Quail are a low plant succession animal. The quail cover in any part of the country will be a combination of native grass, brush, and weeds. A general axiom is, if you can't see your feet, you're not in quail cover. To break that down, the cover can't be so thick that their movement is restricted or their ability to find seeds by sight is inhibited. Often, some of the best pheasant cover is poor quail cover. That is not always the case, but pheasants trend toward thick and quail trend toward more open. Quail are considered "fire" birds. Burning and grazing are big influences on their density and survival. Recent research using telemetry in Missouri has shown that grazed and burned grassland/shrubland is much more productive for quail than adjacent ungrazed or unburned grasslands. Quail are often found in woodlands and shrublands, but they must also have the other components in most areas. To evaluate, get down on your belly and look at the habitat from the bird's point-of-view. If it is open at ground level, but canopied from above, you probably are on the right track.