Alabama Division of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Director Charles F. “Chuck” Sykes has designated Mark Sasser as the
new quail coordinator for the state. Sasser is a veteran bobwhite manager and Alabama’s current non-game wildlife program coordinator. He replaces Carrie Threadgill, who works for Sasser as the Central Alabama nongame biologist in the non-game wildlife program.
Alabama is one of 25 states in the National Bobwhite Conservation Initiative (NBCI), the states’ unified, coordinated strategy to restore plummeting wild bobwhite populations across the bird’s core range. Each state has a designated quail coordinator to represent it in the effort on a daily basis, as well as serve on the range-wide technical committee behind the initiative.
Sasser, who has a B.S. in Wildlife Science from Auburn University, began his wildlife career managing a private quail plantation in east central Alabama. His interests in quail management led him to northwest Florida to work for what was then the Florida Game and Freshwater Fish Commission, where he spent the next 18 years focusing on bobwhite quail and wild turkey research and management. In Florida, he was heavily involved with the management of Florida’s state bird dog field trial grounds, the Blackwater Field Trial Area, which was managed for wild quail.
From 1990-1998, he also served on the Quail Task Force for Ames Plantation in Grand Junction, Tennessee, the home of the National Bird Dog Championship. He left Florida in 1998, joining the private sector for the next four years before deciding to return “home” to Alabama.
In 2002, he accepted a wildlife biologist position with Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, becoming the coordinator of the Non-game Wildlife Program. In 2010, he received the coveted Governor’s Conservation Achievement Award as Wildlife Conservationist of the Year. He continued his interest in quail management and Sykes, who was hired only last year, expanded Sasser’s role to include quail coordinator duties while enlarging his staff.
Sasser admits his favorite hobby has always been quail hunting, bird dogs, and field trials. “Although I don’t compete in field trials or judge anymore, I keep a couple of walking horses around and still enjoy riding and watching the big dogs run at a few field trials here in Alabama when me and my buddies aren’t hunting. I’m looking forward to being ‘officially’ in the quail arena again,” Sasser said.
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p style=”text-align: left;” align=”center”>August 4, 2014
