Quail Forever Habitat Conservation
To some, conservation is a word. To Quail Forever, it's a way of life - anything short of a holistic approach to conservation would be unacceptable. That's why Quail Forever provides the most efficient conservation model of any organization. QF's unique model empowers local chapters with the responsibility to determine how 100 percent of their locally-raised conservation funds will be spent. Whether it's through improving habitat, informing the public about land management or educating future generations of hunting enthusiasts, conservation is the underlying principle in all we do at the grassroots level of our chapters all the way to Washington DC when we fight for strong conservation policy.
Quail Forever is honored to carry along America's rich tradition of conservation. Deeply engrained in Quail Forever's conservation approach are the teachings, philosophies and lessons of Aldo Leopold, one of the country's most renowned and well-respected conservationists. Quail Forever holds Leopold's work in such high regard that the organization's education arm is the Leopold Education Project (LEP), a curriculum based on Leopold's writings. Quail Forever's mission is tied to the theory that "knowledge is power," taking the works and writings of Leopold and applying them to the fields and forests of today. Leopold wrote of building a connection with the land, and Quail Forever and Pheasants Forever chapters make that connection today through all the work they do at the grassroots level.
Although we're extremely proud of the work we at Quail Forever have accomplished in our first year, we realize that when your work is conservation, the work is never-ending. We invite you to join Quail Forever in our quest to ensure a country rich in natural resources and long on people willing to work to preserve them. After all, natural resources - quail, pheasants and other wildlife and the land, air and water on which they live - are our greatest resources.
Growing Conservation in the Farm Bill
If you ask most folks to list the country's important laws for fish and wildlife, they probably would not mention the Farm Bill. Similarly, they might not immediately think of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), which administers Farm Bill programs, as a powerhouse of conservation.
The pas three Farm Bills, however, have shaped more conservation programs for a longer period of time -0 and put more funding behind those programs - than any other suite of legislation. The more than $5 billion the USDA spends on conservation each year is two-and-a-half times larger than the entire U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service budget. And the USDA is proving everyday that it can balance the goals of maintaining a stable food and fiber supply while sustaining fish and wildlife populations...
This Farm Bill Booklet will give you some background on what the Farm Bill has done for conservation and the different programs included in the Farm Bill.
CP-33 Buffers DVD
Historically, idle or fallow grassy areas were common in agricultural landscapes along field edges. Although often perceived as unproductive or unavailable for farming, these idle areas provided important habitat for wildlife. However, as farming has more efficient, former idle areas such as fence rows and grassy field margins have been subsequently placed into production. Such practices have all but eliminated idle grass communities which formerly provided habitat for quail and other grassland birds.
In late 2004, USDA Farm Service Agency's (FSA) Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) Northern Bobwhite Quail Habitat Initiative began and is aimed at creating 250,000 acres of native grass buffers along agricultural field borders in 35 states. Under the Continuous CRP, financial incentives are available to producers for creating Habitat Buffers for Upland Birds (CP33) on cropland. Eligible producers will receive annual rental payments for the length of the contract (10 years), plus bonus incentives and cover establishment and maintenance cost-shares. Besides benefiting bobwhite quail and farm economics, these buffers will also benefit other birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and aquatic species. Additional environmental benefits include reduced soil erosion from wind and water, increased soil and water quality, and improvement of the overall on-farm ecosystem.
Program sign-up is underway at local FSA offices and eligible land may be enrolled at any time until a state's allotted buffer acres have all been enrolled or December 31, 2007. Producers interested in CP33 should contact their local FSA office for more information. Mississippi State University, along with number of cooperators, recently developed a DVD to promote the CP33 practice. The DVD was developed for agricultural producers, and explains both the economics and wildlife benefits of the CP33 practice. A brochure was also developed to assist national promotion of the practice. Both the DVD and brochure are effective tools that can be used by natural resource agencies, conservation groups and others to promote the CP33 practice to producers.
Anyone interested in obtaining a copy of the DVD or brochure should contact Kristine Evans at: 
Mississippi State University
Dept of Wildlife and Fisheries
Box 9690
Mississippi State, MS 39762-9690
email: koevans@cfr.msstate.edu
phone: 662-325-7491
Single copies are free, and larger orders can be purchased for a nominal cost. Don't miss out on this opportunity to promote quail habitat practices in your area!
National Conservation Leadership with Local Habitat Results
This 10 minute video gives a sneak peak to Quail Forever and Pheasants Forever's work in Washington D.C.. It also explains how those efforts create the tools local chapters need to create wildlife habitat in their own communities.
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| High 24.5 MB |
Medium 11.1 MB |
Low 3.1 MB |
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| *WARNING: this is a 10 minute video and may take some time to download. Copies of this DVD are available in a limited supply. Please send a request for a DVD copy to stpete@pheasantsforever.org |
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Recent Conservation News
SportDOG Awards Funds to Quail Forever
January 15, 2010
SportDOG Brand® has awarded $19,300 to four conservation groups, including Quail Forever, as part of its annual SportDOG Conservation Fund® grant program. Award recipients were chose by the company's Conservation Fund Grant Review Committee.
...moreHalf Million Acres of Habitat Work for "The Habitat Organization" in '09
January 12, 2010
The 621 Pheasants Forever chapters, 103 Quail Forever chapters and 125,000 members of "The Habitat Organization" nationwide completed over 22,000 wildlife habitat projects in 2009, benefitting over 500,000 acres for pheasants, quail and other wildlife. This includes over 8,300 acres of land acquired and then opened to public hunting and recreation as state-managed wildlife areas or federal Waterfowl Production Areas.
...moreFederal Premium Ammunition Becomes Official Ammunition Sponsor of QF
November 24, 2009
Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever are proud to announce that long-time partner Federal Premium® Ammunition is now the organization's "Official Ammunition Sponsor." Over the last decade, Federal Premium's Pheasants Forever-labeled Wing-Shok® shotshell boxes have helped benefit "The Habitat Organization's" conservation efforts, and Federal Premium has now produced more than 20 million rounds in support of Pheasants Forever.
...moreQF Adds Four Farm Bill Experts to Deliver Conservation Programs in Iowa
November 05, 2009
Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever have expanded its Farm Bill Biologist program into the state of Iowa with the hiring of four new positions. The new Farm Bill Biologist positions cover nine counties and will improve how conservation programs are delivered to landowners and producers. The positions come at an especially critical juncture for Iowa, where over 450,000 acres have expired from the wildlife-friendly Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) in the past five years.
...moreQF Guardedly Optimistic about Recent USDA Comments Concerning CRP
October 15, 2009
Recently, high ranking officials at the U.S. Department of Agriculture spoke at public forums in support of the Conservation Reserve Program's (CRP) wildlife benefits and the need to protect the program's legacy. While the verbal support for CRP may signal that hunter's messages are being heard within the halls of USDA, Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever says now is not the time to rest easy. Just last month, USDA announced that one of their policy options under consideration is to drop CRP enrollment to 24 million acres nationwide.
...more
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