Quail???

[nmelktrout]

So, I spent the weekend hunting public land over a great pointer and lab and have zero birds to show for it...I focused my hunting in one area in Central NM that I have traditionally hammered birds in and had seen quite a few birds this summer and September, but must confess that I saw zero birds...now, I've had plenty of days with no birds but I always see tracks or sign and can chalk it up as another day of "hunting." The spooky thing is that my buddy (another serious upland hunter) and I covered over 200 miles going from every favorite spot down to the worst spots and there was only one spot (a water tank) that even had quail tracks near it...I also talked to a good number of other bird hunters that had also failed to see a single bird. So, what gives? Disease and predation? I've never seen anything like it anywhere, even after a major winterkill. Now, I know that the birds did just fine in certain areas in NM due to early spring rainfall and a wet summer, but this was pretty weird in my book. There was plenty of good seed grass and water but an utter lack of birds. It was as if something completely wiped them out...I won't be hunting this region the rest of the season due to the low number of birds and am completely disheartened...

Anyone else have any reports or similar experience? I know where there are good bird populations this year in other regions but I'm pretty concerned about this particular area...Hopefully I just had an awful weekend but something wasn't adding up.

-Cody

 

[NMPaul]

Cody, I have not quail hunted this year, but, I have done a bunch of deer hunting that is in what I consider decent quail country and I have seen very few birds.
I was thinking about that the other day that I should be jumping some quail and have not.



If I go quail hunting, it wont be till towards end of season. Still have bunch of other hunts still to go on.
Hope there are a few birds that I can waste some shells on.

 

[frednfrog]

I haven't gone quail hunting this year but I am heading out this weekend to the southeast part of the state. My father-in-law went down around Carlsbad and came back with the same reports that you giving areas that in the past few years have had covies of 30-40 birds now there aren't even tracks in the areas. My friend that lives east of Roswell was seeing birds all spring and summer and is now struggling to see any. G&F reports three hatches in the southeast quadrant but there doesn't seem to be much to show for it. I will pass on what we see this weekend hopefully we'll find a few birds.

 

[nmmuley]

Cody,

I took a customer quail hunting on Thursday and Friday down in SE NM and we did fairly well. On Thursday we hunted from sun up until sundown and we got into about 12 coveys. We ended up getting 24 birds between the two of us on Thursday. On Friday we hunted from sun up until 11am and got another 16 birds between the two of us. Decent bird populations, but way down from the previous years. My brother went yesterday in central NM and hunted all day and didnt see a single bird.

Michael

 

[stevie]

I've decided to cancel my quail hunting trip to the East rim of the Guads/ Indian Basin area. My intellegence sources (friends of friends) who hunt quail in that area extensively say that it stinks.

 

[PetePeters]

No birds.

 

[Muley_73]

Went down last week on our first quail hunting trip to NM. Hunted for 2 and a half days and had a great time. Saw alot of birds and will definatly return next year. I hope this was a down year, I can not wait for good one!

Thanks Balz we had a GREAT time!