I hope all of you had a nice holiday season. Breaks are nice, but it’s always good to get back in the work “groove.” Yesterday, as on most Sundays, I was reading our weekly edition of the Sunday Richmond Times-Dispatch. I get it primarily for sports and comics, and I especially enjoy Tee Clarkson’s outdoor column. This week in the Flair section I noticed a blurb stating that “January is national ‘Thank You’ month.” I thought to myself, “Do we really need an official ‘thank you’ month to remind us to be nice?”
A friend of mine and I were talking Saturday between woodcock coverts (Thanks for the invite, Sandy!) about how shocked some people seem to be nowadays when you do something nice for them. It’s a shame, and I sure hope we can get back to a world where doing nice things for people is as common as air. It got me thinking about all the folks who have been nice to me over the last year. I hoped to myself that I had thanked them sincerely. They are too many to recognize in this post, but I did want to mention a few, not by name, but they will know who they are.
Many fellow quail enthusiasts sent me e-mails or gave me phone calls to simply say, “hang in there, we appreciate what you all are trying to do.” That means a ton, as we get negative comments sometimes and they can get to you. Thanks to those of you out there who understand and who are trying to help bobwhites…those who recognize that you have to be part of the solution.
In a class on leadership I took with some of my peers a few years ago we learned that within our fair species there are three basic types of people “Poopers, pointers and pooper scoopers.” Poopers make messes, pointers say “look at that mess” but do nothing to help, and then there are the pooper scoopers – who take action to solve the problem. Don’t point unless you are willing to help scoop. THANKS to all of you out there who are “quail pooper scoopers.”
I am “between bird dogs” as bird hunters say who do not have a good dog to take afield. I have three dogs at home that I love and feed, but due to a combination of my circumstances and ineptness at dog training, I don’t hunt with them. One is my Daughter’s little “country mutt” that we adopted from the local pound at about 8 weeks – the dog loves me, as I fed, cradled, and cleaned up after her until she could fend for herself. But she’s into squirrels not birds.
A special “friend” in King and Queen County, who would not want his name mentioned, invites me at least once or twice a year to benefit from his enormous habitat efforts, and his pre-season release system that has worked well for him (not to mention his superior bird dogs). We went the Sunday before Christmas and found 11 coveys in 3 hours.
Thanks to all of you who have taken pity on me and shared your dogs and coverts with me. I am getting a puppy this spring – I’ve come to see there is never a “good time” to buy one, and as each year passes my bird hunting life ebbs. What’s one more dog anyway? Hopefully next year I’ll at least be able to get out and train and at some point again enjoy that relationship with a good dog. It’s all about friends, both canine and human.
I got an e-mail back in October from a “quail friend” over in Chesapeake. He’d seen my blog post on my home habitat project back in summer. In it I mentioned renting a heavy duty mower to help me keep my wildlife cover from converting back to trees. In my case, I am not in a good position to conduct prescribed burning (though I plan to try) or disking, but I can mow in rotation, in late winter and still keep some cover in fair shape. He e-mailed to say he had an older brush mower that he had become “too old” to run anymore and I could have it free if I was willing to come get it. I told him I couldn’t take it for free, but would be willing to come get it.
Long story short, I hitched up my trailer one day over the holidays and rode to Chesapeake, about 3 hours for me one way, but well worth the trip. I got a used, but very good condition walk behind brush mower for a low, but fair price according to my friend. It will work great for keeping my habitats from being overwhelmed by trees, and also for mowing fire-lines. Friends helping friends is what it takes.
A quick habitat note: most mornings rather than watch the news, I sit on my front porch and watch the day take shape (as long as it is above 25 degrees). One morning last week I watched a Cooper’s Hawk glide with his tell-tell quick three or four wing beats followed by soaring and then repeated, just a few feet off the ground. He flew into the woods west of my driveway and as he entered the woods, an up roar of song birds exploded from within. Every cardinal, towhee, chickadee and tufted titmouse in there blew out, crossed my yard and flew into the thickets I have established along my yard edges. The cardinals flew out so fast their wings sounded like a covey of quail. This year’s challenge for you all – tell a neighbor about the importance of thickets and then help them create some.
God Bless all of you and Happy New Year.
