Wild Quail & Pheasant populations for 2019 season

[Lady Grouse hunter]

I have read a bunch of local reports and local News paper blogs which say they're ALL down in the last 3 years.
I'm SEEing different here by the upper Sun lakes area as it was a WET year here for once. Quail everywhere as I can't just drive to the local mini mart without dodging them in/on the local roads! IS anyone seeing the same?
Lots of Crickets, Grass hoppers, wild seeds with Cheat grass and all.  Please share your exp's
Cannot wait for a good season this year as time it getting up in years now...

[Samloffler]

Pretty similar in the basin. Plenty of quail. Pheasants are probably about the same as last year, and the last 10 years- piss poor.

[nwwanderer]

Ditto on ours, plenty of quail, pheasants still down and a bunch of turkeys.  Any relationship with pheasant/turkey numbers?

[Lady Grouse hunter]

This was an Eastside report not for Planted birds,,, Macs B

[PolarBear]

I've got at least 60 quail running around my place.  This is the most in one group that I have seen in 25 years even with a bobcat den nearby
 

[fishnfur]

Polar Bear, are those California Quail or Mountain Quail?

I grew up in Tacoma and remember seeing Cali Quail all the time when I was a kid.  Ring Neck Pheasant weren't rare either - within the city limits.  They all disappeared years ago.  I haven't seen a Cali Quail in Western WA since probably 1965 or so.

While sitting in my elevated blind in Kitsap early in the month, I had a covey of Mountain Quail run right under the blind - approx. eight birds or so.  I couldn't even put a name to them because I had never seen them before.  I looked them up on Safari while I hunted.  The website I found states they are rare to virtually extirpated in the Puget Trough.  I felt lucky to see some wildlife I was unfamiliar with, especially when they are a rarity.  Doubly so in this area that has a substantial yote population.  Anyways, that sighting offset the disappointment of seeing no bucks.

[PolarBear]

California quail.  We have several coveys that all gather up for the winter.  This year we had a huge survival rate of chicks.  I was on the roof yesterday and my yard was covered with them like they were starlings.  For some reason they prefer to hide and hatch in the few clumps of branches and berry vines that I leave in my pastures for them instead of the thick brush on the back 40.  I am noticing pheasants are coming back as well.

[fishnfur]

Love to hear that!  Keep killing those yotes!

[PolarBear]

Love to hear that!  Keep killing those yotes!

Up to 26 so far for the year.  Getting ready to turn up the heat on what's left.   

[jeffro]

Saw several hundred quail, not sure which exact species, and around 30-40 pheasant hens in the western half of the Roosevelt area yesterday.
And me without a shotgun....🤬 or even shot shells for my 44mag...🤯

Filled my deer tag though, and will be back next weekend to help my partner fill his.
I see a pile of quail being cooked up after that....

[Birdguy]

Fishnfur, Kitsap and Mason counties as well as north Peirce have a decent, though tough to locate population of mountain quail. I have lived here 45 years and while tough to see and find they are around, They tend to do best in logged areas and blowdowns. In 1990 we had a severe wind storm take out a few hundred trees laid them right over. it took a couple years to clean it all up and we had great hatches of mountain quail those years found several nests as we cleaned too. Once the trees were gone so were the quail.
     I have raised mountains for many years in my aviary, had the captive ones call in wild ones at times. I knew a guy many years ago that would try to trap them out beyond Belfair though I do not know he ever got any. When the Peninsula Brid Hunters used to hold their fall meeting at the Library in Belfair before the release season for pheasants started they would have a game warden and DNR rep at the meeting, the old guys would chat those two up about where the mountains and grouse could be found. They are awesome birds for sure.


  MacB, you are almost certainly feeding the local cat population and most likely the local hawks like you even more!!!