Tishomingo County's Inaugural Quail Forever Banquet is March 20th

3/12/08

New QF chapter dedicated to improving Mississippi quail habitat

Belmont, Mississippi –The Bear Creek Chapter of Quail Forever (QF) in Mississippi's Tishomingo County will hold its first-ever fundraising banquet on Thursday, March 20th at the Crow's Neck Environmental Center near Belmont. All monies raised will help fund the Bear Creek chapter's quail habitat projects.

The Bear Creek Chapter of QF formed last fall in response to declining quail populations in the area. "You can walk all day and not find any quail," said Alan Williams, a longtime quail hunter from Dennis and the Bear Creek chapter's newly-elected president," I think through Quail Forever, things can be done that make a difference."

The chapter's inaugural banquet will go a long way to helping the cause. Doors to the banquet open at 5:30 PM. Tickets are $45 for a membership ticket and $15 for a spouse or youth (under 18) ticket. Contact Alan Williams at (662)279-6620 or via email at gawilliams@hughes.net for tickets.

Pheasants Forever launched Quail Forever in August of 2005 to address the continuing loss of habitat suitable for quail and the subsequent quail population decline. QF chapters promote local, state, and federal conservation programs that help landowners protect environmentally sensitive acres for quail and other wildlife. They also employ the organization's unique model of empowering local chapters with 100 percent control of the chapters' locally-raised funds to complete habitat and youth education projects in the chapters' own communities.

The Bear Creek chapter has targeted the area of the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway as in need of habitat improvement. The area contains 33,000 huntable acres, and although it used to hold a fair number of quail, as Williams puts it, "Now it's so thick, you can't walk through it." Williams added the chapter plans to work in conjunction with the Army Corps of Engineers and the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks to improve habitat in the area.

For more information on QF in Mississippi, to start a chapter or join one of the state's existing chapters, contact Andy Edwards at (931)424-3211 or via email at aedwards@quailforever.org.

Since the organization's inception, 90 QF chapters have formed in 26 different states. The QF mission is accomplished through habitat improvement, land management, public awareness, education, and conservation advocacy.

Media Contact:
Anthony Hauck (651)209-4972