Forecast: Colorado received mostly excellent weather patterns this past spring and summer that led to high quail production. In the northeast part of state, hunters will find bobwhites only. The two main populations occur in the South Platte River and among rangelands and farmlands. Bobwhites near the South Platte River have been subject to significant spring flooding the past two of three years and are slowly rebuilding populations, while rangeland and farmland bobwhites appear to be doing very well, according to small game manager Ed Gorman with Colorado Parks and Wildlife. “They are a bit of an unknown population—incidental while pheasant hunting and not heavily pursued,” he said. “They are kind of a nice bonus bird right now.”
In the southeast part of state, both scaled quail and bobwhites exist. “Scaled quail are doing very well wherever there is habitat for them,” Gorman said. A nice run of spring and summer precipitation periods were a welcomed changed from drought conditions a couple years ago. “Likewise, bobwhites are on the recovery path, and really look to be excellent,” Gorman said. “While localized areas are going to be different, wherever there is bobwhite habitat, they are doing pretty well.”
Plenty of public land quail hunting opportunities exist in the Comanche National Grassland region. Gambel’s quail remain a peripheral species in the state, but Gorman expects a very positive year for scaled and bobwhite quail. “Probably one of the best years to go find some,” he said.
Season Dates: All seasons start on November 12, 2016. Season closures depend on the area, see link below.
Daily Bag Limit: 8 of each species (bobwhite, scaled, and gambel's quail)
Possession Limit: 24 of each species (bobwhite, scaled, and gambel's quail)
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