I likely have a few quail on my se OK lease (Pushmataha County) and want to try to walk some up in Jan /Feb. Im in northern part where the hills start kicking in. This is a timber lease with various stages of pine from clear cut to mature with hardwood ridges and bottoms

Question is what am I looking for habitat wise ? Grown over clear cuts or thinned pines with undergrowth coming up? Or any other habitat that would be a good starting spot.

Not sure about your area specifically, but they love edge habitat but specifically edge areas with very dense underbrush/ground cover. Proximity to water may come into play depending on how much is around. Hot spots are typically fence lines or abandoned structures.

harge57 said:

---

Not sure about your area specifically, but they love edge habitat but specifically edge areas with very dense underbrush/ground cover. Proximity to water may come into play depending on how much is around. Hot spots are typically fence lines or abandoned structures.

---

yeah when we had them as a kid, they were always on the fence lines where the vegetation was the heaviest.

We've had a lot on our lease this year. We'll walk around mid-day to try and jump some coveys. Seems like they're mostly on fence lines or the edges of cover like stated above. If you do jump some, watch where they land and get there quick. They're fairly easy to follow but once they land they'll take off running and you'll lose them.

Thanks. This will get me started

Thisguy1 said:

---

We've had a lot on our lease this year. We'll walk around mid-day to try and jump some coveys. Seems like they're mostly on fence lines or the edges of cover like stated above. If you do jump some, watch where they land and get there quick. They're fairly easy to follow but once they land they'll take off running and you'll lose them.

---

are you in OK ?

West Texas

If there are any old abandoned homes in the lease, there is always a cover that hangs around old farmsteads.

I've hunted SE Oklahoma timber country some. As said above they do like edges. Often roads with croton on the road sides can be productive, especially if one side of the road has mature trees and the other has immature trees. They like that variety. The places with the highest density of quail generally is where you have mature pine, young pines and country that has been clear cut and burned or just clear cut in the last two years. Birds often roost in the clear cut stuff as well as nest in there. But they use the younger stuff for escape cover and they eat the pine nuts in the winter of the mature pines. It's not to say you cannot find them in places you don't have all three but it's not as common. I've only hunted public in the SE Oklahoma pines but I've had success. That said, a good day is 4-6 coveys a day. Most days are 2-4 coveys a day. So nothing like good days west or south. But it's close and cheap and gets you on some birds. There are hundreds of thousands of acres of public land up there to hunt. Most of it holds birds. Happy to try and answer any more questions you might have.
The turnpike song "The Birdhunters" is about hunting this part of the world.

Find a local NSTRA chapter and make a friend. I'd rather qual hunt without a gun than without a dog

EnglishElhew07 said:

---

I've hunted SE Oklahoma timber country some. As said above they do like edges. Often roads with croton on the road sides can be productive, especially if one side of the road has mature trees and the other has immature trees. They like that variety. The places with the highest density of quail generally is where you have mature pine, young pines and country that has been clear cut and burned or just clear cut in the last two years. Birds often roost in the clear cut stuff as well as nest in there. But they use the younger stuff for escape cover and they eat the pine nuts in the winter of the mature pines. It's not to say you cannot find them in places you don't have all three but it's not as common. I've only hunted public in the SE Oklahoma pines but I've had success. That said, a good day is 4-6 coveys a day. Most days are 2-4 coveys a day. So nothing like good days west or south. But it's close and cheap and gets you on some birds. There are hundreds of thousands of acres of public land up there to hunt. Most of it holds birds. Happy to try and answer any more questions you might have.
The turnpike song "The Birdhunters" is about hunting this part of the world.

---

I pass a ranch on the way to lease with Felker on the gate. Prob not his but wouldn't be surprised if it was family

FIDO*98* said:

---

Find a local NSTRA chapter and make a friend. I'd rather qual hunt without a gun than without a dog

---

I have done all my upland bird hunting dogless - and while I want a trained dog when I retire , I did remarkably well in SD with my son on foot