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Annual Roadside Survey Results for Small Game Released

September 2, 2016 3:13 PM

For those living in rural Iowa, the sight of a brood of young gamebirds, like Hungarian partridge, bobwhite quail or ring-necked pheasant, is probably a common and welcome sight on morning drives down dusty roads. Sometime during August there was a different sight on those roadways — wildlife biologists from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources slowly surveying the roadside. That’s because the Iowa DNR logged 6,000 miles counting birds and rabbits in their annual August Roadside Survey. The results released on Aug. 30 showed little change from last year; a promising result for gamebird populations that have shown population declines in most years of the survey’s 55-year history.....

To continue reading this article from Iowa State University Extension and Outreach news service, click here.

Setting the Table for Iowa's Favorite Farmland Birds: Bobwhite Quail and Ring-necked Pheasants

July 17, 2016 2:29 PM

Perhaps no wild birds captivate the imagination of rural Midwesterners as much as the bobwhite quail and ring-necked pheasant. Both species wield an iconic call – the “bob-WHITE” whistle of male bobwhites and the conspicuous crowing of the rooster pheasant. Both species are often visible on a country drive thanks to their affinity for feeding and dusting on crop-field and roadside edges. Both species flock during winter and offer beautiful reprieves from otherwise life-less winter landscapes. Unfortunately though, both species share one more commonality – there are fewer of them in Iowa today than there was throughout most of the 20th century....

To continue reading this article on the Acreage Living Newsletter, click here.

Northern Bobwhites in Iowa

Northern Bobwhites in Iowa
Northern bobwhites, known simply as “quail” to many, are a charismatic bird that dwells on the margins of diverse farms, fields, and forests of southern Iowa. This article describes the basic needs and behaviors of the bobwhite and offers landowners and managers pointers on how to help ensure the bird continues to thrive in rural Iowa.