Nebraskaland

NEBRASKAland December 2014

NEBRASKAland Magazine is dedicated to outstanding photography and informative writing with an engaging mix of articles and photos highlighting Nebraska’s outdoor activities, parklands, wildlife, history and people.

Issue link: http://mag.outdoornebraska.gov/i/417216

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 14 of 59

DECEMBER 2014 • NEBRASKAland 15 Find Food, Find Quail By Jeff Kurrus Throughout the winter, quail require a lot of energy to survive sub-zero temperatures. As a hunter, use this to your advantage. Look for heavy thermal cover, just like when hunting white-tailed deer (see page 10), and food sources not covered by snow or ice. Quail would rather not expend energy they do not have moving long distances for food. Search for annual seeds and grain, starting with giant ragweed, then western ragweed, corn, sorghum, soybeans, sunflowers, osage-orange and dogwood. Foods that also provide energy include wheat, acorns, and millet, while smartweed and switchgrass are considered poor sources of energy. As long as you keep cover and food in mind, especially during this time of the year, you'll find birds. ■ See Jenny Nguyen's "Vietnamese-style Roasted Quail" recipe on page 54 of this issue. Archery On Fire By Cara Pecek Last December, on a day when temperatures barely climbed out of the single digits, hundreds of people braved the weather, inspired, perhaps, by their favorite character from the movie Brave. That character is Merida, an independent young woman who also happens to be good with a bow and arrow. Brave, along with the Hunger Games books and movies, has led to a surge in the popularity of archery, and that popularity helped draw hundreds to Platte River State Park that cold December day for a day of free archery, hot chocolate, s'mores and memories made with family. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission has led the way on making opportunities to practice archery available, and this December 6, two more free family archery events are planned. These events will take place at the new Nebraska Game and Parks Outdoor Education Center, 4703 N. 44th St, in Lincoln and at the Roger G. Sykes Outdoor Heritage Education Complex at Platte River State Park. Both events will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and feature free archery, as well as other activities, games and refreshments. More information about both events is available at Archeryonfire.com. ■ NEBRASKAland Visitor and October's winner of the Visitor drawing was Tom Odvody of Dodge, Nebraska, who found the Praying Mantis on page 31. Readers are encouraged to contact NEBRASKAland within 10 days after this issue's publication with the correct page number and name of this issue's "Visitor" – a critter found in Nebraska. We will then gather the correct entries and draw one to win a NEBRASKAland Magazine mug. To enter each month, write: NEBRASKAland Visitor 2200 North 33rd Street, Lincoln, NE 68503. Or e-mail: Tim.Reigert@Nebraska.gov with "Visitor" in the subject line of the message. HINT: This issue's visitor is not on page 7, 15, 34 or 56. The Praying Mantis is named for its prominent front legs, which suggests the position of prayer. They are formidable predators and have triangular heads poised on a long "neck," or elongated thorax, that can turn 180 degrees to scan their surroundings. Typically green or brown and well camouflaged on plants, mantis lie in ambush or patiently stalk their quarry. They use their front legs (equipped with spikes) to snare their prey which are usually other insects – however, they will also eat others of their own kind. The most famous example of this is the notorious mating behavior of the adult female, who sometimes eats her mate just after, or even during, mating. Females lay hundreds of eggs in a small case, and nymphs hatch looking much like tiny versions of their parents. Bugguide.net is a good site for identification. Information obtained from National Geographic.com. Visitor image by Donna Robinson. When quail hunting during the winter, look for food sources not covered by heavy snow or ice. PHOTO BY ERIC FOWLER

Articles in this issue

Links on this page

view archives of Nebraskaland - NEBRASKAland December 2014