#06–37 February 13, 2006
Wild quail management seminars set March 9-11
Bobwhite quail populations in South Carolina and the Southeast have been
declining steadily over the past 50 years due to land use change and
reduction in suitable habitat. The 19th Annual Wild Quail Management
Seminars, sponsored by the S.C. Department of Natural Resources and the S.C.
State Committee of Quail Unlimited, are designed to instruct landowners and
land managers in the proper techniques of creating habitat that will support
native populations of bobwhite quail.
Two
seminars will be conducted over a three-day period, March 9-11, at the Webb
Wildlife Center in Hampton County. The registration fee is $75 and includes
meals, overnight accommodations and seminar materials. Space is limited, so
register early to reserve a slot in one of the two sessions. For more
information write: Quail Management Seminars, DNR, PO Box 167, Columbia, SC
29202, call the S.C. Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Small Game
Project in Columbia at (803) 734-4306, or e-mail
barnesj@dnr.sc.gov.
“Properties that consistently carry medium- to high-density wild quail
populations are actively managed to provide quail with all the habitat
components necessary throughout the year,” said Judy Barnes, DNR small game
biologist. “These seminars are designed to improve quail habitat management
skills, and the information is presented so that anyone with an interest can
implement these practices on their property.”
Field demonstrations and classroom instruction will focus on habitat
practices including firebreak establishment, prescribed burning, timber
management, brush control, discing for natural foods and supplemental food
patch plantings. Presentations will be given on wild quail natural history,
biology, diseases and parasites, predation and other factors that may be
contributing to the population decline. An update on current research will
also be presented. Speakers will include wildlife and forestry professionals
from state and federal agencies.
About 700 people have attended the seminar since its inception in 1987.
These sportsmen and sportswomen have positively affected thousands of acres
across South Carolina by applying basic techniques to improve habitat on
their lands.
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