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The Rolling Plains Quail Research Ranch : Part 2
By Russell A. Graves
The Reason for the Research
On the research ranch, there is always a bustle of activity. Research ranges from quail counts to monitoring long term population trends or studying the effects of predation on quail ecology. One of their most ambitious projects that’s currently underway is to trap and translocate scaled quail and in an attempt to establish them in areas where they have been extirpated.
“The RPQRR operates under the maxim that everything points towards quail,” said Brad Kubecka, who’s recently defended his master’s thesis and has done research work at the research ranch since 2013, first as an intern and then as a graduate student. “Everything in an ecosystem is interrelated. As such, RPQRR began collecting data on not only quail, but the wildlife community at the ranch. This includes data collected on small mammal populations, raptors, predators, and vegetation.”
Kubecka said that very few graduate projects can truly understand an ecological system from a two or even three-year study. Fortunately, one of RPQRR’s goals is to develop a long-term data set to help understand what makes quail populations tick.
“There are two main demographic parameters that help us understand how populations operate,” he advises. “They are survival and reproduction. As such, interns and technicians monitor bobwhite and scaled quail using radio-telemetry and GPS transmitters throughout the year.
To that extent, the RPQRR has one of the most intensive trapping programs for bobwhites in the country. In the past 10 years, the RPQRR has trapped and banded over 14,000 bobwhite and scaled quail, placing radio-tags on approximately 10 percent of those caught.
To read more pick up a copy of the May 2018 NTFR issue. To subscribe call 940-872-5922.
By Hannah Claxton | Editor
The North Texas area is located within USDA Hardiness zones seven and eight. The zones are categorized by predicted low temperatures for winter and timing of the first and last frosts.
Zone seven usually has winter low temps between 0 and 10 degrees F with the average date of the first frost falling between Oct. 29 and Nov. 15 and the average date of the last frost falling between March 22 and April 3.
Overall, these two zones have similar climates and growing conditions, making the options for timing and variety within a garden very similar.
In these zones, cool-season crops should go in the ground in March, meaning that soil preparation should start now.
To read more, pick up a copy of the January edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By Heather Lloyd
Vaccinations are a critical component of maintaining the health and well-being of horses, especially in environments where they are exposed to other animals, such as in the sport, show and performance arenas. Horses, like all animals, are susceptible to various infectious diseases that can spread quickly and cause serious harm.
A routine vaccination schedule helps prevent the spread of these diseases by preparing the horse’s immune system.
To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
Having herds on a controlled breeding schedule means that we have a predictable calving schedule, and while it’s only over a couple of months, for us it does fall right after the start of the year. I lobby annually to call ours the “Winter calving season”, but I am outvoted and my husband still refers to it as Spring. Unlike producers in our Northern States, we don’t have to contend with brutally harsh winter weather, and on those rare times we do, thankfully it is not for extended periods. Regardless of whether you have a Spring or a Fall calving schedule, the health of a newborn calf begins with the mother’s health, and the mother’s health is largely dependent on the producer.
To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
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