South Carolina · UplandNorthern bobwhite quail

South Carolina's own DNR species page gives a clear, two-level regional gradient for bobwhite quail: statewide, 'higher densities [are] found in the coastal plain than the piedmont,' and within the coastal plain itself, 'quail population densities are higher in the inner coastal plain than in the outer coastal plain,' driven by 'greater concentrations and more wide-spread distribution of row-crop agriculture in the inner coastal plain' versus the 'heavily forested landscapes typical of the outer coastal plain and piedmont.' SCDNR's own 2023 Summer Bobwhite Quail Brood Survey -- a 30-year-running, four-region physiographic survey (Piedmont & Mountains, Midlands, Northern Coastal Plain, Southern Coastal Plain) -- corroborates this with hard numbers: the Southern Coastal Plain region reported both the most observations (58 of 166 statewide) and by far the highest productivity (0.69 broods sighted per observation and 8.45 total quail per observation, roughly double the Northern Coastal Plain's 3.32), with Allendale, Aiken, Georgetown, and Williamsburg counties reporting the most observations statewide in 2023. SCDNR also names specific WMAs undergoing active early-successional habitat restoration for quail: Webb and Hamilton Ridge WMAs (Hampton County), Crackerneck WMA (Aiken County), Draper WMA (York County), Canal and Bonneau Ferry WMAs (Berkeley County), and Marsh WMA (Marion County) -- with Webb WMA additionally hosting SCDNR's annual Wild Quail Management Seminar.