"Drake's" FIRST WOOD Cock!!

Went on one of WMA's today and went after some wood cock , Drake flushed 2-Wood Cock and a small covey of quail (About 6 Birds) in the swamp bottom and got one out of the rise and got a straggler. We must have walked 10 miles and ole Preacher is wore out

Congratulations. Always nice to have a plan workout. Woodcock hunting in the lowcountry is not a walk in a park as you found out. Gil

Gil, my arms a totally one big SCRATCH!!!! But i loved it

Don't overcook the woodcock. Rare to medium rare...Gil

That's great looking dog preacher. He looks good.

Preacher bet I know where you where? I know some people that might have seen those birds before too. You keep working at it and you are going to make a true wild bird hunter lol. Good job with Drake.

Stacy, i was just thinking about you yesterday and how much you like to hunt them, hope you're having a great Holiday and you'r shooting some birds!!!

Preacher all is well here with family. Been out twice for WC and only shot a bird each trip. I think resident birds are really scattered from dry weather earlier and no flight birds that I have encountered. Really great to get out tho. Happy New Year. You may bump into Pops out there one day.

Two more trips like that and there won't be a covey. THINK.

Big Tom said:

Two more trips like that and there won't be a covey. THINK.

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So, he is supposed to pass on a covey of six quail that just happened to be on a public WMA he was hunting for woodcock. Get real. Quail have a lot of problems in this state, but people shooting them on public land isn't going to make one iota of difference one the quail population statewide. I would have shot them two.

Dead birds don't lay eggs or raise chicks.

6-2=4 Think

6-2=4 Ducks, 6-2=4 Dove, 6-2=4 Deer, 6-2=4 Chicago Population , 6-2=4 Dogs, 6-2=4 Dummies, because of all these 6-2=4 Factors Let's close them all down, Then we'll give all our guns to the government then we'll have a 0-0=0

Unless one has grown up a serious quail hunter or been around folks who are, one might not realize or understand the significance and uniqueness of covey size in relation to the survival of individual quail and of the covey. In some parts of the country, further north, ideal minimum covey size is said to be about a dozen birds. When birds covey-up at night, they form a tight circle, heads out, tails fanned with bodies pressed together generating and trapping communal heat to survive cold nights. There is also security in numbers with numerous eyes and ears alert to predator intrusion. Anyone moving to a pre-dawn spring gobbler who has nearly stepped on a covey understands what I mean. The minimum covey size in warmer climates in their range is said to be 6-8 birds because of body geometry and numbers needed to have a heat-generating pressing circle of bodies. Does this mean a covey reduced to 4 birds in south coastal Georgia where these birds live will not survive? I don’t think anyone can predict this as small coveys are believed to seek out and join other coveys. Sometimes a small covey will be just a small fragment of a nearby larger covey. I don’t think Mike (or anyone else here, hopefully) would deliberately shoot birds knowing that the remaining would be jeopardized by reduction of covey size. Here’s a photo taken after an ice storm in Missouri. Such is the life, and death, of a ground dwelling bird.

I don't hunt quail anymore because there are so few left compared to what there used to be. I haven't heard one in many years. In years gone by we and most all hunters would not even hunt a covey with only six birds left. I once knew of coveys that had been there all of my fathers life and mine. We loved the sport to much. Now doves that is a different story and so is woodcock. I once hunted a large farm in South Georgia where the farmer had a covey of the old timey larger quail. He asked us not to shoot them if we found them because they were down to about a dozen that year. I respected that. Enjoy the wonderful sport of hunting wild birds as that is a whole different sport from released birds in my way of thinking. I have a neighbor my age 72 who has never saw a wild covey and he graded woods roads for people. I flushed a covey about 40 years ago that I believe had 50 birds. How many times have anyone saw that. I don't care to argue this just offering friendly advise for the benefit of the sport. Just think.

Actually they are shutting them down. No longer can we hunt Silver Lake, Chickasawhatchee except quota hunts.El Model is only open a few weeks for quail hunting.Everything is going to quota hunts. This is all caused by over hunting and poor land management by our DNR. I quit shooting quail a long time ago and enjoy it ten times more now. Video tape covey rises and now I can remember them forever. Also get to relive my dogs that are long gone. Pointed hundreds of coveys this year of all wild birds and never fired a shot. Not against shooting birds but I will take up for the quail EVERY TIME!!! Wild birds are a precious resource. No substitute. Woodcock are migratory. Different story.
Everyone can agree to disagree. Thats what forums are for.

Beautiful dog and nice hunt. As to the quail, no doubt in trouble and have been my entire lifetime more than likely. I have seen more wild birds this year than any year I can remember in my 42 years on earth. I say that is a good thing. BTW, I am not even looking for them or hunting them and have seen a lot on the regular.

Barebowyer said:

Beautiful dog and nice hunt. As to the quail, no doubt in trouble and have been my entire lifetime more than likely. I have seen more wild birds this year than any year I can remember in my 42 years on earth. I say that is a good thing. BTW, I am not even looking for them or hunting them and have seen a lot on the regular.

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That's great news to hear. I think these warm winters have been terrible on the hunting but great for the survival of quail. Hope they rebound everywhere.

Congrats on the first woodcock. As far as the quail discussion goes, I believe most of the southeast is in bad shape and not going to get any better. However, I was deer hunting this afternoon over a clearcut, and was blessed to have a covey of 7 birds walk under me. First time I've ever seen one on this piece of property.