# Centeral GA Quail



## GA Puma (May 1, 2021)

I'm soon to retire from the military and heading to central Ga with my GSP. We've hunted a lot of Gambels, Scaled and Mearns here in Arizona. How's the public land hunting for Bob's? 

Just for fun I've attached a pic of Gretta and I with a few good Mearns not 80 yards from the Mexico boarder.


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## trad bow (May 2, 2021)

Tough as far as numbers go. Most people here look for quail but most rely on woodcock or travel out west.


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## Gator89 (May 2, 2021)

Well, the dog will get plenty of exercise hunting them.


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## across the river (May 2, 2021)

Most quail hunting in Georgia today involves buying some pen raised quail and putting them out.  Even on private land, people typically hunt Woodcock as trad bow mentioned above or hunt. pen raised birds.   You can find quail on public land but it is extremely tough.  If people find some they aren't sharing where they are, but in general the Southern part of the state will provide a better shot of finding some than the northern.


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## specialk (May 2, 2021)

I stumble over a wild covey a few times a year rabbit hunting, but its bad thick cutovers mostly....prepare to hunt pen raised here....wild ones are hard to find anymore.....beautiful dog you got there!!


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## kmckinnie (May 2, 2021)

My quail are in pine and briar thickets. By no means are they huntable. South Ga. North fla has some old time plantation hunting. Some are wild quail. 
Thomasville Ga area comes to mind. Lots of them are pen raised as said.


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## GA Puma (May 2, 2021)

I appreciate the replies. Sounds like I may be a little spoiled here. If anyone comes to Arizona I'll be happy to point them in a good direction. Maybe a Woody's trip to Arizona is in the future. Thanks again!


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## trad bow (May 2, 2021)

You have a sharp looking GSP there. Of course I may be a little bias. Here’s mine late last summer. He’s a lot bigger now at 2 1/2 years old.


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## GA Puma (May 2, 2021)

trad bow said:


> You have a sharp looking GSP there. Of course I may be a little bias. Here’s mine late last summer. He’s a lot bigger now at 2 1/2 years old.



love it!


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## kmckinnie (May 2, 2021)

GA Puma said:


> love it!


What part of Arizona are you living now.


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## GA Puma (May 2, 2021)

kmckinnie said:


> What part of Arizona are you living now.



I'm on base at Davis-Monthan AFB which is in southern AZ in Tucson. Been here for 6 years now. Jaw Jaw bound in June.


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## dslc6487 (May 2, 2021)

Pen raised is all you will be able to hunt in middle Ga.  May find a few wild ones in south Ga, but they are usually on private land and the land owners "protect" them for their own use and I don't blame them.  Hunting pen raised is fun but certainly not as fun and challenging as the wild ones used to be.....


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## kmckinnie (May 2, 2021)

GA Puma said:


> I'm on base at Davis-Monthan AFB which is in southern AZ in Tucson. Been here for 6 years now. Jaw Jaw bound in June.


I drive a big red semi on 10 going both ways. Seen them quail out there. Seems to be a lot of doves too.


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## kmckinnie (May 2, 2021)

I like the little kit foxes. They tiny.


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## sportsman94 (May 4, 2021)

GA Puma said:


> I'm soon to retire from the military and heading to central Ga with my GSP. We've hunted a lot of Gambels, Scaled and Mearns here in Arizona. How's the public land hunting for Bob's?
> 
> Just for fun I've attached a pic of Gretta and I with a few good Mearns not 80 yards from the Mexico boarder. View attachment 1079248



What part of central Georgia are you gonna be in?


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## doenightmare (May 4, 2021)

Welcome Puma and thanks for your service. Our place is in middle GA and 10 years ago we would see a covey or two of bob's. Haven't seen any in the last 5 years or so. Plenty of dove, deer & turkey in middle GA if your of a mind to chase those.


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## GA Puma (May 4, 2021)

sportsman94 said:


> What part of central Georgia are you gonna be in?



When all said and done we hope to be in Jones County.


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## sportsman94 (May 4, 2021)

I’m in Houston. Never quail hunted, but have access to a little private land that holds a covey or two at times. If you ever want to chase them we can give it a go.


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## GA Puma (May 4, 2021)

sportsman94 said:


> I’m in Houston. Never quail hunted, but have access to a little private land that holds a covey or two at times. If you ever want to chase them we can give it a go.



Sounds like a plan.


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## trad bow (May 14, 2021)

GA Puma said:


> When all said and done we hope to be in Jones County.


I’m next door to you in Putnam. Let me know when you get settled.


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## brian lancaster (May 29, 2021)

Thank you for serving


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## antharper (Jun 6, 2021)

Most quail hunters say they are all gone or are for sure not gonna give up their public land spots . With that said we for sure don’t have the numbers we once had but I bet you can find a decent public land spot within a hour or so of you . I’m not a quail hunter but once was and I see plenty in the woods , especially property that has been clear cut in the last few years . Fine looking pup you got and thanks for your service .


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## GA Puma (Jun 6, 2021)

antharper said:


> Most quail hunters say they are all gone or are for sure not gonna give up their public land spots . With that said we for sure don’t have the numbers we once had but I bet you can find a decent public land spot within a hour or so of you . I’m not a quail hunter but once was and I see plenty in the woods , especially property that has been clear cut in the last few years . Fine looking pup you got and thanks for your service .



Thank you for the honesty! I wouldn't ask for a spot, its too personal and disrespectful to do so. I can't wait to put the miles in and bend the boot leather. Thanks again.


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## Gbr5pb (Jun 6, 2021)

Extinct in north Georgia occasionally saw a few in Taylor or Johnson county when there!


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## spring (Jun 7, 2021)

I have a few friends that have enjoyed some pretty decent public land quail hunting of late, but with the wild covey's inability to withstand a steady diet of hunting pressure, I doubt they are heavily advertising their destinations. That said, the areas that the State actively manages for Gentleman Bob are pretty easily sourced.  Good luck!


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## mguthrie (Jun 15, 2021)

trad bow said:


> You have a sharp looking GSP there. Of course I may be a little bias. Here’s mine late last summer. He’s a lot bigger now at 2 1/2 years old.


I’ve been hearing some quail whistling at my lease the last 2 weekends I’ve been there. First time in a long time. Maybe I can get you back down there at some point to try and raise a couple coveys. We get some woodcock moving through in December to


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## mguthrie (Jun 15, 2021)

Gbr5pb said:


> Extinct in north Georgia occasionally saw a few in Taylor or Johnson county when there!


I’ve been hearing them in Johnson county


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## trad bow (Jun 15, 2021)

mguthrie said:


> I’ve been hearing some quail whistling at my lease the last 2 weekends I’ve been there. First time in a long time. Maybe I can get you back down there at some point to try and raise a couple coveys. We get some woodcock moving through in December to


I can be your huckleberry


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## GA Puma (Jun 16, 2021)

mguthrie said:


> I’ve been hearing some quail whistling at my lease the last 2 weekends I’ve been there. First time in a long time. Maybe I can get you back down there at some point to try and raise a couple coveys. We get some woodcock moving through in December to



That would be great when the season come back around.


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## longrangedog (Jun 19, 2021)

Have a covey on my Bartow county farm and while I grew up hunting quail (we called them "birds") I would hope the struggling few that remain would not be hunted.


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## spring (Jun 19, 2021)

longrangedog said:


> Have a covey on my Bartow county farm and while I grew up hunting quail (we called them "birds") I would hope the struggling few that remain would not be hunted.



Not at all trying to be judgmental, but it is interesting that with some rare huntable species, we discuss how few there are, but when some are found, the conversation changes to let’s go kill them.
I have an odd perspective I suppose as even though I have a good many quail on my farm, I always find myself looking forward to the next season with hopes of having more. This causes me to be very reluctant to shoot birds throughout the season. I have just as much fun hunting them and then just shooting in the air on a covey rise. I should probably relax and take more than I do, but the hope for more is always walking along with the need for bird survival.
Maybe one day I can just chill and whack a few… ?


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## Resica (Jun 19, 2021)

spring said:


> Not at all trying to be judgmental, but it is interesting that with some rare huntable species, we discuss how few there are, but when some are found, the conversation changes to let’s go kill them.
> I have an odd perspective I suppose as even though I have a good many quail on my farm, I always find myself looking forward to the next season with hopes of having more. This causes me to be very reluctant to shoot birds throughput the season. I have just as much fun hunting them and then just shooting in the air on a covey rise. I should probably relax and take more than I do, but the hope for more is always walking along with the need for bird survival.
> Maybe one day I can just chill and whack a few… ?


The older I get the less I want to kill. It isn't something I feel like I decided, it just kind of happened, I don't like the feeling but it is that. I enjoy seeing animals and birds now more than I have a strong urge to kill them.


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## coachdoug87 (Jun 19, 2021)

If more people had that attitude, the populations might improve over time.


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## Resica (Jun 19, 2021)

Always loved hearing the Bobwhite in Georgia and I heard it all the time. When I lived in Macon in  an area that was just houses, no fields, some woods, used to hear them all the time. At my Grandfathers house in Oakwood, nothing but houses, heard them all the time, what happened? These weren't huntable areas.


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## billc (Jun 20, 2021)

GA Puma said:


> When all said and done we hope to be in Jones County.


You could try Piedmont National Wildlife Refuge in Jones Cty. Huge area, pretty woods. Slim pickings on quail but beats watching TV. Refuge Manager should have advice on best areas to hunt.


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## Bkeepr (Jun 20, 2021)

Rum Creek WMA in Monroe county has an area that they are managing for quail.


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## Coach K (Jun 21, 2021)

The hunting is depressing in GA compared to out west.
Piedmont starting spraying to eradicate lespedeza and the quail disappeared.
  Furthermore, when they burn, they burn huge chunks of acreage, forcing quail to relocate large distances leaving them vulnerable to predation.  Lastly, the Nat'l Forest does not even want quail hunters there any more.  Just look at how many days you are allowed to hunt quail for.  
Rum Creek - Nada - Minimal burning - Have not seen a covey there in 10 yrs.

I go to Arizona if I want to hunt wild quail - How ironic, eh? ;-)


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## Darkhorse (Jul 25, 2021)

I am old enough to have been a boy and teen during the last of the "Gentleman Bob" days. We always had a couple of liver pointers, thats what we called them, around the place. And a good many birds to hunt also. Those were shineing times. And like the beaver, the quail mostly all went away.
I hear birds whistling on my place every spring and summer but not so much in season. Don't have access to surrounding property so I can't look for them like we used to. I might shoot one over there but on my place they won't get shot.
When I grow melancholy thinking of the old days behind good bird dogs, and me being a boy with a stevens 20 gauge double, and my grandfather still walking upright and strong, then I just need to do something.
So what I do is break out my copies of Robert Ruarks "The old man and the boy" and "The old mans boy grows older." Get the fireplace going with real wood and do some reading. That's the closest I can get to my youth and how quail hunting used to be.


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## Deplorable Birdhunter (Jul 26, 2021)

Quail can be over hunted & that should be avoided but some birds should be taken! For instance a covey of quail will have more roosters than it does hens, so if some of those roosters are not culled, when spring comes around the roosters spend  their time fighting instead of mating! I suggest all quail enthusiast, should check out "Tall Timbers" research on this. You will find that quail do not always  respond favorably to refraining from shooting them! I realize that if a property that has a few quail on it is over hunted/harvested it will have a negative impact, but just leaving the birds alone can also have a negative impact!


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## GA Puma (Jul 26, 2021)

Deplorable, this also varies by species. In AZ Gambles will covey back up in an hour or less, but the Mearns will take a few days if not longer. 

What I've been tought "on wild birds" is if your flushing conveys with 4 or less birds don't shoot. Also, if your flushing singles leave the area. 

How long does it take for the Bobs to covey back up?


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## spring (Jul 26, 2021)

Due to natural mortality, there is room for some hunting without negatively impacting a quail population. How much you take should be relative to your overall population count. Tall Timber’s research says that you can take 5%-15% of your fall population, though they also say that hunting can be additive to natural mortality. I’d be interested in seeing where they say that if you kill some birds, you will subsequently have more.
Of course small tracts, which are pretty much always at a disadvantage, can be influenced by whether or not they are contiguous to a well-managed neighbor.
A good fall inventory of your bird population can go a long way towards helping a landowner determine hunting goals as you focus always on the needed  winter survival for spring nesting.


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## Deplorable Birdhunter (Jul 26, 2021)

GA Puma said:


> Deplorable, this also varies by species. In AZ Gambles will covey back up in an hour or less, but the Mearns will take a few days if not longer.
> 
> What I've been tought "on wild birds" is if your flushing conveys with 4 or less birds don't shoot. Also, if your flushing singles leave the area.
> 
> How long does it take for the Bobs to covey back up?


They generally will be back together in a few hours or less. The exception might be if it were late in the day and then they would covey back up after they come off the roost the next morning.


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## Deplorable Birdhunter (Jul 26, 2021)

spring said:


> Due to natural mortality, there is room for some hunting without negatively impacting a quail population. How much you take should be relative to your overall population count. Tall Timber’s research says that you can take 5%-15% of your fall population, though they also say that hunting can be additive to natural mortality. I’d be interested in seeing where they say that if you kill some birds, you will subsequently have more.
> Of course small tracts, which are pretty much always at a disadvantage, can be influenced by whether or not they are contiguous to a well-managed neighbor.
> A good fall inventory of your bird population can go a long way towards helping a landowner determine hunting goals as you focus always on the needed  winter survival for spring nesting.


Tall Timbers did a study on several big tracks of land several years ago that were similar in habitat & also in bird populations. A couple of the tracks were not hunted at all over a 5 year period, a couple of the tracks had light to medium pressure over 3 -4 seasons and a couple of the tracks  were hunted just a couple of times per season over the same period. Their study revealed that the track with the light/medium pressure responded more favorably then the other 2 tracks. Bigger coveys & increase in # of coveys. The track where no hunting took place actually saw a decrease in birds.


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## spring (Jul 26, 2021)

Deplorable Birdhunter said:


> Tall Timbers did a study on several big tracks of land several years ago that were similar in habitat & also in bird populations. A couple of the tracks were not hunted at all over a 5 year period, a couple of the tracks had light to medium pressure over 3 -4 seasons and a couple of the tracks  were hunted just a couple of times per season over the same period. Their study revealed that the track with the light/medium pressure responded more favorably then the other 2 tracks. Bigger coveys & increase in # of coveys. The track where no hunting took place actually saw a decrease in birds.



Have access to that report?


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## Deplorable Birdhunter (Jul 26, 2021)

spring said:


> Have access to that report?


 actually read it in a tall timbers quail research book, that was loaned to me. You could probably find the actual essay on the tall timbers website.


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## spring (Jul 26, 2021)

Deplorable Birdhunter said:


> actually read it in a tall timbers quail research book, that was loaned to me. You could probably find the actual essay on the tall timbers website.



Yes, I have that book. Their recommended harvest numbers are the ones I posted earlier. I haven't found anything in the book that says that if you kill some birds the overall population will increase, but if you say it’s in there, I have no reason to doubt you.  I'll look a bit more.  As mentioned, I’d be interested if you find that. Do see where it says that areas with very high bird densities have lower nest production than areas with average ones, but the densities can remain high since you have more birds nesting.
Here’s what TT says about their harvest recommendations:


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## Deplorable Birdhunter (Jul 26, 2021)

spring said:


> Yes, I have that book. Their recommended harvest numbers are the ones I posted earlier. I can’t find anything in the book that says that if you kill some birds the overall population will increase, but if you say it’s in there, I have no reason to doubt you.  I'll look a bit more.  As mentioned, I’d be interested if you could find that for me.
> Here’s what TT says about their harvest recommendations:
> 
> View attachment 1093335


My original comment was in regard to the thought that if you have a covey or 2 on your property and don't kill any of them, then they will multiply in a couple of years. I don't see how the harvest recommendations cancel out the thought that "moderate hunting pressure" seems to have a better impact on quail then just leaving them alone for a couple of years.


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## gawildlife (Jul 26, 2021)

To the original question/poster Georgia has ruffed grouse as well in the northern mountains. Often overlooked in the legend of plantation quail. Sadly in as almost as bad a shape as bobwhites. But being in central Georgia puts you about equidistant from the better opportunities for either.


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## spring (Jul 26, 2021)

Deplorable Birdhunter said:


> My original comment was in regard to the thought that if you have a covey or 2 on your property and don't kill any of them, then they will multiply in a couple of years. I don't see how the harvest recommendations cancel out the thought that "moderate hunting pressure" seems to have a better impact on quail then just leaving them alone for a couple of years.



All good; just haven't seen that in the research. Plenty of research has taken place to study whether hunting was a compensatory or an additive mortality. Many researchers, to include Tall Timbers, have said that it is generally additive--especially later in the season (see their comment in the 2nd paragraph from their most recent 2017 _Quail Management Handbook_ in my post above).  The good thing is that it shows that light hunting pressure does not diminish populations.
I do know that a lot of old timers used to think that if you killed down your coveys to a certain level that they would nest more and replenish more the following spring.  That line of thought has been dismissed in more recent studies.


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