Texas' long-suffering quail, beset by several consecutive years of drought on top of decades of habitat loss that sent the population tumbling by as much as 70 percent over the past 40 years and saw the iconic upland game bird all but vanish from some regions of the state, desperately needed a good year. Texas' equally persevering quail hunters, many of whom have worked harder at husbanding quail populations and restoring/reviving/enhancing habitat over the past several years than at actually pursuing what were the nation's preeminent upland game birds, just might have a good year, too. Heading toward the state's Oct.