Wild bobwhites?

[TwoCrows]

I found out that cackle hatchery's bobs will breed but they must have a natural environment, is it possible I could release them? I have no experience in quail, if this is ever going to work I'm going to need help

You will need to contact your state Fish and Wildlife for permits to start. Then you will need them to educate you on how to properly hatch with a Johnny House. This is a set up that allows them to feed and water themselves without you around, stay warm as babies and help to protect them from predators.

As I have mentioned previously, it is not working for the pro's.

Going broody is not something you can make them do. Yes, you need to provide the proper environment. But broodiness comes from hormones. And you can't change their pituitary gland that controls their hormones. Either they are broody or they are not.

 

[zajh6fd]

Actually there are some sources --- and there are some that having real success with more hardy quail. You must have some space and habitat available. Quail in the wild are like shrimp in the ocean --- every thing wants to eat them --- you need a quail that does not act like a pork chop --- the need to be quick, alert, nervous and able to hide. This has been bred out commercial breeds. Crossbreeding is helps but they are other mean. Good luck!

 

[copper2]

I live on 50 acres and there is a lot of not super well kept ranches around me, and on one side of the ranch is 130 acres of unkept land except for a couple cows, but plenty of trees, is that enough land, I don't know much about quail

 

[copper2]

What do they eat?

 

[copper2]

Twocrows, you said a type of quail sometimes goes broody, I know on chickens when one goes broody a bunch start to, too, is this true on quail?

 

[TwoCrows]

You just can't make a bird go broody. Quail just don't go broody all that often. There are breeds of chickens that rarely if ever go broody....well quail are the same way. You can't force them. No matter how comfortable you make your facilities, there is no guarantee they will go broody. Much of it is hormonal driven. Chickens lay year round. Quail are seasonal. And this also makes them delicate. If something is not perfect in their world, they will never go broody.

In the wild, quail chicks live exclusively on bugs for the first 3 months of their lives. Later they live along hedgerows of legume fields. They are very specific in what they eat in the wild. They live in dense thickets. A wild pair requires several acres or more to survive. Unfortunately these southern states, Texas included, are losing these delicate habitats for wild bobs. Even if you turned out 50 bobs on this land, chances are they won't survive due to lack of water, food, shelter, too many predators.

If your land could support bobs, they would naturally be there now. Unfortunately all of our wild birds and other creatures are very stressed due to habitat loss and it is only getting worse. Fix the land, fix the planet, and maybe they will return.

 

[copper2]

It's impossible?

 

[TwoCrows]

Unless you have help from professional ornithologists that do this for a living, I will say it is impossible to establish a colony of birds that will live past a couple of days on your property before dying.

If you are truly interested in this sort of thing, contact your state Fish and Game department and maybe they can put you in contact with people that do this sort of thing and you can get involved with them as a partner.

It is illegal to endanger our native birds and wildlife in any way, so you cannot do a release of any kind with any sort of bird or animal without all kinds of licensing and state people being involved.

 

[copper2]

Okay