My guest this month is John McLaughlin, TPWD’s Quail Program coordinator for west Texas. Join us as we discuss TPWD’s role and philosophy on quail management and hunting regulations. We’ll also discuss supplemental feeding—a topic that McLaughlin studied for his Master’s degree at Texas Tech University.

Episode 25: Talking with TPWD on Quail in West Texas

This month’s guest is Mr. Clay Sisson from Albany, GA.  Clay’s name is often quoted in quail management circles via his work with the Albany Quail Project and more recently with Tall Timbers Research Station. I first met Clay at a Quail Unlimited convention in Houston way back in 1989, and have grown to appreciate his contributions to practical, meaningful management strategies for quail-folk. Since that time I've had the opportunity to hunt quail with Clay in west Texas and have found we seem to have been "cut from the same cloth."

Episode 32: Clay Sisson: Quail Stalwart in the Southeast

This month’s podcast features a “rags to riches” story about RPQRF Director Russell Gordy of Houston.  Russell’s love of shotguns has transported him from the Sears & Roebuck catalog of his youth to  the pinnacle of a “gun shop” at Gordy & Sons of Houston—it’s a fascinating odyssey that I know you’ll enjoy. If you’re a connoisseur of fine guns, you’ll appreciate Gordy’s description of his gun collection as “functional art.”  And we thank Gordy and Sons for their sponsorship of the Dr. Dale on Quail podcast

The Dr. Dale on Quail podcast series was initiated three years ago, and it’s been really well received.  Co-host Gary Joiner (Communications Director for Texas Farm Bureau) serves as a great color commentator. The monthly podcast lasts 30-40 minutes and addresses various quail-related topics. For previous sessions, see www.quailresearch.org/resources.  Thanks to Jonathan Vail (Texas Parks & Wildlife Foundation) for his technical expertise, Jeffrey Sorelle with RPQRF for logistical assistance, and Gordy & Sons of Houston for funding the effort. If you have a suggestion for an interesting interviewee, please e-mail Dr. Rollins (drollins@quailresearch.org).

Episode 35: Russell Gordy: Shotguns as “Functional Art”

Training is usually a prerequisite for good bird dogs. This month’s special guest is Mr. Ronnie Smith, Jr. with Ronnie Smith Kennels in Pawhuska, OK. The name “Smith” is synonymous with well-trained birddogs ala Delmar, Rick, and Ronnie Smith. Ronnie (Delmar’s nephew) has been training pointing dogs since 1982. Here Smith addresses common behaviors that can (and should) be corrected with proper training. You’re going to enjoy this one!

Episode 38: Ronnie Smith on Bird Dog Training

Episode 44: Roy Wilson- 40 Years of Outfitting Quail Hunts in West Texas

“When an old man dies, a library burns to the ground.”
                                                                      – African proverb

Take a trip back through time this month as Dr. Rollins hits the rewind button on quail happenings in Cottle County dating back to the 1930s. Mr. Joe Don Brooks of Paducah will soon turn 90 years old, but his recall of quail happenings in the 1950s are quite vivid. We share stories about A.S. Jackson, a renowned quail biologist and naturalist and landscape level changes that have had repercussions for bobwhites. Join us for some reminiscing on February 20.

Episode 46: Joe Don Brooks reflects on 80 years of quail hunting

Dana Wright is the newest member of our team here at RPQRF. She just retired from a stellar 30-year career with TPWD stationed in Paducah. Ask anyone who knows Dana and they’ll confirm she’s a “go-getter”—we’re excited to have her on board! In this podcast Dana shares her experiences with landowners and trends she’s observed over her career. She also discusses how she plans to spread the word about quail conservation for all “Students of Quail.”

Episode 47: Dana Wright on quail happenings in the Rolling Plains

Join Dr. Dale this month with his guest Horace Gore. Gore is a familiar name in Texas wildlife management circles. While many folks know him from his tenure as White-tailed Deer Program Leader for TPWD in the 1990s, or for his service as editor of the Journal of Texas Trophy Hunters Magazine for the past 15 years, his initial entrée into wildlife management was focused on bobwhites! And his adolescence carrying a Model 12 shotgun fueled many observations and stories. You won’t want to miss this one! Available July 20

Episode 51: Horace Gore on Quail Hunting

Predator control is always a contentious topic. Dr. Dale’s guest this month is Mr. John Palarski with Tall Timbers Research Station. Join us as we delve into the “second line of defense” for dealing with predators, i.e., “beyond habitat.” Palarski recently completed his M.S. research at Tarleton State University and confronted predator control “up close and personal” at his study site in Erath County. Their conversation drills down on control techniques. Join us September` 20.

Episode 53: Predation Management: Beyond Habitat

I've met some interesting characters as I’ve traveled over west Texas for the past 40 years, but none more interesting than this month’s guest: Bob Richardson of Aspermont, aka “Barefoot Bob.” I usually refer to Bob as “the closest thing Texas has to Crocodile Dundee.” You won’t want to miss this opportunity to hear of Barefoot’s accomplishments and acumen.  In addition to being an authority on feral hogs, rattlesnakes, and porcupines he’s also been guiding quail hunters since he was 8 years old. Join us on October 20.

Episode 54: Dr. Dale on Quail Podcast features “Barefoot Bob”

This month’s guest is Tyler Sladen of Albuquerque, NM. Tyler is a serious falconer who specializes in hunting quail with his Tiercel goshawk “Jimmy Dean.” Tag along with Tyler and Dr. Dale as they discuss the sport of falconry, and specifically hunting the quails of North America with raptors and bird dogs. Sladen, Jimmy Dean, and his corps of Setters have combined to take over 100 quail across nine states in 2023. As a Student of Quail, you can learn a lot from seeing how quail react when pursued by a hawk, and what kind of “storm shelters” serve to foil a hawk’s attempts. Join us on January 20; you’re going to enjoy this one.

Episode 57: Death from Above

This month’s guest is Dr. Abe Woodard with the East Foundation. Our topic is a “Quail 303” discussion of “sustained yield” of bobwhites in South Texas. We’ll discuss topics along the “hunter X covey interface” including hunting efficiency and crippling loss. Join us on February 20.

Episode 58: Sustained Yield in Quail Hunting

It’s been a long and winding road, but the first medicated feed for wild birds in the U.S. is now available. Join Dr. Dale and his special guests Dr. Ron Kendall, RPQRF’s past-resident Joe Crafton, and Dr. Ryan O'Shaughnessy as they share the research and development that resulted in the FDA’s labeling of QuailGuard™ for treating eyeworms and cecal worms in wild quail. QuailGuard is currently being stocked at feed stores across much of Texas. You won’t want to miss this one!

Episode 64: The Odyssey of QuailGuard Medicated Feed

Ever submitted a blood or urine sample to your doctor to assess your well-being?  Join Dr. Dale and his guest Dr. Brad Kubecka as they discuss certain reproductive parameters that play important roles in annual production. Using a 15-year data set from RPQRR, they will evaluate RPQRR’s “performance.” They’ll also discuss some “sensitivity analyses” that tease out which variables are most important if bobwhite populations are to increase.

Episode 65: Guthery’s 8 Variables

Join Dr. Dale and his guest Dr. Michael Conover from Utah State University this month as they unravel perhaps the most romantic, and mysterious, aspect of hunting with pointing dogs, i.e., their ability to find, and point, game birds via olfaction. Dr. Conover recently published “Predator-Prey Dynamics: the Role of Olfaction” which is a thorough treatise of the origins of scent, and how wind currents, turbulence, and structures on the landscape interact to affect scenting conditions. You won’t want to miss this one!

Episode 67: The Science of Scent

Ronnie Howard has been an institution in the quail world in south Texas for over 30 years. Most of that time he was managing the San Tomas lease on the King Ranch. Join Ronnie and Dr. Dale as they retrace quail happenings in South Texas through a manager’s eyes and other wisdom gleaned from Ronnie's “San Tomas College of Knowledge.

Episode 68: Ronnie Howard Reflects on South Texas

“Where have all the quail gone?” is a common lament, especially as one progresses east of the 99th meridian (essentially US 283). The rather acute decline in quail abundance in the eastern Rolling Plains (i.e., from Clay County southward to Coleman County) over the past 20 years is a head-scratcher. Predators, parasites, habitat change, and others are often cited as culprits. Join Dr. Dale and Justin as they dissect the situation.

Episode 69: “Is All Quiet on the Eastern Front?”

“Brush sculpting” is the planned, selective control of brush to enhance wildlife habitat. Think of it as applied landscaping or feng shui. Join Dr. Dale and his special guest Rory Burroughs of Comprehensive Land Management as they provide an overview of the concept, and how to increase “useable space” for quails (and other wildlife) on your property.

Episode 70: A Primer on Brush Sculpting

Greg Dix earned Top Student award in the 2024 QuailMasters class. Dix resides in Missouri and has a ravenous appetite for anything/everything about bobwhites. Join Greg and Dr. Dale for an interesting perspective on what it means (and takes) to be a “Student of Quail.” The next QuailMastersclass musters in March 2026.

Episode 71: Greg Dix: A student of Quail

Join Dr. Dale and his guest Tyler Hamilton as they delve into a search for the holy grail in quail management: success on small acreages. Hamilton is a pilot for Southwest Airlines and offers some insightful perspectives based on his property in Dickens County. He’s also a graduate of the 2022 QuailMasters class.

For previous sessions, see www.quailresearch.org/resources.  Thanks to Gary Joiner at Texas Farm Bureau, Jonathan Vail (Texas Parks & Wildlife Foundation) for his technical expertise, Jeffrey Sorelle with RPQRF for logistical assistance, and Gordy & Sons of Houston for funding. If you have a suggestion for an interesting interviewee, please e-mail Dr. Rollins (drollins@quailresearch.org). 

Episode 72: Small Acreage Management . . . from 30,000 feet

Join Dr. Dale and his special guest Dr. James Martin as they dissect "Population Dynamics for Dummies." Martin is a Professor with the University of Georgia and an avid quail hunter. Topics include "old standbys" like age ratios and more challenging integrated population modeling.

Episode 73: Population Dynamics of Bobwhites

Are coyotes a rangeland icon or pariah? How big a threat are they to quail. Join Dr. Dale and his special guest Dr. John Tomecek as they delve into recent research that may just surprise you.

Episode 74: Coyotes and Quail

Technical assistance for quail managers comes in many forms. Some “talk a good game” while others deliver the goods. Join Dr. Dale and his special guest Garry Stephens, CEO of Wildlife Habitat Federation, as they dissect the “form & function” of conservation delivery.

Episode 75: Wildlife Habitat Federation Offers Boots on the Ground Technical Guidance

Quail Coalition arose from the ashes of Quail Unlimited in 2009 and has soared since then. Their banquets around TX (and now Oklahoma City) typically gross over $4 million annually to support quail conservation. Join Dr. Dale and QC’s executive director Jay Stine as they dissect this great success story.

Episode 76: Quail Coalition Provides Lift for RPQRF

Join Dr. Dale and his special guest Kyle Lusson as they discuss Quail Forever's mission to conserve quail and other wildlife through habitat improvements, public access, education and conservation advocacy and their implementation of these efforts in Texas. Kyle also has a special connection to the Fisher County area where the Research Ranch is located and you will not want to miss that story!

Episode 77: Quail Forever (and ever!)

Can you identify the Top 10 seeds for quail in the Rolling  Plains? If not,why not? Join Dr. Dale and his special guest Ricky Linex as they discuss the importance of various seeds important to quails in the Rolling Plains. 

Episode 78: Let's Talk Seeds

Over the past 40 years helicopters have become a useful and popular tool in managing wildlife populations especially for deer. But what about quail? Join Dr. Dale and Dr. Andrea Montalvo of the East Foundation as they discuss the challenges in counting quail from helicopters.

Episode 79: I Hover for Quail

Ever think seriously about the possible impacts of disease on a quail population? I have … and it intrigues me. Join me this month as Dr. Markus J. Peterson covers the gamut of diseases that can infect quail.


Episode 80: Diseases of Quail in Texas

This month’s episode in the Dr. Dale on Quail podcast series is all about Dr. Rollins’ lifetime love of quail and his journey from growing up in Hollis, Oklahoma to becoming a national leader in quail conservation. Dr. Dale explores his past and connects his personal and professional experiences with his role in quail conservation today.

Episode 2: Dr. Dale’s Quail Odyssey

Warm weather and opening weekend increase the odds of encountering a rattlesnake while afield. Nothing can ruin a quail hunt like a trip to the vet clinic with a snakebit bird dog. This month’s episode of our Dr. Dale on Quail podcast features an interview with Dr. Bud E. Alldredge, Jr. DVM of Sweetwater. Given his tenure (51 years of practicing) and his location (Sweetwater, long-time home of the world’s largest rattlesnake round-up), Dr. Alldredge has treated hundreds of snakebitten dogs. Click the button below to hear what Dr. Alldredge has learned and what to do if you run into a rattler this season.

Episode 18: Rattlesnakes & Bird Dogs

The Rolling Plains Quail Research Foundation (RPQRF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit focusing on one thing: understanding and managing bobwhite and scaled quail in West Texas. Everything we do centers around quail and quail hunting, as reflected by our mission:
“To preserve Texas’ heritage of wild quail hunting for this, and future, generations.”
The Foundation and its Research Ranch were established to provide a living laboratory to devise land management strategies for the benefit of quail and also as an exemplar property to demonstrate the best methodologies and techniques to other “students of quail.”

Rolling Plains Quail Research Foundation

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