Have you got quail on the mind? Well, I have good news then! The Texas Quail Study Group will meet in Odessa on October 2-3 at the MCM Grande Hotel. The symposium is open to anyone interested in quail management. This year’s theme is Desert Quail Management, said Dr. Dale Rollins, Texas AgriLife Extension Service wildlife specialist at San Angelo.
“Texas is one of only three states that can claim four species of quail, and this year’s meeting will address each of them,” Rollins said. The first day will have presentations on each of the four species and common sense approaches to managing their habitat. The second day will feature a tour of the Railway Ranch west of Odessa to inspect various management strategies.
“The secret is out about the quality of blue quail hunting in West Texas,” Rollins said. “Several national outdoor magazines and television shows have featured blue quail hunting recently. Hunting blues is considerably different than the more traditional bobwhite, and all of a sudden blue quail hunting is in vogue.”
The keynote speaker is Tom Waddell from the Armendaris Ranch near Truth or Consequences, N.M. “The ranch is one of Ted Turner’s properties,” Rollins said. “I’ve been involved with some blue quail research on the Armendaris, and they certainly have their share of blue and Gambel’s quail there.
“This year’s meeting is being dedicated posthumously to Sherman Hammond of Fort Stockton,” he said. “Hammond was an important voice in bringing attention to blue quail management in West Texas. I attribute much of what we know about blue quail ecology to him. He’ll be missed.”
The meeting is sponsored by AgriLife Extension Service’s Quail Decline Initiative, Texas Wildlife Association, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service, Quail Unlimited, Sul Ross State University, and the Rolling Plains Quail Research Ranch. Four Texas Department of Agriculture continuing education units will be available for private pesticide applicators.
Individual registration is $50 until September 15 and $75 thereafter. Fees include two meals, refreshments and a copy of the symposium proceedings. Contact Rollins at 325-653-4576 or e-mail him at: d-rollins@tamu.edu .
That photo is of a beautiful bird!