Quail populations, in general, have been on the decline for decades in the United States. As human populations have spread onto what was once wild lands, quail and other wildlife have been affected negatively. It’s no secret that the loss of habitat has decimated the once abundant numbers of quail that only our grandfathers and their fathers before them were ever able to witness. The Northern Bobwhite quail has been eradicated from much of its historical range and many have feared that at some point it may become an endangered species. The once prolific game bird, the Northern Bobwhite has recently seen a bit of a rebound, however, thanks to organizations like Quail Forever and habitat conscience land owners. Though we may never see record numbers like the ol’ timers did, perhaps we can ensure a stabilized and viable population for future generations to admire and enjoy.

---

As a Wildlife Management student and an avid upland hunter, I bring a lot of my enthusiasm for quail and other upland game birds into my research and projects. For one of my last classes, I was tasked with improving a management project for a threatened or an endangered species. My first inclination was to base my project on the threatened Greater Sage Grouse, which gets a lot of attention in media these days.

As I did further research on various upland game birds, I ran across a peculiar looking quail with a “muddy face”. When I lived in Arizona, I recall reading a small excerpt in the hunting regulation booklet. The excerpt had a picture of what looked like a cross between a Mearn’s and Bobwhite quail and warned hunters to not shoot these birds as they were a federally protected endangered species. Colinus virginianus ridgwayi. The Masked Bobwhite Quail, as it is commonly known, is the only quail in the United States that is on the endangered species list. As I continued my research, it was clear that I began to feel a connection with this quail that seemed not to get much media attention when compared to the Greater Sage Grouse, etc. Which was quite surprising! When was the last time you heard anyone mention a Masked Bobwhite? I couldn’t help it. I am all about the underdog. It seemed pretty fitting to do my project on this fascinating quail that has been on the edge of extinction for much of its known existence.

Officially discovered in 1885, in the once arid grasslands of southern Arizona and northern Sonora, Mexico, the Masked Bobwhite quail was already a very rare quail by that time. Once thought to be it’s own species, the Masked Bobwhite Quail is now considered to be a subspecies of the well known Northern Bobwhite Quail. Not much is known about the ecology or history of the Masked Bobwhite, but it appears to share many of its characteristics and habitat requirements with its northern cousin.

The known historical range for the Masked Bobwhite was but a small sliver of habitat from southern Arizona and extending into Sonora, Mexico. It is not known if it was ever widely distributed outside of this range before 1885. As quickly as it was discovered, it also seemingly quickly disappeared as the landscape changed. The home of the Masked Bobwhite was unique. They lived in a southern Arizona landscape where the grass was so tall, “it tickled the bellies of horses”. The southern lands of Arizona were once lush with native grasses that were specific to the habitat needs of the Masked Bobwhite. Those days are gone. The grasslands in the Arizona territory were too good of an opportunity for cattle ranchers to pass up.

Unfortunately, unchecked cattle grazing has had a huge negative impact on the already rare Masked Bobwhite and by the 1920’s it was believed to have been extinct. The decline of the Masked Bobwhite is attributed to cattle overgrazing resulting in habitat loss. Sightings throughout the decades were confirmed in Sonora, Mexico by the 1960’s as small coveys were discovered which lead to the very first attempts to relocate the Masked Bobwhite quail back into Arizona. This strategy occurred for some time, with limited success.

In 1985, the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge (BANWR) was created in hopes of preserving a portion of the known habitat range  of the Masked Bobwhite and other wildlife species. BANWR also became headquarters for a facility that would begin a captive breeding program, which would be used in an attempt to reintroduce captive bred quail back into the wild. Ultimately, the introduction of captive birds was put on hold, as the program failed to yield any survivors in the wild. The facility still remains as the center of captive breeding and raising in hopes that full scale captive bred-introductions will proceed in the future.

After much research, I concluded that captive bred and release programs in general are not very successful. Despite efforts to condition birds with “flight-pens” and controlled-hawk harassment, many captive bred programs ultimately fail and are abandoned. Aside from diluted genes and other issues, without proper habitat to conceal from predators, feed or nest, the captive breeding program seems pretty useless for Masked Bobwhite quail. Reintroductions are half the battle…

BANWR has since begun to focus on habitat restoration within the refuge. It has been argued that BANWR only encompasses a small portion of the known historical range for Masked Bobwhite. Efforts to enhance habitat outside the refuge are generally being ignored. It has also been noted that much of BANWR exists in an elevation that Masked Bobwhite did and do not occur. A focus on habitat restoration seems to be a step in the right direction for bringing back the Masked Bobwhite.

I applaud the past efforts of BANWR, but it is quite clear that whatever they are doing (or not doing) is proving to be ineffective so far. Doing the same thing over and again and expecting a different result is CRAZY in my book! Unfortunately, that is the way many government led programs operate. We have to take step back here. A whole (sub) species is at stake here and if we actually put our collective heads together, we may actually be able to save it from outright extinction. Let’s look at what works…

Quail Forever has been one of the few organizations out there that has advocated for quail and other upland game. Their philosophy? Habitat is the key! They have worked closely with landowners and provided guidance in creating habitat with quail in mind. Many other organizations seeking to improve habitat have followed suit with much success. The Northern Bobwhite resurgence has been made possible by biologists, researchers, and landowners. They all agree. Habitat: If you build it, they will come. Why wouldn’t this work with the Masked Bobwhite?

Wildlife Biologists in Sonora, Mexico have reported some population improvement success by working with local private ranches. By creating habitat specific to Masked Bobwhite, they have witnessed small coveys return to the area. The participation of these ranchers may be strictly business-minded, but it is working. Some ranchers hope to someday support large enough numbers of Masked Bobwhite to offer a hunters a rare chance of bagging a few in the future when biologists give the okay. A brilliant means to an end! Why not? After viable populations are confirmed, hunting would be a be a great conservation tool, generating funds for further research and conservation for this rare bird.

The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) in the United States, offers landowners an incentive to lease portions of their land for wildlife habitat restoration. There are even upland game specific programs. It seems a CRP-esque approach to the Masked Bobwhite would be the most effective way to bring the Masked Bobwhite back. Not only will we save this quail from extinction, someday we might be able to hunt it. Cooperation with land owners seems to be a crucial part of this puzzle.

I do not have all the answers. Who takes point on this? Federal involvement tends to muddy the waters. However, when dealing with a federally protected species, we are going to have to rub elbows with these guys at some point. Can BANWR realign it’s role and resources? Can they refocus resources from maintaining a captive breeding program to large scale habitat restoration project, partnering with landowners? This might be too big of a task for BANWR to handle on their own. This may take efforts of several organizations outside of the government and it’s clear to me, that landowners and habitat restoration may be the best bet to bringing back the Masked Bobwhite.

As off late 2017, the George Miksch Sutton Avian Research Center has been tasked with breeding new batches of Masked Bobwhite chicks, with hopes of stimulating the population in Arizona with more released birds. BANWR transported Masked Bobwhite eggs to the Sutton Center and has had some success with raising a new generation of breeding stock. In October of 2017, they released 132 juvenile Masked Bobwhite, along with a handful of sterile adult Texas Bobwhite to act as surrogates. The hope is these surrogates act as “mentors” for the Masked Bobwhite, showing the younger birds how to survive against predators and locate food. Several of the Texas Bobwhites were radio collared. The Sutton Center does not expect this first batch will return back any favorable results, as it was considered a bit of a trial run.

The Sutton Center plans on releasing well over 1000 Masked Bobwhite in Arizona (along with surrogates) in 2018 sometime, likely in the spring or early autumn. The hopes are that 5-10% of this initial 2018 release will survive, with supplemental releases to follow, again, hopefully building upon a self sustainable population of birds in the future. This method has been attempted in the past, with no better results.

It’s clear to me we are putting the cart before the horse here. Breeding captive birds for release seems like a waste of time when we should be focusing on a full scale habitat restoration beyond BANWR’s borders first, then releasing birds.

Still. Something does not add up. We are going around in circles, going through same methods for decades (releasing captive bred birds). I risk over simplifying the entire process by only mentioning the science and partnerships. Are there other hands at play here preventing better research, methods or other obstacles? Surely the grazing rights that ranchers benefit from would be affected on the adjacent public lands and the involvement of other agencies would be necessary. Is it a land issue? Surely the Trump administrations “Wall” plans will complicate things further. What are the real hold ups here, besides ineffective scientific methods. Politics and red tape is likely a bigger issue than we realize. I hope to incite more support for the Masked Bobwhite either way… a line must be drawn!

Furthermore, I wondered why only government funded programs are involved in this matter. Non-Profit Conservation minded organizations have been in the forefront of helping other species make big comebacks. I called and e-mailed several times, but could not get a comment from Quail Forever HQ on why there does not seem to be any interest to invest in or get involved with Masked Bobwhite quail recovery. Has there been an interest and why didn’t those ideas manifest, if so? I am sure there are complexities with getting involved with a federally protected species. I can only speculate at this point what some of the obstacles we face as far as dealing with the US Fish & Wildlife department. But I feel there should be a big push to help bring this bird back. As a hunter, I feel we have a greater responsibility in this world when it comes to our wildlife. I hope this article helps bring some attention to this rare Upland Bird. I dream of a day where we can stroll the hills of southern Arizona with the whir of Masked Bobwhite wings.

 

Below is a simplified version of my wildlife management project in the form of a virtual poster. Many of these concepts are proven techniques and have generated improved quail numbers in other parts of the country. My hope is to generate an interest in the Masked Bobwhite Quail and habitat restoration for its recovery. It’s going to take a lot of thinking outside of the box, but most importantly it is going to take a group effort. We owe it to this unique species. Upland Hunters and those who have dealt with habitat restoration have a wealth of knowledge to pass on. Other agencies have the resources and boots on the ground. All it takes is some dialogue to get things moving in the right direction.

God Bless & Happy Hunting!

-JR

 

 

(Originally Published 4/28/17 and reposted with revisions)