Species Profile:
By Travis Stoelting Fall is a special time of year in the Midwest. Chilly mornings and warm days are accompanied by all the traditional events of the season, from expansive migrations to the brilliant turning of foliage. One of the truest tell-tale signs of fall’s arrival takes place at the break of dawn in late October when seemingly forgotten fields come to life with several simultaneous, loud and clear whistles. The covey call of northern bobwhites briefly announces their presence for the morning with an unmistakable call that easily surpasses that of any other bird in autumn. Named for the male’s other notorious whistle of spring and summer, poor Bob-WHITE, bobwhite quail are one of six species of quail native to North America, the only quail found east of the Mississippi River. Bobwhites are present throughout Indiana, but their abundance varies dramatically between locations. The heart of quail country in Indiana is found in the southwestern part of the state, where agriculture and coal mining dominate the landscape. As a species, northern bobwhites have declined more than three percent annually across the nation over the last four decades. Spring whistle counts conducted by the DNR’s Division of Fish and Wildlife indicate that the same downward trend is also occurring in Indiana. The primary cause for this troubling decline is undoubtedly habitat loss. Quail habitat comes in many forms and has several components. In the spring and summer, breeding pairs seek out blocky patches of early successional grassland communities with ample amounts of dense escape cover nearby.
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Nests composed of fine, dead plant materials are made on the ground and usually placed near a clump of grass. Both males and females incubate a nest of 12-18 eggs, and hens may attempt to nest up to three times in one summer. Fallow areas and field margins rich with insects are used during the summer and early fall for rearing broods of young chicks. As the fall and winter months arrive, multiple family groups of 10-20 quail, called coveys, retreat to the protective cover offered by dense thickets of brambles and saplings often found along woodland edges, fencerows, and retired fields. Fluctuations in habitat conditions and winter weather, paired with the quail’s high reproductive capacity, often results in “boom and bust” populations from year to year. Quail typically have a high annual mortality, with 70-80 percent of the adult birds not making it through the winter. However, their life strategy will allow impressive rebounds if habitat conditions are right. Like many other grounddwelling game birds, quail utilize their intricate plumage to hide, and their short, powerful wings to suddenly burst into flight, scattering the covey to confuse potential predators. This behavior gave rise to the popularity of quail as an abundant game species following the Civil War. Although a fraction of its former self, the tradition of quail hunting with the use of pointing dogs has continued in Indiana. This dedicated group of bird hunters, along with other conservationists, farmers, and natural resource agencies, now is responsible for many of the efforts to increase Indiana’s quail habitat and allow future generations to enjoy this part of our living heritage.
Photo courtesy DNR/Outdoor Indiana
Northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus)
8 | Hoosier Conservation
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