Native plants key to bobwhite quail success

[Editor's note: This column is co-authored by Mark McConnell, who is an associate professor in the MSU Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and aquaculture. He is also the James C. Kennedy Endowed Chair in Upland Gamebird Ecology and chair in the Bryan Endowment for Bobwhite Habitat Restoration at MSU.]

 

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Step into a well-managed old field in the Southeastern U.S. on a cool morning, and you might hear the clear whistle of “bobwhite!” drifting across the landscape.

That call is more than a pleasant sound; it is a sign that the land is working. What bobwhite quail eat -- and when they eat it -- tells a revealing story about habitat quality, seasonal change and good land stewardship.

Adult bobwhite are first and foremost seed eaters. Roughly 80% to 90% of their annual diet comes from seeds and other plant material. But bobwhites are not random feeders -- they thrive on native plant diversity.

Many plants often referred to as “weeds” are great for bobwhite. Native common ragweed, partridge pea, tick trefoil, beggarweed, croton, blackberries, dewberries, lespedeza and foxtail consistently rank among the most valuable bobwhite foods. These plants produce small, nutrient-rich seeds that bobwhite can easily find and handle.

Many of these native plants are most popular because they hit all three things needed for bobwhite success: produce good seeds in fall, attract insects in summer and provide good structural cover for broods. That is the trifecta we are looking for when managing bobwhite. Partridge pea and common ragweed are often called cornerstone plant species for bobwhite because of their structure and seed production.

Although bobwhite will eat grain like corn, sorghum, milo, millet, soybeans, sunflowers and wheat from agricultural fields, research shows they prefer native plant seeds when both are available. Supplemental grains are useful, particularly in winter, but they lack the ecological benefits of native vegetation, such as insect production and low-level structural cover diversity.

Acorns are most crucial from late fall through early spring, by providing a staple food when other seeds and insects are scarce. While they can consume smaller acorns whole, bobwhite often eat fragments of larger acorns that have been broken or dropped by squirrels and deer.

Bobwhite quail need a buffet, not a single-item menu. Native plants offer a better nutritional balance, and they persist across seasons, making them more reliable than any single planted crop.

As seeds sustain adults, insects grow chicks. Newly hatched bobwhite chicks depend almost entirely on insects for their first several weeks of life. Beetles, true bugs, stink bugs, nymphs, leafhoppers, damsel bugs, ants, wasps, bees, spiders, grasshoppers, crickets and caterpillars provide the high protein needed for rapid growth, feather development, survival and muscles for flight. Without abundant insects, chick survival drops sharply. That is why insect-rich habitat is foundational and not optional.

Bobwhite diets change seasonally to address different needs throughout the year.

• Spring and Summer: Insects dominate chick diets, while adults mix insects with tender leafy greens and early seed production. Soft fruits like blackberries, dewberries, plums, elderberries, pokeweed and blueberries begin to appear.
• Fall: Native seed production peaks. Forbs and legumes supply most of the diet, with agricultural grains and small acorns used when available.
• Winter: Energy becomes critical. Bobwhites rely on persistent seeds, green leafy plants, small acorns, pine seeds and woody shrub fruits such as sumac, dogwood and wax myrtle.

No single food can meet the dietary needs of bobwhite quail year-round. Successful habitat produces a steady sequence of foods that carry these birds through seasonal gaps.

Food does not matter if bobwhite cannot reach it. Bobwhites are ground feeders. Seeds buried under thick grass or deep leaf litter are effectively unavailable. That is why habitat structure matters as much as plant species.

Research and management guidelines consistently recommend maintaining 30% to 60% bare ground under a canopy of quality vegetation. This open structure allows adult bobwhite and especially chicks to move freely, find seeds and hunt for insects. Practices like light disking, rotational prescribed burnings, timber thinning, rotational cropping and appropriate herbicide use all help reset plant communities, encouraging beneficial legumes and forbs such as common ragweed and partridge pea, while boosting insect numbers all at the same time.

In the end, keep it simple: use disturbance (fire, disking, grazing or timber harvest) to promote plant diversity, bare ground, insects and woody shrub cover. The food will follow. When the menu is right, the bobwhite’s call has a fighting chance of returning to Southern fields once again.

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