Harvest way less than a million.....

H

hunter94

Well-known member
my prediction, first season in a looong time...will record pheasant harvest well under a million.
 
Hunter94,
How do they come up with the Harvest Number? Each year our group hunted in SD we were never asked. Just curious if you knew how they came up with the total.
Bob
 
Hockeybob said:
Hunter94,
How do they come up with the Harvest Number? Each year our group hunted in SD we were never asked. Just curious if you knew how they came up with the total.
Bob
Click to expand...

I really don't know Bob, someone will read this and explain it to us...
but my guess is it will be a very low number..lots of guys are canceling their plans.
 
They have drones that follow each pheasant and when a pheasant gets shot the drone goes home, then all they have to do is count the drones.
 
Rural route mail carriers count the spent shotgun shells they find in the ditches.... :laugh:
 
All the pheasants have names, come supper time each night. They count who's missing. :D
 
Counters

Every night the bartenders listen to all the stories and how many birds guys shot and keep track, the State pays them 10 cents a bird or story....whichever is greater.:p
 
Ok guys, this is confidential information so keep it under your hat please. The South Dakota Game Fish & Parks pheasant forecast and harvest data is normally provided by a realtor that lives by the twin cities up north dar in Minnesota. He is a true city slicker. This year they screwed up and instead of using the realtors forecast they used the actual roadside count numbers. (the realtor will make heads roll over this).

Make no mistake, the realtor will make sure his harvest numbers are used this year. This guy knows everything about South Dakota pheasant hunting. You could even say he is the Obi-Wan Kenobi of South Dakota pheasant hunting. He even knows what birds were released, and what birds were wild in the harvest numbers. Expect the harvest numbers to be down slightly, only because they screwed up an used the actual forecast numbers instead of the realtors forecast numbers. As much as it bothers the realtor not to pump up the harvest numbers, he knows it would look fishy if the harvest actually went up.
 
OK here it is---go to the SDGF&P web site--click on hunting--click on harvest reports--click on jump to small game reports(it's a link at the bottom of the page)--click on pheasant.:)
 
Heck they will shoot over 500K pen raised birds (many thought of as wild) alone. Couple years ago every pen pheasant not raised under contract in MN was purchased and shipped to SD.

Check those nostrils if you are paying $300 - $500 per day and see more roosters than hens in any given walk.
 
NOPLCLKNEB said:
Ok guys, this is confidential information so keep it under your hat please. The South Dakota Game Fish & Parks pheasant forecast and harvest data is normally provided by a realtor that lives by the twin cities up north dar in Minnesota. He is a true city slicker. This year they screwed up and instead of using the realtors forecast they used the actual roadside count numbers. (the realtor will make heads roll over this).

Make no mistake, the realtor will make sure his harvest numbers are used this year. This guy knows everything about South Dakota pheasant hunting. You could even say he is the Obi-Wan Kenobi of South Dakota pheasant hunting. He even knows what birds were released, and what birds were wild in the harvest numbers. Expect the harvest numbers to be down slightly, only because they screwed up an used the actual forecast numbers instead of the realtors forecast numbers. As much as it bothers the realtor not to pump up the harvest numbers, he knows it would look fishy if the harvest actually went up.
Click to expand...

I'm sorry......I don't get this?
 
BRITTMAN said:
Heck they will shoot over 500K pen raised birds (many thought of as wild) alone. Couple years ago every pen pheasant not raised under contract in MN was purchased and shipped to SD.

Check those nostrils if you are paying $300 - $500 per day and see more roosters than hens in any given walk.
Click to expand...

So what do you think the ratio of pen raised to wild birds is in the harvest of ANY other state ? ;)
 
SD has to be a leader here, right ? maybe a few areas in Kansas too.

I grew up in NoDak and can tell you only a few "wild" bird outfitters in SW ND probably release birds. In Minnesota you are either a hunting preserve or you are not.

I have no issue with hunting and shooting pen raised birds and if they have been running around loose for a few days they start to run and react much like a wild pheasant. Locally I can chase pen raised birds for $16.50 - $21 a bird. SoDak preserves are higher cost, but those that say they are preserve can do what the market will bare.

The issue I have with Commercial SD (no - not UGUIDE and his farmers) is the fact that many people fly in and pay $500 to shoot "wild" SD pheasants when indeed they were raised in a barn in Minnesota.

It has been ongoing for a long, long time and maybe more so 20 - 30 years ago. I remember hunting SD in the mid 80s. We had a good trip west aways from Aberdeen (farmer friend of the family) and decided to road hunt home. As we came across the James River valley we found a public area ... well across the road were strips of corn and it was full of rooster pheasants (barely a hen). Bubba was patroling the roads to make sure no one road hunted his pen birds.
 
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