishinwrench said: The only "predator" that I've ever seen snatch a quail is a hawk. But foxes and coyotes are all anybody ever assumes. The old bird hunters I grew up around used to say that turkeys would eat quail eggs. And when MDC did their big turkey trade deal back in the late '70's all the bird hunters threw a big fit about it. All I know for a fact, is that back when quail numbers were excellent there was A LOT of foxes and coyotes.....so I'm not convinced that they are the cause of depleted quail numbers. It's all about habitat now. tjm 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tjm Posted November 22, 2022 Share Posted November 22, 2022 1 hour ago, BilletHead said: I think Ketchup said roost and not nest. He did but I don't think many of the ground nesting game birds roost in trees, and nesting is kind of an extended "roost" . I may be wrong on that, because I haven't really thought about where an adult duck sleeps. I changed his question because the birds greatest vulnerability is in nesting and the week or three following hatching. Quail are not alone in that vulnerability, and they have adapted by high rates of reproduction. They typically produce enough offspring that the predators can eat some and some will survive. If that was not true for the past zillion years we would not have them to talk about. They are not evolved to deal with man made habitat changes, and possibly not fully adapted to survive climate changes. It also occurs to me that we started hunting ground oriented birds eons ago primarily because they did not escape to trees. BilletHead 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoCarp Posted November 23, 2022 Share Posted November 23, 2022 Blackberries in rows….build brush piles….kill off preds including feral house cats, rats/ mice…..hawks/owls are hell on rabbits and quail…over grown RR right always had the best quail hunting for me….prairie grass planted in rows….still a few prairie chickens around mindenmines area….been a few years but state was buying booming grounds there years ago…. Terrierman and Kayser 2 MONKEYS? what monkeys? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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