# New Grazing Concept Benefits the Bird and the Herd



## cnmrosko (Jun 8, 2004)

Sure would like to see this in northeast Ohio. 
A good are to start would be Columbiana County and others along the Ohio river as the DOW released Kansas quail some years ago to try and get a wild population started.

*New Grazing Concept Benefits the Bird and the Herd*
https://www.co.logan.oh.us/820/New-G...ts-the-Bird-an



> If you think livestock and quail don't mix, a new concept in managed grazing may just change your mind. USDA's Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) is now accepting applications for a unique program that focuses on establishing productive warm season forages to improve livestock production and provide large areas of prime habitat for ground nesting birds and other wildlife.
> 
> Ohio's Northern Bobwhite in Grasslands project is part of a national Working Lands for Wildlife (WLFW) partnership, a collaborative approach to conserving habitat for declining species on farms and working forests. NRCS works with partners and private landowners to focus voluntary conservation efforts on working landscapes.
> 
> ...


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## E.sheets3 (May 9, 2019)

I'm not sure quail can survive N ohio winters, they havnt tried planting them very far north yet

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## bustedrod (May 13, 2015)

they can survive, we used to have quail everywhere , and pheasent, and grouse. the winters in the 70s and 80s killed alot of birds.


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## floater99 (May 21, 2010)

We would jump a occasional covey while rabbit phsnt hunting they always spooked the crap out of us when flushed lots of fun when they did


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## buckeyebowman (Feb 24, 2012)

bustedrod said:


> they can survive, we used to have quail everywhere , and pheasent, and grouse. the winters in the 70s and 80s killed alot of birds.


The winters of 77 and 78, and specifically the blizzard of 78. There were good numbers of quail up here, and me and my buddy knew where a lot of them were. But it's hard for a bird that size to survive hip deep snow and sub-zero temps. And they really are more common in the South.


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## STRONGPERSUADER (Nov 5, 2006)

We use to jump large coveys in the 70’s while rabbit hunting in Mansfield. Close to the fairgrounds. Blizzards came in 77-78 and they were gone which seemed like overnight. But there use to be healthy populations throughout the state. Of course all that land is gone now. Lots of wild pheasant back then too.


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## Muddy (May 7, 2017)

The blizzards were just the final piece of the puzzle. Dwindling and fragmented habitat along with cleaner and chemical heavy farming practices had put a hurting on the populations before the blizzard hit. The populations could not recover from the blizzard because of the other stress factors that they were already facing.


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## buckeyebowman (Feb 24, 2012)

Muddy said:


> The blizzards were just the final piece of the puzzle. Dwindling and fragmented habitat along with cleaner and chemical heavy farming practices had put a hurting on the populations before the blizzard hit. The populations could not recover from the blizzard because of the other stress factors that they were already facing.


Much the same is true with wild pheasant. We have lost the "shelter belts" and "treelines" that defined crop fields, and provided shelter and travel routes for pheasant who would rather walk or run than fly!


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## Muddy (May 7, 2017)

Yep, They can’t live without habitat. We have a good population of wild birds around my house. I have CRP grass on my property and so does my neighbor.


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## NLC25 (Jan 21, 2008)

It seems to me there are some simple things Ohio can do to encourage more habitat availability that would not cost the state or farmers a penny.

When you drive around pheasant country in Iowa you see that the right of ways (area between the roads and the farm fields) are not mowed and provide good cover. In fact, you can often spot pheasants in those areas. The same is true, of course, of the parts of the fields that cannot be planted.

Driving around what remains of pheasant country in central Ohio, it is the opposite. The areas between the roads and fields are closely mowed. I even see farmers closely mowing the draws and little dips in their farm fields that cannot be planted. This all costs money, time and habit. I don't get it. I wish Ohio would encourage a change in mindset in those counties that still have wild birds.


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## buckeyebowman (Feb 24, 2012)

I agree. Way back in the day, there were wild pheasant all over the place in NE OH. My buddy and I could just go driving around the countryside, look at a field, and pretty much know if there were pheasant there or not! Not so anymore. It's been ages since I've seen a wild pheasant around here!


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## bustedrod (May 13, 2015)

i can remember seeing birds in most of the inter change areas runnin around in the grasses. there are still quail in some places i used to see them alot launching from hot waters, walking around the parking lots and fields . driving east on 224 from akron there used to be pheasents flying accross the road all the time. along with grouse and the stray parteidge.. now all i see is turkey and yotes.......


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