Bobwhite quail initiative newsletter, Vol. 5 No. 8 (Winter 2004)

Bobwhite Quail Initiative Newsletter
Georgia Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Resources Division
Game Management Section
Winter 2004 Volume 5, Issue Number 8
Coordinator s Corner
BQI Creates Habitat, Partnerships and Funding
The primary goal of BQI has been, and continues to be, the establishment of early successional habitat to facilitate a landscape level increase in quail populations. However, from the outset biologists projected that many additional benefits would occur. For example, certain BQI practices benefit not only quail but also benefit various songbirds and a host of other wildlife species, and may reduce soil erosion and improve water quality.
A less obvious, albeit very important, benefit of BQI has been the development of partnerships with other state, federal and private conservation organizations. These partnerships have generated commitments of both manpower and funding to achieve BQI goals and objectives. During times of tight budgets these partnerships and funding grants have become even more critical to keep BQI moving forward.
For example, during the past year the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation awarded a $75,000 grant to BQI to augment the implementation of technical assistance and habitat practices. BQI also was used to leverage another grant for $37,000 from the US Geological Survey to the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center at the University of Georgia to fund a project entitled "Adaptive decision support for landscape-level conservation of birds in early succession habitats on private lands in Georgia". The project applies an adaptive resource management model to BQI that should ultimately result in improved efficiency of the program.
Of course, we view our work with each landowner in BQI as a valuable partnership. Without landowner interest and commitment, the program would not exist and quail restoration could not occur. It is encouraging to say that these individual partnerships continue to increase. In fact, during the past enrollment period landowner demand for entry into BQI far exceeded funding capabilities. Unfortunately, this occurred at a time when state budget reductions were necessary and only 29 percent of the applicants and 12 percent of the field proposals could be enrolled in BQI. Fortunately, additional cuts are not planned for the coming year and hopefully many of the proposals that could not be accepted for funding this year will be re-submitted by landowners.
A silver lining in this cloud is that as the interest and competition for enrollment increases the quality of the proposals also increases, which results in an improved costbenefit ratio for the program. The proposals accepted this year are very high in quality and when implemented will result in significant habitat improvements and increased quail populations.
In short, the support and commitment of private landowners and partnerships with state, federal and private conservation organizations have made the BQI program successful in restoring significant amounts of quality early succession habitat, increasing quail populations and songbird use and leveraging significant funding for wildlife conservation into Georgia. Hopefully, these partnerships, BQI and bobwhites will continue to prosper for years to come! --Reggie Thackston, BQI Coordinator
BQI Winter 2004 Page 1

To Thin or Not To Thin Timber and Wildlife Management in Uncertain Times
Eighth in a series on management techniques to improve habitat for quail

Wildlife biologists have recognized the value of thinning pine timber stands for wildlife management for a long time. The benefits to wildlife are derived from opening a closed tree canopy to allow sunlight to reach the ground. The sunlight stimulates plant growth and produces an abundance of various food and cover plants valuable to wildlife. When thinning is combined with periodic prescribed burning, wildlife habitat is further improved and sustained.
More specifically relating to quail management, closed canopy stands shade out food and cover and also may serve as "ecological traps" because increased predation within these stands is increased. A good rule of thumb for thinning stands for quail is to thin early and thin often to keep approximately 60 percent of the ground in direct sunlight at high noon. In forestry terms this corresponds to a basal area of approximately 40 square feet per acre.
Professional foresters also frequently recommend thinning to enhance timber production and management. Thinning benefits trees that are left standing by reducing their competition for available nutrients and stimulating increased tree growth. Additionally, thinning assures that future wood products are of high quality and bring the best prices to landowners. Thinning also provides landowners with an intermediate source of income.
However, when the pulpwood market is depressed, as it has been for the last few years, landowners are faced with the decision whether they should thin their pines when they bring little or no profit. Many landowners delay thinning in hopes that the pulpwood market will rebound and they can realize a profit from their investment. Wildlife is harmed because this delays habitat improvements that would otherwise benefit many species.
But, are landowners actually protecting their investment by not thinning in depressed pulpwood markets? Research conducted by the Center for Forest Business at the University of

Georgia D. B. Warnell School of Forest

Resources (UGA) suggests otherwise.

Researchers from UGA compared the percent

return on investment for several different timber

management schemes. Included in the

comparison were management recommendations

for no thinning, thinning only, and thinning

combined with fertilization. The results clearly

showed that thinned stands, even during times of

depressed pulpwood prices, brought a higher rate

of return throughout the life of the stand than

unthinned stands. This is good news for wildlife

and an important piece of information for

landowners who struggle with the decision to thin

during depressed pulpwood markets. So for

healthier trees, healthier wildlife, and a healthier

return on your timber management investment,

remember that thinning is a worthwhile practice

for most landowners in almost every scenario.

For complete information on the University of

Georgia study see the Spring 2003 edition of

Georgia Forestry Magazine published by the

Georgia Forestry Commission or visit their

website at www.gfc.state.ga.us. For more

information on the value of timber management

for quail & other wildlife visit the Wildlife

Resources

Division

website

at

www.gohuntgeorgia.com.

--Mark Whitney, DNR Wildlife Biologist

BQI Winter 2004 Page 2

BQI Updates and Information

Youth Quail Hunts Successful and Popular

BQI Monitoring

Continues to Show Positive Results

This was the inaugural year for conducting

quota youth quail hunts on farms in the Bobwhite

One of the most commonly asked questions

Quail Initiative. A total of seven young hunters, 11 about BQI is "does it work?" The short answer is

to 17 years of age, participated in three hunts on yes! The longer answer is that quail monitoring by

farms in Dougherty, Laurens and Burke counties. UGA students and BQI staff have shown and

The young hunters located 18 coveys, harvested continue to show positive results from the

11 birds and all youth experienced working bird implementation of BQI habitat practices. Summer

dogs, rising multiple coveys and taking shots at monitoring in 2003 showed quail occupancy rates

birds. Most of the youth never had been quail for BQI fields were 70 percent higher than those of

hunting and these hunts produced great control fields. As expected, monitoring shows the

memories. One youth, who had killed an eight best results in landscapes with large BQI fields and

point buck this past fall but had never been quail closely distributed habitats.

hunting, remarked ..."quail hunting was far more

fun than deer hunting!" These hunts would not

BQI Habitat Accomplishments 2003

have been possible without the great generosity

of the following BQI Cooperators - Mr. Lanier

Currently, for 2001 - 2003 there are 134

Edwards, Mr. Marshall Lord and Dr. Samuel cooperators with 289 crop fields, 70 longleaf CPA

Tillman. We extend our sincere thanks to these fields and 24 pine stands enrolled in BQI across

gracious landowners and the fine youth who the 15 county program area. In total, 411 miles of

participated in these hunts. Our goal is to hold 6 field borders, hedgerows and filter strips have

additional hunts on BQI farms next year.

been established and along with other BQI

practices have positively impaced more than

BQI Field Days Well Attended

21,124 acres.

WRD conducted three quail management

BQI Wildlife Tag Hits The Road

field days this past fall with approximately 150

people in attendance. Fields days were held at

the quail management demonstration areas at

Rum Creek and River Bend Wildlife

Management Areas and on the farm of Mr. Al

Funderburk, a BQI Cooperator in Colquitt

County. Thanks are extended to Mr. Funderburk,

The most recent version of the wildlife tag,

Georgia Forestry Commission, Georgia Power initiated by the Georgia General Assembly to fund

Company, Natural Resources Conservation BQI, hit the road this past December. This tag is

Service, Soil and Water Conservation similar to the previous BQI tag and depicts a large

Commission, Farm Service Agency, and Georgia white-tailed buck flushing a covey of quail. Through

Chapters of Quail Unlimited for assisting with the end of December approximately 7,500 tags had

these events.

been sold. The tag costs $20, and if this rate of sale

continues it could generate $1.7 million by the end

To add someone

of the year. Revenue from the tag goes to the

to the BQI Newsletter mailing list,

State's general fund and is appropriated back to

contact the Wildlife Resources Division, the Department of Natural Resources base budget

BQI headquarters at

to fund BQI.

478-994-7583

BQI Winter 2004 Page 3

Georgia's Forest Stewardship Program Update

To date, the Forest Stewardship Program has assisted 4,208 Georgia landowners by providing technical guidance and written plans that help to manage their lands for wildlife and other natural resources. Certified private consulting foresters, as well as professionals with the Georgia Forestry Commission, Wildlife Resources Division and the Natural Resource Conservation Service, have all helped write these plans that now cumulatively represent 1,025,245 acres of non-industrial private lands throughout Georgia. The program customizes plans according to each landowner's objectives. Landowners are asked to prioritize the resource emphasis areas that are most important to them or indicate that they would like a near-equal emphasis for all. Resource emphasis areas include timber, wildlife, soil and water, recreation and aesthetics. Of these five emphasis areas, 90.3 percent of landowners ranked wildlife management as their first or second priority. While timber management has typically been ranked as the primary objective (77.5 percent), wildlife has typically been the secondary objective (78 percent).
All management plans provide: 1) maps that delineate locations of natural resource stand types, topography and soil types; 2) descriptions and recommendations for each stand type; 3) organized management schedules for planning and gauging progress over a 10-year period; 4) notification of special natural resource concerns such as archaeological, cultural and historical resources, wetlands and rare, threatened and endangered species; 5) comprehensive natural resource information publications that directly relate to the landowner's objectives; 6) cost share programs; and 7) sources of further assistance and services that likely will interest the landowners. Once a landowner has a written plan for their property, they are eligible to apply for cost-share money to carry out some of their

management recommendations. If you know anyone who owns or manages
land who may be interested in having a Forest Stewardship Program plan written for their property, you can recommend that they call 1800-GATREES to request more information and an application. If wildlife is their primary interest, call the WRD Private Lands Program at 770-7611697.
--Eric Darracq Forest Stewardship Wildlife Biologist
Landowner being awarded Forest Steward status for exceptionally managing the natural resources on his property according to his Forest Stewardship Program plan.

For more information about the WRD Private Lands Programs, call 770-761-1697

BQI Winter 2004 Page 4

BQI Monitoring and Research Update

BQI Research Update Winter 2004

tuning the applications of practices used in BQI.

We begin by sincerely thanking all of the BQI cooperators and other landowners who have allowed us access to their properties to conduct our research. We completed the second and final year of field work on the radio-telemetry project this past September. Radio-telemetry utilizes a small radio transmitter that emits a signal that can be tracked with a portable radio receiver. We trapped birds during the winter and spring of each year and attached radio transmitters to track the bird's movements and to monitor survival and reproduction rates. Over two years, biologists radio-tagged and monitored 205 bobwhites. The sex ratio was roughly 50:50 with the majority of both sexes being first-year birds. These birds produced 57 nests and 22 hatched successfully.
After hatching, broods were located 2-4 times per day for the first 21 days. Of the 22 broods produced, 17 survived long enough to obtain complete estimates of home range size and movement. The home ranges of BQI broods (broods with BQI habitats, such as field borders, within their home ranges) were on average 13 percent smaller than the home range of non-BQI broods. Also, the average distance between nests and centers of home ranges was 82 percent less for BQI broods. These estimates suggest that the presence of BQI habitats may allow broods to move less to meet their foraging and other habitat requirements. We attempted to capture each brood when they were approximately eight days old to determine chick survival. Chick survival was 33 percent greater for BQI broods. Lower movement rates of BQI broods may mean they spend less time exposed to predators and therefore have higher survival.
Future analysis will determine the effect of the BQI program on other aspects of quail ecology. We soon will have information on habitat use, mature bird movements and survival and nest site selection. This information will facilitate fine

-- Patrick Cook, Rick Hamrick, and John Carroll, UGA, Warnell School of Forest Resources
Using radio telemetry to monitor quail use of BQI habitat.

The BQI Monitoring and Research Program is managed by Dr. John Carroll, Assistant Professor of Wildlife Ecology and Management, University of Georgia, D.B. Warnell School of Forest Resources.
BQI Winter 2004 Page 5

116 Rum Creek Drive Forsyth, GA 31029

PRESORTED STANDARD U.S. POSTAGE
PAID MAIL SORT MACON 31201
Address service requested

Bobwhite Quail Initiative --

Restoring Habitat For the Birds

Southwest 601 Tallahassee Road Albany, GA 31707 229-420-1212 Colquitt, Crisp, Dougherty, Lee, Mitchell, Sumter, Terrell counties

Georgia Department of Natural Resources Lonice C. Barrett, Commissioner

Central River Bend WMA 1945 South Hwy. 199 East Dublin, GA 31027 478-296-6176 Bleckley, Dodge, Emanuel, Laurens counties

East Di-Lane WMA 4854 Box D Herndon Road Waynesboro, GA 30830 706-554-3745 Bulloch, Burke, Jenkins, Screven counties
BQI Headquarters Rum Creek WMA 116 Rum Creek Drive Forsyth, GA 31029 478-994-7583

Wildlife Resources Division Noel Holcomb, Director
Funding for this publication provided by the Atlanta Metro Chapter of Quail Unlimited.