The Upland Life: Defending Quail Country One Cedar at a Time

If you want good quail hunting, the work begins long before opening day.

In this case, it starts on hot summer afternoons with a chainsaw in your hands.

On our southeast Nebraska farm, Eastern red cedar removal is an important conservation project we are slowly chipping away at. While native to parts of the Great Plains, cedars have spread aggressively across grasslands over the last century. Left unchecked, they slowly choke out the prairie grasses and wildflowers that upland birds depend on. This also reduces the amount of habitat available for countless other wildlife species.

The impacts also extend beyond wildlife. Eastern red cedars are notorious water hogs, drawing significant amounts of moisture from the soil. As cedars expand, groundwater recharge declines and streamflows are reduced. At the same time, every acre overtaken by cedars is an acre lost for grazing, reducing the productivity and profitability of working grasslands. Across the Great Plains, woody encroachment costs agricultural producers and rural communities millions of dollars annually through lost grazing capacity, increased wildfire risk, and reduced water resources.

For bobwhite quail, the consequences are dire. As cedars expand into our prairies and grasslands, the diverse mix of grasses and forbs that bobwhites need begins to slowly disappear. What was once productive quail country gradually becomes less suitable for nesting, brood-rearing, and year-round survival.

On our farm we are defending our quail habitat one cedar tree at a time.

Every cedar we cut allows more sunlight to reach the prairie. More sunlight means more native grasses. More wildflowers. More pollinators. More songbirds. More deer. More turkeys. And ultimately, more quail. It means more life on our farm.

The work involves long hours, chainsaw shavings, sweat, and plenty of hard work. That’s where the right equipment makes a difference. For this project, our Polaris Ranger helped us haul tools, navigate the terrain, and move cut cedars into burn piles or strategically place them for edge feathering.

Day by day, the results seem small, but after several weeks, when you look out over a landscape of cut cedars, you can feel the momentum building. In many areas of our farm, we’ve had a positive habitat response in a matter of weeks.

Over time, our efforts are adding up to healthier grasslands and better wildlife habitat. Where we used to have one covey of bobwhites, now we have three of four.

That’s what “The Upland Life” is all about – a year-round commitment to stewardship and conservation.

The upland life isn’t built in a day. It happens one habitat project at a time.