Hunt_News
10-05-05, 10:41
St. Paul, Minn. - Menard County, Illinois residents concerned about the state's declining quail population gathered last week at Fulgenzi's restaurant in Petersburg. As a result of the meeting, the group started the state's fourth Quail Forever (QF) chapter. Among the group was Lisa Scott, the Farm Service Agency's conservation program specialist for Illinois, and her husband Lee Scott. Illinois's Macoupin, Marion, and Morgan counties have already formed QF chapters during the organization's first weeks of existence.
"By day, I work for the Farm Service Agency talking with landowners about federal conservation programs like the Conservation Reserve Program. At night, I switch hats and put on my Quail Forever or Pheasants Forever hat, but my message is the same. Wildlife habitat conservation is a key component to any landowner's operation," explained Lisa Scott.
"My wife and I have been Pheasants Forever members in the neighboring Sangamon County Pheasants Forever Chapter for over a decade and we've seen first-hand the difference Pheasants Forever has made for wildlife in Sangamon County. When we heard about Quail Forever, we saw it as another opportunity to promote wildlife habitat and conservation measures," said Lee Scott.
Pheasants Forever (PF) announced the formation of QF on August 10, 2005. QF utilizes the same model that has allowed PF's 600 chapters and 110,000 members to accomplish over 300,000 habitat projects across the country since its formation in 1982. Unlike all other national conservation organizations, QF and PF chapters decide locally how to spend their fundraising dollars. This local control allows members to see the fruits of their chapter efforts in their own communities.
The Menard County QF chapter will hold its first official meeting on Wednesday evening, October 12th. The meeting will start at 7 PM and will be held at the Third Berry Lincoln on the square in Petersburg. The public and media are invited to attend and learn more about the new chapter and organization.
The new Menard County chapter will focus its efforts on habitat projects, specifically the conversion of exotic grasses to native grasses that serve as better quail habitat. "Tall-fescue grass is a major problem for wildlife in Illinois and across the North American quail range," explained Tim Caughran, QF's regional wildlife biologist for Illinois. "Tall-fescue is thick and sod-forming. It effectively chokes out wildlife because of its thickness. Quail broods can't get through fescue during the spring, so it's no good for nesting. It's also no good as winter cover, because the first snow weighs the grasses down so much that it's impenetrable for wildlife. We have a lot of work ahead of us converting fescue into native grasses that are better for quail."
To learn more about starting a Quail Forever chapter in your area, please contact the Quail Forever national office toll free at (866)457-8245 or contact Jim Wooley at (641)774-2238 or via email at jwooley@quailforever.org. To learn more about the Menard County QF Chapter, contact Lee or Lisa Scott at (217)636-7723.
"By day, I work for the Farm Service Agency talking with landowners about federal conservation programs like the Conservation Reserve Program. At night, I switch hats and put on my Quail Forever or Pheasants Forever hat, but my message is the same. Wildlife habitat conservation is a key component to any landowner's operation," explained Lisa Scott.
"My wife and I have been Pheasants Forever members in the neighboring Sangamon County Pheasants Forever Chapter for over a decade and we've seen first-hand the difference Pheasants Forever has made for wildlife in Sangamon County. When we heard about Quail Forever, we saw it as another opportunity to promote wildlife habitat and conservation measures," said Lee Scott.
Pheasants Forever (PF) announced the formation of QF on August 10, 2005. QF utilizes the same model that has allowed PF's 600 chapters and 110,000 members to accomplish over 300,000 habitat projects across the country since its formation in 1982. Unlike all other national conservation organizations, QF and PF chapters decide locally how to spend their fundraising dollars. This local control allows members to see the fruits of their chapter efforts in their own communities.
The Menard County QF chapter will hold its first official meeting on Wednesday evening, October 12th. The meeting will start at 7 PM and will be held at the Third Berry Lincoln on the square in Petersburg. The public and media are invited to attend and learn more about the new chapter and organization.
The new Menard County chapter will focus its efforts on habitat projects, specifically the conversion of exotic grasses to native grasses that serve as better quail habitat. "Tall-fescue grass is a major problem for wildlife in Illinois and across the North American quail range," explained Tim Caughran, QF's regional wildlife biologist for Illinois. "Tall-fescue is thick and sod-forming. It effectively chokes out wildlife because of its thickness. Quail broods can't get through fescue during the spring, so it's no good for nesting. It's also no good as winter cover, because the first snow weighs the grasses down so much that it's impenetrable for wildlife. We have a lot of work ahead of us converting fescue into native grasses that are better for quail."
To learn more about starting a Quail Forever chapter in your area, please contact the Quail Forever national office toll free at (866)457-8245 or contact Jim Wooley at (641)774-2238 or via email at jwooley@quailforever.org. To learn more about the Menard County QF Chapter, contact Lee or Lisa Scott at (217)636-7723.