" COTTON FI&LDS FOR QUAIL        
       \\ 
 
      As most quail hunters knon, cotton fields are not expected to produce
any 
  coveys unless the birds are flushed and scatter there. The reason is apparent

  cotton proauces little cover and no feed. The cleaner and better the field
is 
  from the standpoint of cotton the worse it is from the standpoint of quail.
As 
  large areas of the south are planted in cotton, the available quail producing
area 
  is cut down enormously. If some means could be found to induce quail to
grow and 
  thrive in cotton patcnes, countless thousands of coveys would be added
to the 
  southe' quail supply. 
      Recently at a gathering of bird dog trainers it was brought out that
on one 
  estate in Mississippi steps had been taken to make cotton fields adaptable
to the 
  use of quail. 
      It had been noticed that quail were fond of aAra seed and were frequently

 found feeding on this seed on the edges of cotton fields, Arrangements were
made 
 by the owner to have his tenants planZ akra in the breaks in the cotton;
the seed 
 being furnished by him for this purpose. It was also said that this was
proving 
 quite effective and now it is not at all unusual to find coveys in the cotton.

      Tnis concrete example shows the necessity of studies on all game birds
in 
 relation to their environment, and the drawing up of regular programs of
crop ro- 
 tation which will take into serious consideration the game bird crop, as
well as 
 the agricultural crop. Mr. 6toduard's investigation in Georgia is doing
a wonder. 
 ful work along this line and his final report due about July 19k9 will be
read 
 witbh great interest by all interested in quail. This investigation under
the Bi- 
 ological $urvey mighbt well serve as a guide in the study of other species
by in- 
 dependent investigators as the methods developed by # toddard could readily
be fol. 
 lowed thus saving time and lost motion in developing a new technique. 
 
 
 
                              4AML BIRDS AID AGRICULTURE 
 
)        Michian is rapidly becoming one of the leading pheasant states and
the 
 
 
                                         AU.S.PAT.OVV