Thursday, October 31, 2019

"Pheasantennial" celebration in Redfield SD

By 

Dozens of people gathered at Hagman's Grove, the site of the first pheasant release, which happened more than 100 years ago.

"To think that 100 years ago , pheasant hunting started here in South Dakota is pretty wild," Paul Nester, a long time hunter said.

"Today we re-enacted the first successful release in South Dakota of the pheasants," said the Mayor of Redfield Jayme Akin.

The release of the birds in 1908 marks a transition in South Dakota pheasant hunting.

"In the years moving forward, the rooster, the pheasants, they flourished in South Dakota, they flourished in our harsh environments, the population soared, and then a few years later we had the first pheasant hunt.," Akin said.

That first hunt happened on October 30th, 1919. Wednesday's 'Pheasantennial' celebrates the 100 year mark of that hunt in Spink County.

NE Hunters take to the field on pheasant opener

LINCOLN, Neb. – Hunters from around the country returned to rural Nebraska on the weekend of Oct. 26-27 for the pheasant and quail season opener.
Hunter activity was highest on opening day and most effort subsided by midday on both Saturday and Sunday. Across the state, hunters were greeted with pleasant conditions and temperatures in the 70s on opening day. That all changed Saturday night with the passage of a cold front, which brought low wind chills and some ice.
Nebraska Game and Parks Commission staff contacted 840 upland hunters while making bag checks. These hunters harvested 471 pheasants, 25 quail, two greater prairie-chickens, and a sharp-tailed grouse. Pheasant-release sites on 14 select WMAs continue to be popular in eastern Nebraska, with an additional 721 hunters encountered there. They bagged 438 pheasants and six quail. More than 85 percent of roosters harvested on release sites were pen-released birds.
Based on field reports, hunter success for pheasants on the opener was highest in the Panhandle (0.73 birds/hunter). Hunters also found good pheasant numbers in the southwest and portions of the northeast where Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) fields were abundant.
Public lands were popular, including WMAs and private lands enrolled in the Commission’s Open Fields and Waters (OFW) Program. Overall, hunter activity on the opening weekend was slightly lower compared to previous years but harvest success on wild pheasants (0.56 birds/hunter) was higher compared to 2018 (0.40 birds/hunter).

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Abundant Opportunities Await Nebraska Pheasant, Quail Hunters Oct. 26 2019

LINCOLN – Abundant hunting opportunities and access await hunters when they go afield for the opener of the Nebraska pheasant, quail and partridge seasons on Oct. 26. Hunters seeking new places to hunt are encouraged to refer to the 2019-20 Public Access Atlas, which displays nearly a million acres of publicly accessible lands throughout the state. In addition to state and federal lands, hunters will have access to more than 347,000 acres of private land enrolled in the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission’s Open Fields and Waters Program, an increase of 30,000 acres from 2018. For those pursuing upland birds in the Southwest or Panhandle regions, the Stubble Access Guide displays an additional 40,000 acres of tall wheat and milo stubble fields open to public hunting access. Both publications are available at OutdoorNebraska.gov/PublicAccessAtlas.

According to the July Rural Mail Carrier Survey, this year’s statewide pheasant index was down 14% but hunters should still find good bird numbers where suitable habitat exists. Habitat conditions across the state look great going into the fall following the abundant moisture received earlier this spring/summer. Hunters will find the best pheasant hunting opportunities in the Southwest and Panhandle regions, which offer good bird numbers and abundant public access.

For bobwhites, this year’s production should make up for some of the population losses incurred from severe winter weather earlier this spring. The Republican, West Platte, and Southeast regions should offer the best quail hunting opportunities this fall according to the Spring Whistle Count Survey. The full upland hunting forecast is available online at OutdoorNebraska.gov/Upland.

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Idaho F&G fuels pheasant season with stocked birds

by Ryan L Morrison

Hunting pheasants in Idaho is a tradition and the Idaho Department of Fish and Game is cultivating that by stocking pheasants on nine WMAs. 
WMAs, or Wildlife Management Areas, are sections of land controlled by IDFG to help wildlife when they become vulnerable, like mule deer. But, they also help to provide Idaho with unique hunting experiences.
 IDFG has nine WMAs on their stocking schedule this season. They started last month and will stock birds through December when the season ends.

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Montana bird hunters reminded to "Be Bear Aware"