Individual coveys appear to develop their own personalities over the course of a season and results of the AAES study suggest that quail hunters who pay close attention to these behaviors usually put more birds in the bag. Something as simple as changing normal hunting patterns or directions of approach may be enough to interfere with a covey's escape plan. When good bird dogs point there is usually legitimate cause for their actions. When birds don't flush, hunters should relocate their dogs. In this study, many coveys eventually were overtaken by the hunting party and flushed at the second, third, or fourth locations.
Successful hunters think like a quail.
If previous experience with a particular covey has not shown where and how they prefer to escape, take an inventory of the surrounding habitat. If they are suspected of running or flying off, they will probably be in nearby heavy cover. The study also showed that single birds can be even more elusive than a covey. When hunters arrive at the location where the birds went down, often they are already gone. These birds can be incredibly hard to find and to flush.