blake
Life Member
The Outlook for Iowa's Pheasant Opener
Iowa pheasant hunters already know it. They will see fewer birds when they step into the fields this weekend and for the next couple months. Iowa's pheasant season opens October 30, on the heels of the lowest pre-season survey ever recorded.
"We estimate a harvest of 200,000 to 300,000 birds this fall," forecasts Todd Bogenschutz, upland research biologist for the Department of Natural Resources. "About 30% of our harvest is in the first nine days of the season. That's a lot of activity spread over those first two weekends. With most of the crops out of the field, it should concentrate the birds more, in areas of good cover."
That eventual harvest could mark an all time low in a state which traditionally sees a million or more ring-necked roosters taken by hunters. A four year pattern of weather extremes coupled with declining habitat has taken its toll.
That habitat factor could be improving. This summer, the USDA offered a general Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) signup for the first time in four years. Early returns show Iowa gained CRP acres, rather than seeing large chunks of farmland returned to row crops. The DNR and various conservation organizations are working on habitat initiatives to offer landowners, which could put more grassy cover out there, to benefit pheasants, quail and dozens of nongame wildlife species as well.
It is Iowa's weather that could use a major shakeup. "We've had four winters with 30 to 50 inches of snow, as well as floods in 2008 and again this year," notes Bogenschutz. "That combination of weather has driven us down. In a normal weather year, the habitat is out there to support a 700,000 to 800,000 pheasant harvest."
Hunters who walk through areas with the best cover still should see good bird numbers. "Concentrate on those core habitat areas; the areas with exceptional habitat; a lot of our public land and those CRP fields, with good switch grass and other native plantings," suggests Bogenschutz. "You get into the marginal areas; fence lines, streams, brome grass, the birds are not going to be plentiful." Iowa's better regions for pheasants are northwest and north central Iowa.
That downturn in pheasants translates into fewer hunters pursuing them, too. Wildlife officials expect only 60,000 to 70,000 hunters to hunt pheasants this season. That will have repercussions on Main Street in towns across Iowa. Survey data from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service show that in 2006, about 170,000 hunters spent $80-millon on food, lodging, gas and other purchases during their hunting trips. Still, that points to a boost of $30-$35 million this fall, even with a lower turnout.
Iowa pheasant hunters already know it. They will see fewer birds when they step into the fields this weekend and for the next couple months. Iowa's pheasant season opens October 30, on the heels of the lowest pre-season survey ever recorded.
"We estimate a harvest of 200,000 to 300,000 birds this fall," forecasts Todd Bogenschutz, upland research biologist for the Department of Natural Resources. "About 30% of our harvest is in the first nine days of the season. That's a lot of activity spread over those first two weekends. With most of the crops out of the field, it should concentrate the birds more, in areas of good cover."
That eventual harvest could mark an all time low in a state which traditionally sees a million or more ring-necked roosters taken by hunters. A four year pattern of weather extremes coupled with declining habitat has taken its toll.
That habitat factor could be improving. This summer, the USDA offered a general Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) signup for the first time in four years. Early returns show Iowa gained CRP acres, rather than seeing large chunks of farmland returned to row crops. The DNR and various conservation organizations are working on habitat initiatives to offer landowners, which could put more grassy cover out there, to benefit pheasants, quail and dozens of nongame wildlife species as well.
It is Iowa's weather that could use a major shakeup. "We've had four winters with 30 to 50 inches of snow, as well as floods in 2008 and again this year," notes Bogenschutz. "That combination of weather has driven us down. In a normal weather year, the habitat is out there to support a 700,000 to 800,000 pheasant harvest."
Hunters who walk through areas with the best cover still should see good bird numbers. "Concentrate on those core habitat areas; the areas with exceptional habitat; a lot of our public land and those CRP fields, with good switch grass and other native plantings," suggests Bogenschutz. "You get into the marginal areas; fence lines, streams, brome grass, the birds are not going to be plentiful." Iowa's better regions for pheasants are northwest and north central Iowa.
That downturn in pheasants translates into fewer hunters pursuing them, too. Wildlife officials expect only 60,000 to 70,000 hunters to hunt pheasants this season. That will have repercussions on Main Street in towns across Iowa. Survey data from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service show that in 2006, about 170,000 hunters spent $80-millon on food, lodging, gas and other purchases during their hunting trips. Still, that points to a boost of $30-$35 million this fall, even with a lower turnout.
