Quail Hunting Forecast  |  10/09/2018

Oklahoma Quail Hunting Forecast 2018


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Weather and Conditions

In Oklahoma, we had a historically low tornado season," says Allan Janus, research and GIS coordinator for the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation. "We didn't have our first one until May, and while that is great news to have few tornados, it also meant we didn't get rain at a time of the year we need it for June nesting. The rain we received in Oklahoma when it finally came to areas, didn't occur until mid-to-late June and in some places not until July or even August. As a result, we believe we had low nesting success in June, however, chick survival was pretty high from the nests that did hatch, as we received rain in June and July in most areas. Right now we are hearing reports of lots of small quail, which may be indicative of an August hatch."  


Hatch and Broods

"We ran our annual August survey, and it was the second-lowest we have recorded," says Janus. "However, because we did receive good amounts of rain in July and August, detection was tough because of thick vegetation. Also, the August survey would not detect any mid-to-late August nesting efforts."  


Habitat and Programs

"Habitat is fair to good in most areas because of recent rain," says Janus. "The areas subjected to wildfires that received rain should be good spots for hunting this fall."  


Top Spots

I would target Harper, Ellis, and Beaver counties," Janus reports. "However, those areas will be well visited."  


Insider Tips


When hunting the WM's in Oklahoma get away from the roads," Janus suggests. "Many of our areas have isolated spots that don't get hunted hard simply because they are two ot three miles from a road. I think if you're willing to hike back to areas few get to, there can be birds found well into February on public land."