A winter walk through Stone Prairie Wildlife Management Area reveals a quiet landscape of golden grasses, muted browns and scattered green pines – prime habitat for northern bobwhite quail and a variety of other wildlife.
The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission acquired the 989-acre property from The Nature Conservancy in 2017 and manages it with northern bobwhite as the focal species. Once common across Arkansas, the small ground-dwelling quail has declined sharply since the 1980s due largely to habitat loss.
“Northern bobwhite are the focal species of this property,” said Noah Wyatt, AGFC assistant regional supervisor. “Although many of our management practices benefit other species, bobwhites are the center of all management decisions.”…