14th annual Texas Rolling Plains Bobwhite Brigade

14th annual Texas Rolling Plains Bobwhite Brigade
By Cadet John C. Zygmontowicz, Alien, Texas Special to Covey Rise
Wednesday, October 18, 2006 11:33 PM CDT
Blue Covey: Back Row n (L-R) Chris Boyle, David Keierleber, John Zygmontowicz Front Row n Beau Brundrett, Andy Hefley, Travis Bell, Keylan Braddy

The Texas Bobwhite Brigade Camp is not your average summer camp. It's not just where you make memories; it is where life changing experiences occur.The 14th Annual Texas Rolling Plains Bobwhite Brigade Camp was hosted by Mr. and Mrs. Roy Wilson in Lueders, Texas at Krooked River Ranch. Dr. Dale Rollins, Professor, Extension Wildlife Specialist, Bobwhite Brigade Coordinator, and also the founder of the Texas Bobwhite Brigade, directed the camp and its activities.
The Brigade camps are five days long, but Dr. Rollins prefers to use hours. The camp is broken down into one hundred hours. Only about sixteen hours were spent sleeping. The curriculum was based on leadership development, team building, quail conservation, habitat management, and then it was broken down into smaller subjects.Team building was encouraged through activities. This taught us to cooperate within our covey and learn the curriculum without conflict. In one exercise, we had to lower a cane pole to the ground with only our fingertips touching it. This was very difficult because we had to be in sink with one another. Each person had their own opinions and suggestions throughout the exercise. Leadership developed through this and other activities. We discovered in our covey each cadet would take different roles.I learned to step up and take a leadership position. In many situations, I played the role of negotiator, but the camp taught me to rise to the occasion and become the leader in certain situations. Leadership and teambuilding are two goals of the Brigade Camp's and are stressed throughout the Brigade curriculum.In order to learn quail conservation you must first understand quail and learning about quail was one of my main reasons for attending the camp. The quail's anatomy and physiology is just the first step to understanding quail; so on the first day of camp we dissected a quail.
Through the process of dissection, we discussed the digestive track, how to identify the different organs plus where the organs are located and the purpose of each organ. Each covey was also given a behavior to act out that quail demonstrates on a daily basis. Our covey was given roosting; which is where the quail turn their tail feathers inward and make a circle so that they are facing outward from each other in an open field. The reason for this behavior is if a predator disturbs them they will flush and not hit each other on flight and this allows their chance of survival to be increased.Throughout camp we had "Quail Trivia" which tested our knowledge on information we learned on a particular day. This enabled us to retain the information we learned during camp. These and other activities were just a few of the ways in which we were taught about quail conservation."Free Bird" by Lynyrd Skynyrd is the Bobwhite Brigade's anthem to quail. The quote, "And this bird you can not change" from the song "Free Bird" relates to quail because you can not change the bird to adapt to the habitat, but you can change the habitat to fit the bird's needs.During the Brigade camp, habitat management covered several subjects such as brush management, plant identification, and how to give a habitat appraisal to a rancher in order for them to better improve their property to attract a better diverse group of wildlife.Brush management is where we change and manipulate a certain area where there is a lot of brush and not enough plant diversity. We learned how to better improve the habitat to better suite a wider group of wildlife.In plant identification we learned different tricks to identify different plants. For instance, prickly ash, also called tooth ache, can be identified by taking a leaf and placing it on your tongue. If your tongue goes numb, this indicates that it is prickly ash. The purpose of plant identification was to see which plants were beneficial to quail and what purpose each plant serves in the quail's habitat. We also learned how to identify seeds and what portion those seeds make up the quail's diet.In order to improve the wildlife diversity of a rancher's property, we learned how to evaluate and appraise the land, water, and soil. To stimulate the animal population, you must have the proper balance of food, water, space, and cover. The amount of plant and insect diversity in a certain area also affects the habitat. In the home range of a quail, there should also be adequate food, water, cover, and space. The home range, a 25 acre area, is where a quail will live for the rest of its life.Where there is a lot of plant and insect diversity there is usually an increase in quail population. The reason this occurs is because the chicks need to eat insects for about 14 days after hatching. Their stomachs have not developed enough to digest plants during this time period. Habitat management was stressed during the camp, because it is crucial to the survival of quail.One of the activities I enjoyed most was Radio telemetry. This is where we tracked quail using a Yagi antenna, FM receiver, and a transmitter. The transmitter is attached to the quail's neck, the quail is then sent into an area for two to four days. After the quail had been in the field for three days, we recovered them by using the Yagi antenna that is connected to the FM receiver. We were told that the receiver would beep twice as fast if the quail was dead.Because the birds that we used were pen-raised, there was a greater possibility of them dying in the field. A pen-raised quail is one that has been raised in a human environment and has lost its wild instincts and are usually 100 grams over weight.When our covey went out to search for our quail we saw a sight that most wildlife managers and biologists only hope to see. We saw a wild hen demonstrating the "brood behavior." The brood behavior is where a hen will act as if she is injured to draw a predator away from her nest or chicks as in our case. The hen was flopping around on the ground and as soon as we saw this we discovered her chicks. There were five chicks in all. We caught them, examined them and returned them back to the nest. We then returned to search for our released quail. We located our quail still alive with the transmitter.After a field exam, we removed the transmitter and returned our quail to the pen. This exercise demonstrated some of the aspects of a quail's home range and the test that the biologist and habitat managers perform.Going to the Brigade Camp was one of the most life changing experiences I have ever had. I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in learning about our Texas wildlife environment, conservation, and habitat management. It also is a great place to learn leadership and team building skills.To apply for one of the Brigade Camps you must be between the ages of 13-17, you must fill out an application and write an essay as to why you would like to attend one of the camps. The tuition cost is $300, but there are available scholarships through different sponsors. You can contact www.texasbrigades.com for further information.Just as the Brigades motto says, "Tell me and I forget. Show me and I remember, involve me and I understand," the Brigades is a place where they involve you and you understand.