I won’t tell you who Old Number 271 is, other than that he is still out there and a finer gentleman you will never meet. His number, 271, was assigned as he became one of our very first quail hunter cooperators back in the late 1970s. And he dedicated large portions of his life working on behalf of quail and quail hunters throughout our state. Yesterday I noticed one of my quail cooperator envelopes had come in abnormally late. I could tell no wings were in it, which is not uncommon now, but I opened it anyway because sometimes I get a letter (and not always with kind words). The letter was dated May 15, 2015 and this is it verbatim:
Dear Marc,
It’s a rainy day and I’m trying to use it to catch up on things. I’m going through stuff that’s been piling up on my desk, such as the envelope I’m just now returning. The wing survey form that was enclosed is not returning nor has it been needed for several years.
I guess it’s time for old number 271 to be retired. I thought you might want to purge your records. I think 271 outlasted all prior numbers by several years. I guess I lasted so long because hunting quail was just too much fun to give up just because their numbers had dropped off a little from when I signed on in 1977.
While a little sad to think I may not be hunting quail again, I had some wonderful years in the 70s and 80s, when I didn’t kill a lot of birds but certainly found plenty to shoot at. Lots of memories to enjoy. Lots of good dogs. Not perfect but good.
And, by my profound interest in quail, lots of opportunity came my way aside from hunting. Meeting and working with like-minded individuals. The chance to preach occasionally on behalf of bobwhites and their unique needs. I owe that little bird a lot and have for a long time.
Best success to you in your determined and ever continuing efforts.
Old Number 271
Well…I sat and reflected on this note for quite a while. I have been personally involved in quail recovery since I started reading the quail literature back in 1992 … 15 years after Old Number 271 became a quail wing cooperator for VDGIF. I count myself lucky in having the opportunity to work with him for several years before he retired. I learned a lot about quail from Old Number 271, but more than anything else I learned how much a person can love these birds…just for the splendid creatures they are.
A couple things you will not notice in Old Number 271’s letter: 1) there is no bitterness, or lamenting about why we can’t seem to reverse this quail decline, 2) no quitting either, in the belief that they can come back…”Best success to you in your determined and ever continuing efforts.”
I wrote back to 271 in an e-mail. I admit to not having many words I thought might matter, but just wanted to say thanks. I also wrote in an effort to encourage myself … as I have seen many venerable old bird hunters fade away like the mist over a trout stream on an early May morning. I think many of us suffer from years of “winning some battles but losing the war.” And those few that age does not overtake, illness does.
Old 271’s letter made me think about all the people like him who have done all they can do for the bobwhite. I asked in the note, “I wonder how bad things would be now if no one had ever done anything for them?”
And I wondered to myself where we’d be without the 1985 Farm Bill which at long last brought the word “wildlife” into the farm conservation language.
And the subsequent 1996 Farm Bill that made wildlife an equal partner with soil and water conservation in USDA programs.
And the advent of the Southeast Quail Study Group in 1995 (now the 25 state National Bobwhite Technical Committee), and the National Bobwhite Conservation Initiative (NBCI) and all the non-governmental organizations like Quail Forever, the Quail and Upland Wildlife Federation, The Quail Coalition, the National Wild Turkey Federation, now involved in quail recovery and more.
And I wondered about where we’d be without all the thousands of research hours and millions of dollars spent on behalf of bobwhites by so many storied quail research entities. I could go on, but I reckon my message to myself and any listening is that some may think we have not worked hard for quail, that we have not tried everything we could, but all those things did not happen by accident. Had none of us ever done anything, had there been no Old Number 271s, no one to care, we’d be far worse off today.
I am encouraged by the many exciting things I see happening not just for quail, but for pollinators, songbirds and habitats themselves. Old Number 271 carried the torch, and I believe there is a new generation coming along to keep it lit until its light falls on the bobwhite’s recovery. Those carrying the torch may not be cut from the exact cloth of Old Number 271, but they are right- minded conservationists. Lastly, thanks to Old Number 271 and all those like him who have steadfastly refused to give up on quail.
