Quail Management Options For The Cattle Producer

Can a grazing operation also sustain quail numbers in Missouri? That balance between beef production and upland wildlife often rests on the level of interest of the landowner and the habitat potential on the ground. Maximizing forage can be counterproductive to nesting cover; however, idle area management, plant diversity on field borders, timing of hay removal, and paddock rotation can greatly enhance the habit and not decrease cattle gains. One of the biggest obstacles to hurdle on successful quail management is not financial, it is aesthetic. Quail cannot reach their population potential in large monoculture fields and closely manicured fence lines.

Quail are great at reproducing, and lousy at living. Generally, in north Missouri, the peak of the quail hatch is around the second week of June; however, they have been shown to have mortalities as high as 80% in a year. Research from Missouri and many other states have shown that trying to stockpile quail by predator removal is highly expensive and ineffective. Many food chains are too complex to be addressed by simply removing one or two predator types.

To have a long-term impact on quail numbers on your property, you must address the habitat. Quail are a bird of early plant succession. They nest in clump grasses, rear their poults in weedy field edges and escape predation in shrubby fence lines. When nature advances, or man promotes, thick stands of grasses and mature trees, plant diversity goes down and so does the quail potential. Keeping nature at an early state takes a great deal of disturbance. This disturbance can be through disk, herbicide, fire, or for the grazing producer, cattle and hay.

For grass manipulation, the hoof action and herbivory from cattle can keep litter levels down, maintain plant diversity, and provide some bare ground for newly hatched chicks. Like any other manipulation, too much grazing eliminates nesting cover, degrades shrubby cover, and leaves no winter residue. Overgrazing also reduces cattle gains per animal due to lack of forage. Properly timed haying removes detrimental litter and can stimulate legumes, but often, haying occurs during the peak of the quail hatch. This quandary is where the producer must make management decisions and pay attention to their habitat.

The following are general recommendations to providing 3 key habitat needs on cattle farms:

Grass:
Many times to catch cool-season grasses, like brome, fescue, and timothy, when they are still lush, it is hayed when quail are still sitting on their nests or even within days of hatching. If the producer can afford to delay haying their cool season grasses until the peak of the hatch is over, which is mid July, you can dramatically help bolster chick survival.

If forage needs require that the producer hay early, consider leaving field borders un-mowed until later. Research in north Missouri shows that quail generally nest within 40’ of a field edge, so if a producer can protect these areas, and hay the remainder, that can still be a big wildlife benefit. These border areas should still be hayed or grazed later in the year to clean up litter and promote plant diversity.

Consider integrating native warm season grass paddocks into your grazing system. These grasses put on considerably more tonnage than cool season grasses, and don’t tend to form sods like fescue or brome. The upright stems of warm season grasses stand up well to snow and provide excellent nesting opportunities.

From the time they hatch in June until September, approximately 90% of a young quail’s diet is insects. Grass does very little to attract insects; however, legumes (clover, lespedeza) and flowering plants (black-eyed susan, partridge pea, coneflower) draw a variety of protein rich invertebrates. Adjusting the grazing pressure so that there is an average of 4" stubble heights, relieves pressure on these plants and allows some nesting potential for the next year.

Also consider not clipping pastures for clipping’s sake. Many broadleaves like croton, common ragweed, and desmodium are prime food sources for birds. In fact, common ragweed has more calories per seed than almost any grain food plot. Again, these un-mowed areas should be strategically located near good woody cover.

Bare ground:
Quail chicks are about the size of bumble bees. It doesn’t take much litter to impede them or a lot of wet grass to soak them. Bare ground with weed cover is essential for poult success. An additional bonus to delayed haying would be providing brood rearing areas immediately adjacent to the nesting cover. This can be done by killing grasses in adjacent idle areas and fence lines in the previous fall with herbicide. Another option is to strategically locate mineral blocks near nesting areas to denude small areas of grass. These weedy, bare ground areas are perfect for dusting and insect collecting by poults.

Shrubby Cover:
Research in north Missouri has shown that quail spend the majority of their time within 75’ of woody cover, and generally there should be areas of good woody cover within 660’ of each other. The quality of this woody cover makes a difference in quail utilization. Mature trees provide little benefit to quail. Low-growing, dense shrubby cover, with an open understory, provides the canopy protection and the loafing areas that quail utilize year round. Beneficial shrubs are plum, dogwood, blackberry, buckbrush, hazelnut, and other similar plants. Creative fencing around wooded draws and brushy edges can bolster these areas without sacrificing forage. A producer can enhance the cover within these areas by treating grass underneath the shrubs with herbicide. This allows open ground for quail movement. The next step is to fell mature trees along the edge. The felled trees provide instant cover, while providing sunlight to the valuable shrubs below.