January is the month for chasing birds…quail to be exact! Late season roughnecks are hard to come by, but Bob is still a gentleman! January is when I become a specialist and concentrate on counting coveys! Counting coveys is a term coined by my Kansas quail hunting bums…it means that before one pulls the trigger on a covey rise, there had better be at least 10 birds in the covey or else…that’s a hard thing to do if you’re a hillbilly because you’ll drop your gun while counting on your fingers (I stole that one from Dr. Andrew Campbell here). I haven’t dared to find out what the OR ELSE means!

Andy and My cousin on my mother’s side, Eric (who’s also a pointing dog affectionado…see his blog here) are planning to join me in CO and KS next week to count coveys, and I’m really looking forward to it! This will be Eric’s very first time to chase quail!

I wanted to share one of my favorite blogs out there by MO Quail Guy (here). I’ve been following his blog since it was started, and I’m hooked! I wish other states’ DOW would follow his blog to improve our quail habitat!

On a final note…make a goal this year to join a couple of conservation groups like Quail Unlimited and North American Grouse Partnership! Have a wonderful New Year to all!

Robert K. Abbett