Forecast: As bird hunters look to quail season opening Oct. 25 across Texas, hunters can expect more opportunities to harvest bobwhites during the 2014 season. The core of Texas quail hunting regions received needed rainfall in May and June which resulted in a flush of vegetation, insects and a corresponding increase in bobwhite reproductive efforts.
“Although much of the state remains in drought, the degree is far less than the past few years and daily temperatures remained below average for most of the summer, reports Robert Perez, upland game bird program leader for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. “There are still vast expanses of suitable bobwhite habitat in the rangelands of South Texas and in the Rolling Plains, where in some years over a hundred thousand hunters flock to pursue these wary game birds. Bobs are limited in these regions by rainfall, more specifically the lack thereof.”
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has awarded grants to put $4 million worth of quail habitat conservation on the ground, using a special appropriation by the Texas Legislature to help bring back the quail. These appropriations will be allocated as part of the Texas Upland Game Bird Strategic Plan with three focus areas identified:
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Southeast Texas – close to a dozen counties around Columbus, Sealy, Victoria
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I-35 Corridor area in Navarro and Ellis County
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Rolling Plains/Cross Timbers area – counties around and south of Wichita Falls
Season Dates: October 25, 2014 through February 22, 2015
Daily Bag Limit: 15
Possession Limit: 45
Field Notes: In the Rolling Plains region of Texas, public hunting opportunities can be found at the Gene Howe Wildlife Management Area (WMA) and to a limited degree at the Matador WMA. Bobwhite numbers are well above average in the Gulf Prairies region of Texas where 19.9 bobwhites were observed during roadside surveys in 2014 compared to 11.3 last year. Hunters should focus on the central and lower coast in native prairie habitats.
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