09/26/2026
🌾🐦 What’s on the menu for bobwhite quail? More than you might think.
New article by the Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Aquaculture – Mississippi State Drs. Edward Entsminger and Mark McConnell, Associate Professor of Upland Birds, explores how the foods bobwhite quail eat reveal the quality of a habitat.
While agricultural grains can provide supplemental food, research shows bobwhites thrive where diverse native plants are abundant. Species such as common ragweed, partridge pea, beggarweed, blackberry, dewberry, and tick trefoil provide valuable seeds, attract insects, and create the structure quail need to survive and reproduce.
Just as important, newly hatched bobwhite chicks rely heavily on insects during their first weeks of life. Healthy habitats rich in native plants support the insects chicks need for growth and survival.
Successful bobwhite management is not about planting a single food source. It’s about creating diverse, season-long habitat with native vegetation, bare ground, insects, and protective cover. When habitat is managed correctly, the food follows.
👉Learn more about bobwhite foods and habitat management in the new article, “Native plants key to bobwhite quail success,” at the 🔗 in our comments.
