It’s For the Birds
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By Sandra Ebeling
Hello from Pine Ridge.
The corn is turning super fast and beans are not far behind them.
Hello Fall.
Time to say goodbye to the precious summer flowers and give way to orange colored leaves, beautiful mums, and wine colored berries appearing in the timber.
These bring to mind fall bon fires and enjoyable crisp fall mornings, and evenings.
Do all of you enjoy hearing the Bob White Quail call and watching them run ahead of you with their little ones following behind? I love it.
It reminds me of being raised in a family of bird hunters and bird dogs. We always had quail fried and quail gravy, yum. So delicious. I will always remember my father hunting with my uncle and brother, and that we always had bird dogs. I’m sure all of you have fond memories of that, too.
Bobwhite have a rich history in Missouri.
Prior to huntable deer and turkey populations the quail was kind back in the sixties. Bobwhites can still be found around the state if you know where to look.
I have at least two covies here in the pine ridge trails, and watch them with their new ones in the spring and summmer. We don’t take our CRP down each year, so they have plenty of undergrowth for protection. The quail buffers have also helped.
If you have land and the opportunity, you can seek out ways to help maintain or help the quail population. The quail buffers are made of a high concentration of Forbes and soil season grasses and they are a great method of enjoying some wild flowers too.
If you use the CRP practice and buffers, you will not only increase Bobwhite quail, but also enhance the Monarch population. Songbirds, and other wildlife enjoy the grasslands and wildflowers as well. With this note, you will want to be heavy feeding those hummingbirds from now until the end of the month, as they will need this fuel to head south here very soon. Enjoy them while you can.
Until next time, good birdwatching.
Hello to the Ebelings in rural Clark County, who are avid readers of my column weekly.
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