Thursday, July 24, 2008
Will DGIF quail plan really make a difference?
Bill Cochran
Recent columns
Restoring the bobwhite quail population in Virginia isn’t going to be easy or inexpensive. That’s the gist of a Department of Game and Inland Fisheries’ quail management plan released last week in draft form.
For the plan to work, the DGIF must give the effort its highest priority, and that includes full funding and a minimum of 5 years of implementation -- 10 years would be even better.
Even then, no one should expect a return to the good old days of quail hunting, when on a bad day you could flush two or three coveys during a morning or afternoon of hunting in counties such as Roanoke, Botetourt and Bedford. At best, this won’t be the kind of comeback we’ve seen with deer, turkey and bear. But if done right, some progress can be expected, and this makes the plan worthy of the support of sportsmen.
To do less, “we are falling short of our mission,” said Bob Ellis, chief of the department’s wildlife division. That mission is “to manage Virginia’s wildlife and inland fish to maintain optimum populations of all species.”
The quail plan realistically has set a goal of returning bird populations to 1980 levels. Quail numbers plunged in the late '70s, but leveled off during the decade of the 80s before taking another annual downward trend that hasn’t stopped.
It is estimated that hunters killed 413,576 quail in 1980. That number plunged to 68,647 in 2006. Back in 1970, it was 1.5 million birds.
As might be expected, bird hunters declined with the quail population. From 1973, there has been a 92 percent decline in quail hunters. Only about 5 percent of the state’s licensed hunters even bother to pursue quail nowadays, compared to 32 percent in 1970.
This isn’t the first effort to address the plight of the quail in Virginia. In 1988, the General Assembly established a joint subcommittee to study the problem. There was no money attached to accomplish the work, so the effort pretty much failed.
In 1996, DGIF developed a quail management plan, but it was only funded at the rate of 35 percent. Of the six staff positions it called for only one was filled.
Will it be any different this time?
“Without question, the key is funding,” said Charles Yates, DGIF board member who lives in far Southwest Virginia, where quail are little more than a memory.
Yates is talking about new money. “It would be unacceptable to shift funds from other programs,” he said.
The quail plan calls for spending nearly $10 million between 2010 and 2014. Three major sources of financing are proposed:
1. A habitat stamp. Details have not been worked out, but likely the stamp would cost $10 annually and be required of everyone who purchases a hunting or fishing license. Half of the stamp money would go toward the purchase of public land. Approval would be required by the General Assembly. A stamp could net $3.5 million annually. Habitat stamps have been discussed for a number of years, and haven’t generated a lot of enthusiasm. The most recent DGIF survey revealed that 52 percent of the sportsmen said “Yes” to a stamp and 48 percent said, “No.”
2. An endowment fund. This would pool donations from individuals, organizations and businesses. The plan also calls for going after grant money.
3. A wildlife management area user fee. The DGIF owns 30 wildlife management areas that currently require no entry permit or user free. They were purchased with funds provided by hunters and fishermen, yet they often are used at no cost by hikers, birders, horseback riders and others of non-traditional outdoor interests. The plan does not recommend what the fee structure would be.
While restoring quail can appear to be a daunting task, encouragement can be found in the reality that some states, namely Georgia and Missouri, have experienced success in the effort. The key is to provide early succession habitat, the kind quail need for nesting, cover and food. It will take lots of it, and the idea is to provide it through partnerships with landowners and sportsmen groups, along with closer working relationships with state and federal agencies, utilities and pine tree planting operations.
