I spend a lot of time working with landowners in Howard and Saline County and most folks want to improve their farm for deer, turkey or quail. Deer and turkey receive most of the attention from landowners because they are highly sought after game animals that landowners can identify with.
This buck was frequenting an area where I have completed a TSI project!
They can also cause quite a stir locally when one lucky hunter bags a high scoring buck or a turkey that has several beards. Quail enthusiasts are a unique breed as well. They dedicate several weekends per year to their habitat work, often working long hours on a prescribed burn or cutting trees for an edge feathering project. Of course, the farm bill has several programs that can provide incentives to improve quail habitat. I sometimes hear from people, “Why are we funding quail projects and not projects for deer, turkey or rabbits?”
This is a great question and there is a simple answer. Quail are an indicator species that people can identify with locally. Everyone knows what a quail looks and sounds like in the spring. What cooperators often do not know is that good quail habitat also provides improved habitat for numerous other species of songbirds such as eastern meadowlarks, grasshopper sparrows, American goldfinch, field sparrows, Henslow sparrows and etc. These species are very thankful that the farm bill exists to help improve their habitat as well.
High quality quail habitat also improves turkey and deer habitat.
Notice the regrowth on the near ridge where TSI was completed as opposed to the far ridge! There is a huge difference in diversity and tonage of food for wildlife!
Turkeys benefit from the same nesting and brood rearing habitat that quail utilize early in life. Whitetail deer use plums, dogwoods, sumac and other woody cover as winter browse and for security just as quail do during the winter months. These areas also offer cooler temperatures to quail and newborn fawns during the summer months. Just last month, I was working on a TSI project on my place and I noticed that deer were consuming twigs off of the treetops that I dropped in the name of woodland management. These treetops were also enjoyed by the local rabbit population immediately after the trees were felled. My point is that it does not matter if you are just interested in quail or deer on your property, the bottom line is that installing habitat practices generally improve the habitat on your farm for a host of species. After edge feathering five years ago, I saw a sharp increase in the “dickey birds” using the edge of my fields. I have tons more rabbits….anybody have a good set of beagles? I have also seen a few other critters in the last few years on my farm that I often overlook. For instance, I got a picture of a badger and a bobcat on my trail camera
Several species can benefit from your habitat work!
this summer. Just last week, I saw a couple of flying squirrels while I was conducting TSI….those fellas chose the perfect time to make a run for it….as they just about lost their home to a Stihl chainsaw. That was the first time I had seen flying squirrels anywhere in three years!
So I will leave you with this thought….If you have been improving the quail habitat on your farm and you are not seeing the results you would like…take a closer look because chances are that you have improved your deer, turkey, rabbit and possibly flying squirrel habitat! It is these small moments that keep me motivated to improve habitat on my property and I hope it can motivate you as well.
