Terry Madewell/Clarendon Citizen - William Peagler and his dog with a few of the quail taken one afternoon at Blackbrier Preserve.
There’s nothing finer than preserved quail hunting
There are not much finer opportunities in the outdoor world than watching a couple of good quail dogs practice their art of stalking a covey of quail. We were right in the midst of such a scene as both dogs slipped up on an unknown number of quail. But whether a single or an entire covey, the two shooters were ready. One shooter, property owner William Peagler had a gun, the other (me), had a camera. It was a scene that was to be repeated numerous times over the afternoon.
As they crept closer, one dog backed while the other crept forward in live, slow-motion it seemed, finally stopping and locking on point. As it turned out, the dog had moved to within inches of the birds and had to be literally looking at them. One step forward from the hunter and the birds flushed, about a half dozen hefty quail, and flew wildly in all directions. One zipped up and back right over Peagler’s head as well as over mine. The others winged toward all points of the compass. But kudos to the shooter as he fired twice and two quail fell to the ground. I had gotten an action picture and he had two more quail in the bag.
Were these wild birds? Most likely not, but if you ask did they behave as wild birds, the answer would be very much like wild birds.
Because of a lack of natural habitat in most areas, quail hunters have suffered with declining wild bird populations over the years in many areas. As a result, quality places to hunt have also become a premium. On some places and preserves I’ve been, I’ve seen that the birds just don’t fly well and run on the ground and have to be almost kicked in the rump to take to wing. But hunting at Blackbrier Plantation near Cross, the birds worked great and acted quite like natural birds would and should behave. One reason is simple, the birds are not released just before they hunt, because of their use of “Johnny Houses,” the birds live full time in the wild and are literally free to roam and forage on a daily basis. However, they do have a safe and secure “home” to which they can return and avoid heavy predation by hawks, coyotes and other would be assassins.
But at the same time, they learn the ways of the wild and become more likely to behave as wild birds. Nothing really compares to wild birds if you are a die-hard quail hunter, but if you find yourself loving to quail hunt and are having a hard time finding good bird hunting, it’s simply just across the lake.
Blackbrier has been in operation for a few years and also offers outstanding turkey and deer hunting opportunities. But now is the time for quail hunting and while Blackbrier is a hunting preserve, it is also an extension of Blacks Camp on the Diversion Canal and hunts can be booked from there. Peagler, also the mayor of Moncks Corner, along with Alan Weiss of Blacks Camp provide the oversight and management of the preserve and take a keen interest in ensuring the birds are as wild and abundant as possible.
“We started the quail hunting about five years ago and have learned a lot along the way in terms of making the hunts better and the birds behave as wild and natural as possible, which is how hunters would want them to behave,” Peagler said. “I love to hunt I want the best possible quail hunts too, so we provide as much habitat diversity as possible while doing everything we can to provide optimum quail habitat. The key to any wildlife species is proper management and even though we have birds that we release, using the Johnny Houses ensure they get accustomed to the wild and it does seem to make them much better at behaving like wild birds.”
Weiss said the process to ensure good hunting is a year-round project.
“We not only plant food plots, but we manipulate the habitat to provide good quail cover and we do controlled burns, which is a prime management tool for the overall management of quail,” Weiss said. “But one of the keys to our success is the house. They are small, about four by four feet and about five feet tall with a small funnel entrance. We do provide some food for them and can leave enough for up to three weeks, which also reduces the time they are around humans. This increases the opportunity to grow a bit wild. The birds that are put into these houses seem to naturally band together and learn to be a family of sorts. When they bond, they stick together as a group and family unit, bonding as a covey of birds, not just a random group of birds placed out for shooting.”
The season for Quail Preserve Hunting is longer than the normal season and goes from Oct. 1 though March 31. At Blackbrier, there is a 25 bird minimum and the cost is $235 for the birds and guide (with dog) and is good for a single hunter or two hunters.
For more information or to book a hunt, contact Blacks Camp at 843-753-2231 or call Alan Weiss, co-owner at Blacks Camp where hunts are booked, on his cell phone at 843-209-0746.
Editor’s note: Anyone affiliated with or owning a hunting preserve and would like to do a story with Mr. Madewell, is invited to contact him at turkeyman@truvista.net.
