Scratching my head....

P

Point!

Member
This season is somewhat of an enigma to me. I'd say the pheasant numbers are about like last year. But it appears to me that the quail are up significantly.

I've been to each region this year and have had luck in all. While I hunt nearly exclusively for quail, I almost always see a some pheasants as well (except in the SE). What's puzzling to me is that I'm reading about some folks that are seeing, what to me is, very few quail.

Last Saturday a buddy and I moved 12 coveys in an area (county) that we absolutely shouldn't have. We were done at roughly noon and hunted the afternoon with a camera and young dogs (found the last 5 covey's after noon).

I'm very fortunate to have some decent quail spots, but it is still rare to move that many coveys in a day (at least for us when we hunt KS). We talked to a group of hunters at a gas station who had seen only 2 quail (not coveys) and were hunting pretty much the same area.

The following day (Sunday) we decided to hunt for pheasant. We headed to an area that usually produces good numbers of pheasant and ended up moving 5 coveys (and several pheasants). Again, this area normally has very low quail numbers and the habitat was nearly all pheasant habitat.

I fully realize that there are many factors that can contribute to or hurt quail production, but I've moved quail in nearly every spot I've hunted this year. Question, those of you who aren't seeing many quail, why do you think that is?

On a side note, I'm afraid this week's storm may put a real damper on our quail. Glad I got out early as I believe it will be very tough to find quail in a great many areas from here on out.

Point!
 
Not to insult anyones intelligence but simply put I would assume 2 things:

pressure
habitat


it amazes me in yrs past on opening weekend in western ks we'd get skunked only to see the trucks next to us at hotel with bed full if birds. maybe a little is circumstance and luck?
 
A lot of it has to do with the dog. I'm talking pheasants, but I've harvested many of roosters from fields that have just been hunted because I've got a shorthair that can flat out put you on birds. I know a lot of people think they've got great dogs and many do. My shorthair isn't the best trained dog and he's pretty hard headed, but he's got a nose like I've never seen. He will find bird scent that other dogs run past and he can trail a rooster unlike anything I've ever hunted behind. Talked to some guys last weekend who said they've been seeing quite a few hens, but they thought the roosters were all ready in someone's freezer. My guess is that the roosters are there with the hens, it's just a matter of having a dog that can find them.
 
Southernblues, I quite agree. There are times (most) when private vs. public makes quite a difference. In this case, we actually hunted both. We have private to hunt but drove by some WIHA that looked so go we just had to try it. We found birds.

Regarding habitat, I also agree. Most hunt more pheasant than quail habitat. That being said, this year we're finding quail in habitat that they shouldn't be in. As stated in my post, we found five coveys where they absolutely shouldn't be.

KansasGSP, I agree with you as well. All of us think we have good dogs. I think I do, but others may hate them. One thing is for sure, dog power makes quite a difference. Last weekend we had 7 GSPs in the trailer. Fresh dogs that can at least find a bird now and then and good habitat is likely a key factor.
 
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