Lower Brule
- Thread starter BirdmanMI
- Start date
hunterofbirds
Member
I've hunted it for the last 6 years. Each year the hunting pressure increases to the point this year where we were competing for spots with some idiots out there trying to hold fields with parked vehicles (while they hunted elsewhere). I left Kansas in favor of S Dakota to get away from the idiots but they are pervasive! I'm inclined to return to Kansas though as birds numbers have rebounded there and it is a heck of a lot less costly to hunt!
reddog
Well-known member
I have not hunted this year....yet. (not sure if I will or not, depends on how the state hunt goes) But the reports I got from a couple different hunters indicated a large amount of hunting pressure on a severely restricted amount of habitat because of the mowing..
averaged 1 bird per guy per day over 3 days.. Here's the pheasant projection from August.
2017 Pheasant Brood Survey Results
Posted 8/23/17 (Wed)
Pheasant numbers have declined for the third year in a row. Due primarily to severe drought and extreme temperatures this spring and summer, pheasant counts are down 65% compared to last year and 77% lower than the 10-year average. Total pheasants per mile (1.2), brood size (5.0 chicks/brood) and % of hens with brood (45%) were the lowest on record.
After a fairly dry, average temperature winter, we experienced very little rain April – July with more than 10 days of over 100 degrees. Fewer pheasants than average went into the winter and nesting cover conditions were well below average. Brood survival was very low.
Prairie grouse numbers on the spring leks were about 10% below last year and slightly below the ten-year average. However, we expect that grouse brood survival will be low due to the severe drought and extreme summer temperatures.
From late July through late August, precipitation has been plentiful and allowed everything to green up nicely; however there has been widespread crop failure in the un-irrigated fields in our area. Food plots are in fair to good condition, a few failed completely. Grassland areas have short and sparse stands due to poor spring moisture conditions. Parts of some CRP fields were released for emergency haying for local livestock producers.
Overall, upland bird hunting should be poorer than last year and poorer than our ten-year average; our counts are slightly lower than 2013. Hunters with good bird dogs and willingness to cover some ground will still be able to get in some decent hunting this year, but birds are far from the numbers we should have with the quality habitat that we manage.
Steel shot is mandatory on the Brule this year..
averaged 1 bird per guy per day over 3 days.. Here's the pheasant projection from August.
2017 Pheasant Brood Survey Results
Posted 8/23/17 (Wed)
Pheasant numbers have declined for the third year in a row. Due primarily to severe drought and extreme temperatures this spring and summer, pheasant counts are down 65% compared to last year and 77% lower than the 10-year average. Total pheasants per mile (1.2), brood size (5.0 chicks/brood) and % of hens with brood (45%) were the lowest on record.
After a fairly dry, average temperature winter, we experienced very little rain April – July with more than 10 days of over 100 degrees. Fewer pheasants than average went into the winter and nesting cover conditions were well below average. Brood survival was very low.
Prairie grouse numbers on the spring leks were about 10% below last year and slightly below the ten-year average. However, we expect that grouse brood survival will be low due to the severe drought and extreme summer temperatures.
From late July through late August, precipitation has been plentiful and allowed everything to green up nicely; however there has been widespread crop failure in the un-irrigated fields in our area. Food plots are in fair to good condition, a few failed completely. Grassland areas have short and sparse stands due to poor spring moisture conditions. Parts of some CRP fields were released for emergency haying for local livestock producers.
Overall, upland bird hunting should be poorer than last year and poorer than our ten-year average; our counts are slightly lower than 2013. Hunters with good bird dogs and willingness to cover some ground will still be able to get in some decent hunting this year, but birds are far from the numbers we should have with the quality habitat that we manage.
Steel shot is mandatory on the Brule this year..
Thanks reddog for the update. I had seen the report from Joel at Lower Brule wildlife so I knew there were problems. We were slated to come out October 28 but have decided to stay home. It makes you wonder if this is the beginning of the end. I believe things were down 45% last year at the reservation and then combined with the awful numbers this year recovery is going to be tough. If this is followed up with a hard winter, it could be disastrous for the pheasant numbers.