2021 RINGNECK OUTLOOK

UplandHntr said:
Looks like some nice rains came thru the eastern part of the state?
Click to expand...
Things were pretty nasty up until the 6th of July. It's still tough in a lot of areas. My earlier comment on dew being available didn't apply when we got to the week before the 4th. I received 2.5" on July 6th and it has been cooler and cloudier since then. I do have some concern that early brood/chicks might have struggled in the heat, as well as finding insects to munch on. I was disappointed to hear the governor say that it was okay to cut hay now since the pheasants have all hatched. It's my experience that hens will keep trying to produce a successful brood and with conditions more favorable to chicks now, I don't like to see the grass being cut. That said, a lot of folks are going to need hay to get their herds through the winter and despite my personal belief that Sage and I having more pheasants to hunt is exponentially more important, I get it.

I've said it before and will say it again - pheasants are resilient and prolific breeders. Where there's a will there's a way. Up, down, high or low matters little. I'll be out as much as I can this coming fall. And really, I don't have much to go on by way of pheasant numbers until I do. Until then, I'm just guessing.
 
I recall the heat and drought of 2002 being tough, and 2012 seemed to manifest more tough #’s in 2013...2017 was good, even great, despite the drought that year...I guess it’s area by area...
 
My 2-cents.
Whether 1,2,3 birds per day per person really doesn't matter. I feel privileged given what does on elsewhere in this world, for the opportunity to own firearms which I can keep at my house and to have many options as to where to hunt - many here are trying their best to change that and all I can say to that is our vote has consequences in every election. It does sadden me to think the same privileges are not likely for my son into the future.
SD is a gem and I focus on the overall experience - not the bird counts or how many bagged. Heck, I was happy growing up in Ohio to bag a couple of roosters over the season!
Relax, embrace, enjoy, be happy. And vote to keep this alive into the future...
 
Talked to my guy near Salem and he says triple digits and windy for the next couple....
Says make or break time, they either get rain, grow it and cut it later, or if no rain they'll cut it earlier for silage....says he seeing lots of birds what he does cut
 
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