2022 pheasant harvest by state

gimruis said:
Just 20 years ago Iowa used to routinely put a million roosters in the bag too. I can recall at the low point maybe 10 years ago it was just over 125,000. It sounds like Kansas is the new Iowa now though.
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We also lost something like 95% of grassland that was tiled off into crop land in the 90s. Its quite frankly amazing the numbers that are take from such little cover these days. Especially when the only meaningful upland ground in NE Iowa is on public ground which accounts for 0.7% of Iowa.

When you cross the border into MN you see the distinct change, theres wide ditches of grass along the hwy, grass borders of fields/fencelines, every little drainage creek has a big grass buffer, and you actually see set aside CRP ground instead of all hay/corn/beans.
 
KEOutdoors said:
When you cross the border into MN you see the distinct change, theres wide ditches of grass along the hwy, grass borders of fields/fencelines, every little drainage creek has a big grass buffer, and you actually see set aside CRP ground instead of all hay/corn/beans.
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Mandatory buffer strips was a state requirement passed by the previous Governor and State Legislature. And believe me, there was a lot of resistance there trying to get it passed from the agriculture sector. It took years to pass, and years more to enforce. But it has made an incredible difference not only in additional habitat for wildlife such as upland game birds, but it has also greatly increased water quality.
 
gimruis said:
Mandatory buffer strips was a state requirement passed by the previous Governor and State Legislature. And believe me, there was a lot of resistance there trying to get it passed from the agriculture sector. It took years to pass, and years more to enforce. But it has made an incredible difference not only in additional habitat for wildlife such as upland game birds, but it has also greatly increased water quality.
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If Iowa could get that done, our numbers would explode.

In MN was there anything connected to the mandatory buffers to make them open to the public? That would bring some revenue back into the equation for the state.
 
Birdman2 said:
I'm with u guys on KS. When I first starting hunting whia in KS it was unbelievable. Not much hunting pressure at all. Then things changed. KS game started promoting, less crp, etc. Bus loads of hunters, less habitat.
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Kansas has 45% fewer upland hunters than it did when wiha was introduced.
 
Crazy to think in early 80s Kansas harvested what SD does now with no type of walk in… think about that for a second.
 
The number of resident waterfowl hunters (total) has plummeted in most states and Canada prairie provinces. Most states and provinces have seen a 50% drop or so since the 1970s.
 
GetTothePoint said:
It's crazy how much the culture has changed. I was at a DU banquet last weekend and there was a four man pheasant trip in the auction and it was the only item that didn't make a reserve bid.
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Its trips in general. Average joe cant afford to take trip like that to support an organization, not with gas, lodging, food, etc costing so much. The guys that can openly afford it are going to research and book a trip with the guide they want at the place they want to go.

At the local one there was a 4-8 man south dakota goose hunt with guaranteed birds or money back, it didn't make the reserve which was the break-even cost for the guide service. And this was a waterfowl banquet!
 
BRITTMAN said:
The number of resident waterfowl hunters (total) has plummeted in most states and Canada prairie provinces.
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I read an article about this not long ago, right before the general waterfowl opener here in MN. Since 1980, duck hunting numbers here in MN have dropped to less than half of what they were. Pre-1980 (which is way before my time), there were over 150,000 waterfowlers here. It has slowly dropped over time and last year there were just over 60,000 of them.

I used to be an avid duck hunter as recently as 5 years ago. I hunted them locally in Central MN for almost 20 years. I'd go 5 or 6 times and bag up to 25-30 ducks. Mostly mallards, wood ducks, and a few teal. The last few seasons I went (to the same locations/areas), I'd only harvest about 4 or 5 ducks ALL SEASON. They just weren't there anymore. I'm sure drought has played a role, and I think the migration patterns have also shifted. The main migration would usually occur in early November when I was deer hunting.

I believe another reason there are less local ducks is too much hunting pressure before the general season opens. There's an early teal season, an early goose season, and an early youth season for weeks prior. These ducks and geese very likely get hunted before the rest of the hunters have a crack at them. Hunting pressure makes them harder to hunt. The DNR is trying to get more people into it, but they're also losing people because of what they're trying to do in this manner.
 
remy3424 said:
If Iowa could get that done, our numbers would explode.

In MN was there anything connected to the mandatory buffers to make them open to the public? That would bring some revenue back into the equation for the state.
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I agree, if other states like Iowa created mandatory buffer strips, upland numbers would really go up. Iowa is a massive agriculture state, probably one of the biggest. It would have an even greater effect there. But at the same time, agriculture is even more powerful there than in MN too, so there would obviously be even more resistance to it.

Buffer strips are not public land. There is a program called Walk in Access here that landowners can enroll their property in and anyone who has certification on their small game license can hunt it. I am not familiar with it, so I'm not sure how much of that there is, what type of land it is, or what percentage of it is buffer strips.
 
GetTothePoint said:
It's crazy how much the culture has changed. I was at a DU banquet last weekend and there was a four man pheasant trip in the auction and it was the only item that didn't make a reserve bid.
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Point, Not sure the drop in hunters in KS is a culture issue. It is about the huge drop in bird numbers. I agree culture is changing quickly though. I see it in my own family.
 
Birdman2 said:
Point, Not sure the drop in hunters in KS is a culture issue. It is about the huge drop in bird numbers. I agree culture is changing quickly though. I see it in my own family.
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Yeah, it's hard to keep people hunting when it just turns into hiking with no birds. It's down to us idiots that just like to watch their dogs and still have some nostalgic memories we can't let go. It was always more about the dogs, company, God's country and weirdly the sketchy motels and good diners that made the entire trip something I really looked forward to. Filling a tailgate with birds was always just a bonus.
 
TomU said:
I was with my 10 yr old Grandson last weekend and asked him if he wanted to go to SD and hunt Pheasants. He looked up from his iPad and said, Nah. Hopefully he won't grow up with soft hands.
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Grab that ipad and go to YouTube and show him some videos from The Flush. That should get him excited. Best hunting show on TV IMO
 
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