Quail Forever! It’s what most of us want. It’s impossible to imagine our area, known for its quail plantations and traditions, without that iconic little game bird. While many of us may have quail, most places do not. Groups like Tall Timbers and Quail Forever help protect habitat throughout the entire range of the bobwhite quail, yet the quail population has still been in decline since the early 1970s. In areas that aren’t properly managed, the population has dropped 80 percent during the past fifty years.
The good news is that we know how to bring quail back. It takes fire, effort, and help from organizations with the expertise and manpower to make a difference.
Our own Jon Kohler sits on the National Board of Directors for Quail Forever, along with other industry leaders such as John Thames of Covey Rise, whose mission is to conserve quail and other wildlife through habitat improvements, public access, education, and advocacy.
Quail Forever is a newer organization founded in 2005, but the concept driving its work is an old one. In 1982, a group of hunters in the Midwest noticed the connection between upland habitat loss and declining pheasant populations. From that awareness, Pheasants Forever was formed and today is seen as a national leader in wildlife habitat projects and conservation, having created or enhanced 15.8 million acres of wildlife habitat across North America. Its 138,000 members are a national workforce for habitat. Later, in response to the continued decline in quail populations and suitable habitats, Pheasants Forever formed Quail Forever. Today, it’s combined staff of over 400 employees makes a national imprint working locally on many different landscapes to benefit upland wildlife.
Quail Forever is growing fast with 17,000 members, more than 190 local chapters, and biologists located in every Southeastern state. The organization has improved habitat quality on over 1 million acres and, through its “No Child Left Indoors” initiative, engaged over 25,000 youth and young adults.
“One reason I’ve chosen to support Quail Forever is that over ninety percent of funds raised go back to the mission of conservation education and habitat protection.” – Jon Kohler
Quail Forever operates with a model unique among national nonprofits. Local chapters of Quail Forever retain 100 percent decision-making control over locally raised funds. This is unique in the conservation world. That means the Red Hills Quail Forever in our hometown of Tallahassee, FL uses local funds to develop habitat projects and youth conservation events that directly meet local needs. Chapters also support regional programs that assist with focused habitat efforts to benefit quail. As an example, chapters in the Red Hills region have donated over $200,000 to Tall Timbers Research Station in the past six years.
Andy Edwards, Quail Forever’s new Program Manager, is heavily involved with the growth and expansion of QF’s footprint throughout the Southeast. As a regional representative for QF, Edwards has helped volunteers start more than 50 local chapters over the last 15 years. His new role includes identifying and nurturing new partners in the corporate and private sectors.
“Partnerships coupled with boots-on-the-ground projects and our education efforts emphasizing habitat education, conservation leadership, and an appreciation for hunting heritage make Quail Forever special among conservation organizations,” says Edwards. “We are looking to Southern landowners for partners, not just to improve habitat and quail populations, but to also preserve a way of life unique to the Southeast.”
Quail Forever is engaged in a national collaborative effort called R3 – Recruitment, Retention, Reactivation. This effort seeks to engage youth and young adults in the sport of hunting, love for the outdoors, and appreciation of land stewardship. As evidenced by hunting license sales, participation in hunting has been in a general decline since the 1980s. This not only impacts funds available for wildlife conservation and habitat restoration but also jeopardizes hunting culture and traditions – and a general interest in land ownership.
Jon believes land values are directly tied to the quality of and amount of natural habitat within a property. It is a factor he has witnessed again and again during his 30 years as a land broker. He also believes that societal pressures and distractive entertainment options are reducing younger generations’ interest in hunting and other outdoor sports. This is something you may have witnessed in your own experiences. If this trend were to continue, demand for sporting properties could decline, putting supply and demand out of balance and impacting land values.
“You and your family, at this moment, enjoy the beauty and recreation of your land. You may not be thinking of value retention for selling in the future. But, when it is time for you – or your inheritors – to sell, you will want a pool of interested buyers. Preserving a societal interest in hunting and land ownership is crucial to maintaining land value into the future.” – Jon Kohler.
You can make a difference right now. Click on the link to Jon Kohler’s personal donation page (https://www.quailforever.org/jkdonate) or email Jon at jon@jonkohler.com to learn more about his involvement with Quail Forever.
From murky farm ponds to pristine glacier-cut lakes and everything in between, Knox Daniels’ expertise stems from a lifelong fascination of water and the creatures that live in and around it. He recognizes and helps clients appreciate the value water features bring to a property. “My goal is to help buyers realize and sellers maximize the value different water bodies bring to a property, not only in a recreational sense, but also for social storm reasons.” After extensively traveling the country for collegiate BASS fishing tournaments, Knox graduated and worked for the Southeast’s finest fisheries and wildlife biologist, Greg Grimes. With Grimes’ company, AES, Knox managed many of the southeast’s finest private lake estate/impoundment properties, and learned the intricacies of upscale property management. Learning from Greg and other biologists, Knox honed in on the specific conditions and habitat needed for optimal gamefish growth in private lakes. He has also worked as a property manager on several thousand acres and for a commercial developer, facilitating the dirt work and builds of several apartment complexes, but his true passion has always been in the outdoors. “I’ve always had an insatiable fascination with ponds/lakes and am grateful to be able to help to place clients on the properties of their dreams and make their personal fisheries/wildlife goals reality with JKA.” – Knox Daniels
Jason has been assisting landowners for the last 28 years in Georgia and South Carolina obtain achievements the owners did not realize were possible. His degree in Biology from Georgia Southern stemmed from the desire to know how things in nature work. His plantation roots began at just 16 years old outside of Albany, GA and the last 20 years were spent in the Lowcountry of South Carolina. His entire career has been spent developing a global approach to plantation management. That plan included sales. Sales is in Jason’s blood- his mom had a 45-year career as a real estate broker. After college, he chose to pursue his passion of making properties great. In 2011, Jason sold his first plantation. Since then, he has assisted buyers and sellers with over $20 million in sales while most of that time working as a full-time General Manager of a large Lowcountry plantation. Today, he is committed to using his unique skill set and experience to guide landowners through the many challenges of plantation ownership.
Bruce Ratliff is a retired elected official (Property Appraiser Taylor County). Bruce brings years of experience in ad valorem tax knowledge. His property tax background gives JKA Associates & clients a unique insight into the complicated tax process. Bruce held several positions in the Florida Association of Property Appraisers, including member of the Board of Directors, President, Vice-President and Secretary, and served on the Agricultural & Legislative Committees for the Association. The real estate business has been part of Bruce’s life since childhood. His mother, Shirley Ratliff owned Professional Realty of Perry, Florida and his father, Buster owned Ratliff Land Surveying which Bruce was General Manager of before his political career.
Hailing from a long line of outdoorsmen, Tim learned a great deal from his father and grandfather. He saw first-hand what it means to be a good land steward. He believes land is so much more than a place to hunt, fish, and grow timber or crops. “It’s an identity, a resting place, a safe haven and a way of life, said Tim.” Tim’s family ties to Alabama run deep. During his grandfather’s first term, Governor James was responsible for signing into law Alabama’s first state duck stamp which helped to ensure funding for the procurement, development, and preservation of wetlands for migratory waterfowl habitat. He also established Alabama’s lifetime hunting license, so it is no surprise that Tim is an avid outdoorsman with a keen eye as to how best to improve habitat for the greater good of its wildlife.
With Madison County roots, Lori grew up on her family farm at Pettis Springs along the historic Aucilla River. A love of the land was instilled in Lori very early on by her father who was a local farmer. Lori understands the importance of good land stewardship and has witnessed first-hand how her own father, a former 2-term member of the Florida House of Representatives whose district encompassed many rural counties of the Red Hills Plantation Region, with a little bit of sweat equity, so lovingly worked their own family land. These are core values she carries with her today, and nothing gives her more personal satisfaction than to represent some of the south’s best land stewards.
Cole’s dedication to land management lies in his family roots. As a fourth-generation timber expert, Cole’s earliest memories were spent with his father managing timber investments. With a degree in Food Resource Economics from the University of Florida, Cole is the epitome of an up-and-coming leader. He grew up with a hands-on approach to learning land management and conservation and has spent the last 15 years learning every angle of the real estate and forest industry. Cole is a member of the Florida Forestry Association, Red Hills Quail Forever, Southeastern Wood Producers Association and he uses this platform as an advocate for landowners and their land investments. His family has dedicated the past 60 years to providing landowners in North Florida and South Georgia with professional land management services focused on improving and protecting one’s forestland and wildlife investment. In fact, their family business, M.A. Rigoni, Inc., was one of the first to introduce whole tree chipping to the Red Hills Region.
As a landowner of his own family farm, Lick Skillet, along with family land that has been passed down and enjoyed together at Keaton Beach for 40 years, Jon knows what it means to be a steward of the last best places. As a third-generation land broker with more than 30 years of experience in advising landowners in this niche, Jon is known for his innate ability to harvest a land’s unique intrinsic value. Touting several notable sales under his belt, Jon personally closed Rock Creek/Molpus – 124,000 acres of premium timberland at $142,000,000 – which was known as the largest timberland land sale in the Southeast for eight years running. He is a co-founding member of LandLeader and achieved the real estate industry’s highest honor, “2022 National Broker of the Year – Recreational Land Sales,” by the Realtors® Land Institute.