A natural wooded and grassy habit section of land that is set aside for the sole purpose of hunting bobwhite quail is called a quail plantation in Florida. There was no such thing as a quail plantation in Florida until about the year 1980 or so. Until that time, anyone could be very successful in hunting quail on public land in Florida.
It is a sad fact that there are not as many quail left in Florida because of the increase in both human and feral cat populations. In fact, the quail population has decreased by about 70 percent. Now, many hunters hunt quail on a quail plantation in Florida. Quail hunting on public land is very unproductive now. More and more hunters are turning to a quail hunt club in Florida for their sport. You can locate a these plantations in Florida by searching out one on the internet. There is also a booklet called Wing and Clay that lists where you can find quail plantations to go to in Florida.
You will be able to find several quail plantations in Florida open to the public. These are also known as hunt clubs. Sometimes quail plantations require you to join a membership of some kind. Public access to most quail plantations may be restricted to some degree at the various hunt clubs.
Every quail plantation in Florida is a commercial one. The operator of the quail plantation in Florida will buy the birds and then release them on the plantation. This is very similar to planting fish in rivers. Some hunters do not like this kind of operation or hunting experience. If you are a hunting purest you will not enjoy hunting this way. Other hunters find hunting quail on a quail plantation in Florida to be a tremendously rewarding experience.
There is a lot of work involved in maintaining a quail plantation in Florida. Intense land management is necessary. There must be plenty of food and cover for the birds. Hunters generally take about half of the birds that are released on a quail plantation in Florida. A lot of the birds are lost to predators.
The operators of each quail plantation in Florida will usually release the birds in September. Hunting begins in October. By the time hunting begins, you will not be able to tell the released birds from wild birds. There may only be a certain number of hunters and their dogs allowed on a quail plantation in Florida at any given time. There is also a limit to the number of birds you can take. Call the quail plantation in Florida that you want to book a hunting session with for more info.