Accidental Pheasants in W Kansas

M. R. Byrd

Well-known member
I don't get away from the Ponderosa often to see other areas around here, but a wedding and a distance parts run got me out and about SW Kansas. Time on the road is a time of reflection for me. I am always looking for wildlife(only saw one pheasant hatch) and looking at the habitat of the area and where a pheasant or quail could live. It is also a time for me to view areas that I have hunted over the years.

All of that made me return my thoughts to 1960(or maybe 1961). Kansas had an abundance of pheasants, so many that the limit was five and could include one hen. My older brother lived to hunt, but that year he gave up opening day to take advantage of the projected onslaught of hunters from Wichita to operate his small filling station in a small town for 24 hours starting on Friday evening. I remember he put a slot in the lid of gallon pickle jar filled with water and a shot glass in the bottom. A successful drop of a coin in the shot glass won Coke products. I don't know how many times we had to empty the money from the jar that night. The rush started Friday afternoon and by nightfall the traffic coming into town was slowed to bumper to bumper and headlights could be seen for miles.

What brought all of this excitement was the abundant pheasants from what I call "Accidental Pheasants" . Accidental? The number of pheasants was not from any master plan by the state or game managers, it was from the farming practices of that era. Farms were smaller, thus more fencerows. Herbicide use was limited and thus weedy fence rows and weedy wheat stubble and milo fields. All the weeds had lots of grasshoppers and insects. Combines slobbered lots of grain on the ground.

Sixty-four years later things are much different. Farms are bigger. Many fencerows and tree rows are gone. Herbicide use is wide spread. Insects are fewer. Combines leave little on the ground. Brood rearing areas are much less.

As I traveled there were areas where I could stop on flat dryland areas where I could see a mile or more in any direction where the land was void of anything green, it was either sprayed wheat stubble or bare ground ready for winter wheat to be planted in September. Really no chance this area will produce any birds. For those that are not familiar with cropping in these areas of 20" or less of annual rainfall, there is what is known as summer fallow(half of the ground is used for the current wheat crop while the other half is idle and used to accumulate moisture for the next year's crop). Farming practices in these areas are unlikely to ever return to brood rearing areas for pheasants. I did get into areas like this but had some mix of CRP or waste land mixed in. These areas would have some promise that there might be pheasants.

I also traveled into areas of heavy irrigation where mile after mile had a center pivot on every quarter section of ground. These areas hold potential of pheasants since many of the 4 corners(about 7 acres where where the center pivot doesn't reach) might have supporting habitat including CRP grasses. Maintaining CRP corners in good brood rearing holds promise for "Intentional Pheasants".

So what I am saying is that there are areas where likely pheasants are a thing of the past, but there are some areas where proper management and programs could continue or even increase pheasant numbers. Programs that some states are using to enhance habitat like the corners. Programs like PF has promoted to get farmers to put areas that are not profitable for their farm operations, such as small areas or marginal land to put those in a CRP program. I have found in my own experiences that there are some NRCS managers that will work with you and some that will not. I have been talking about pheasants, which are much easier to provide good habitat for, now quail has much different habitat needs.

I wish I could say that I was a perfect "intentional" habitat farmer, but I like many in the public sector, have the limitations of time, money and manpower. My hope is that those that can improve habitat will achieve that through private or public assistance.

My hope for 2024 is that the areas that have good habitat will have favorable brood rearing conditions this year and all you upland bird hunters will have a great year.
 
Last edited:
Enjoying reading for sure. While I am not old enough to have hunted in the 60’s, the 70’s were pretty darn good. I remember leaving around noon on Friday before the opener from eastern Kansas. Seemed like half the cars we passed were full of hunters. At Hays where we turned north, the restaurant was packed. It was definitely a different experience than today
 
M R not certain I agree with you on the promise of irrigated land pheasants. Here in Idaho corners are always farmed with either solid set or moveable lines, and modern pivot systems an irrigate much land in the corners. At least here the few pheasants remaining are not in pivot irrigated areas.
 
IMG_3649.jpg
I certainly cannot speak to Idaho irrigation practices. I posted this thread in Kansas, so was only addressing Kansas and specifically the area I was traveling through. Here is the area I was in and the corners are not irrigated with corner systems. Since this area gets less than 20" rainfall annually the corners are either in a crop/summer fallow rotation or possibly CRP grass.
 

Attachments

  • Screenshot 2024-07-20 195319.png
    Screenshot 2024-07-20 195319.png
    664.1 KB · Views: 38
I don't get away from the Ponderosa often to see other areas around here, but a wedding and a distance parts run got me out and about SW Kansas. Time on the road is a time of reflection for me. I am always looking for wildlife(only saw one pheasant hatch) and looking at the habitat of the area and where a pheasant or quail could live. It is also a time for me to view areas that I have hunted over the years.

All of that made me return my thoughts to 1960(or maybe 1961). Kansas had an abundance of pheasants, so many that the limit was five and could include one hen. My older brother lived to hunt, but that year he gave up opening day to take advantage of the projected onslaught of hunters from Wichita to operate his small filling station in a small town for 24 hours starting on Friday evening. I remember he put a slot in the lid of gallon pickle jar filled with water and a shot glass in the bottom. A successful drop of a coin in the shot glass won Coke products. I don't know how many times we had to empty the money from the jar that night. The rush started Friday afternoon and by nightfall the traffic coming into town was slowed to bumper to bumper and headlights could be seen for miles.

What brought all of this excitement was the abundant pheasants from what I call "Accidental Pheasants" . Accidental? The number of pheasants was not from any master plan by the state or game managers, it was from the farming practices of that era. Farms were smaller, thus more fencerows. Herbicide use was limited and thus weedy fence rows and weedy wheat stubble and milo fields. All the weeds had lots of grasshoppers and insects. Combines slobbered lots of grain on the ground.

Sixty-four years later things are much different. Farms are bigger. Many fencerows and tree rows are gone. Herbicide use is wide spread. Insects are fewer. Combines leave little on the ground. Brood rearing areas are much less.

As I traveled there were areas where I could stop on flat dryland areas where I could see a mile or more in any direction where the land was void of anything green, it was either sprayed wheat stubble or bare ground ready for winter wheat to be planted in September. Really no chance this area will produce any birds. For those that are not familiar with cropping in these areas of 20" or less of annual rainfall, there is what is known as summer fallow(half of the ground is used for the current wheat crop while the other half is idle and used to accumulate moisture for the next year's crop). Farming practices in these areas are unlikely to ever return to brood rearing areas for pheasants. I did get into areas like this but had some mix of CRP or waste land mixed in. These areas would have some promise that there might be pheasants.

I also traveled into areas of heavy irrigation where mile after mile had a center pivot on every quarter section of ground. These areas hold potential of pheasants since many of the 4 corners(about 7 acres where where the center pivot doesn't reach) might have supporting habitat including CRP grasses. Maintaining CRP corners in good brood rearing holds promise for "Intentional Pheasants".

So what I am saying is that there are areas where likely pheasants are a thing of the past, but there are some areas where proper management and programs could continue or even increase pheasant numbers. Programs that some states are using to enhance habitat like the corners. Programs like PF has promoted to get farmers to put areas that are not profitable for their farm operations, such as small areas or marginal land to put those in a CRP program. I have found in my own experiences that there are some NRCS managers that will work with you and some that will not. I have been talking about pheasants, which are much easier to provide good habitat for, now quail has much different habitat needs.

I wish I could say that I was a perfect "intentional" habitat farmer, but I like many in the public sector, have the limitations of time, money and manpower. My hope is that those that can improve habitat will achieve that through private or public assistance.

My hope for 2024 is that the areas that have good habitat will have favorable brood rearing conditions this year and all you upland bird hunters will have a great year.
Maynard, in my humble opinion, I would classify you as an Intentional Habitat Farmer. Your Ponderosa is such a wonderful example of farming and providing cover for all wildlife. It was a joy to visit you at the farm and see what a person can do if they put their mind to doing something great. I hope you keep up with the excellent progress of the past.
 
MR I hope you are right! Maybe because you get more rain than SW Idaho, the economics of not irrigating the corner tracts are different and they will produce some revenue without irrigation. My concern is that once wells are in place and pressurized water is available, the corners are almost like free land to irrigate. However the labor cost is greater than the area under pivots. In my area CRP was not feasible, and so was not an alternative. Does the CRP program allow parcels as small as 7 acres?
I hunted around Dodge City in the years when pheasants were plentiful and I have always wanted to return but years have caught up with me and I probably will not make it.
 
Well said and wonderful stories. I'm saddened every time I see a weed-free stubble field. Back when, weedy stubble, particularly in terraces, were sure pheasant hunts. Weedless stubble near roosting areas may be OK. Most fields of corn stalks are worse; just short stalks sticking up out of bare dirt with no cover at all. These days milo stalks are usually the only harvested fields that may hold pheasants.
 
Last edited:
MR I hope you are right! Maybe because you get more rain than SW Idaho, the economics of not irrigating the corner tracts are different and they will produce some revenue without irrigation. My concern is that once wells are in place and pressurized water is available, the corners are almost like free land to irrigate. However the labor cost is greater than the area under pivots. In my area CRP was not feasible, and so was not an alternative. Does the CRP program allow parcels as small as 7 acres?
I hunted around Dodge City in the years when pheasants were plentiful and I have always wanted to return but years have caught up with me and I probably will not make it.
you're not missing a thing
 
There is no benefit from irrigation. The walnut is bone dry in Ness and Rush county, it has all been sucked out to irrigation. When they drain the Aquifer, it will be worse than the other disaster they created in the dust bowl. They have also sprayed everything. Not only have they sprayed their fields but they have completely sprayed the ditches. I used to love hunting ditches but they are bare dirt. Pheasants go as farming goes and we don't have very many stewards of the land in the western half, unless it is managed for deer. But that management includes purple paint and a bunch of corn feeders. Not really management, but mismanagement.
 
There is no benefit from irrigation. The walnut is bone dry in Ness and Rush county, it has all been sucked out to irrigation. When they drain the Aquifer, it will be worse than the other disaster they created in the dust bowl. They have also sprayed everything. Not only have they sprayed their fields but they have completely sprayed the ditches. I used to love hunting ditches but they are bare dirt. Pheasants go as farming goes and we don't have very many stewards of the land in the western half, unless it is managed for deer. But that management includes purple paint and a bunch of corn feeders. Not really management, but mismanagement.
Eastern half is just as bad except we started with more trees. But give those track hoes time they're working on that.
 
I would rather see a pollinator strip over a 7 acre crp patch. At least they don't graze or cut those.
We hunted a couple last year and I definitely see the benefits they would create. The ones we hunted were not set up for the way we hunted them. There was cover but very thin underneath and I think if pheasants were in there the race would be on as I didn't see any cover they might stop and hole up in.
 
We hunted a couple last year and I definitely see the benefits they would create. The ones we hunted were not set up for the way we hunted them. There was cover but very thin underneath and I think if pheasants were in there the race would be on as I didn't see any cover they might stop and hole up in.
Pollinator strips aren't there for hunters, they are there for the birds and the bee's. Very beneficial. And if they help pheasants escape hunters, even better.
 
I was having a conversation about this topic a few weeks ago with a farmer that I also hunt with on occasion. I know that margins are tight within the farming operations, but was curious with some financial assistance from government programs or even the PF organization, could he ever imagine leaving edges (where fence rows used to be) to brood shelter/habitat and leave a few rows of uncut crops for food sources to offset missed revenue. His reply was a quick no... for his farm anyway. The amount of weed seed that is produced, will eventually blow across his fields are his main concern. Transplanted weed seeds that have become resistant to chemicals, would make controlling weeds difficult anyplace where he doesn't want them is what would keep him from considering this.
Around my area in extreme Western Kansas, the only remaining elm tree rows that still exist are 80+ years old and mostly dead. They will eventually be taken out when time and resources allow. I don't know of anyone planting property edge shelter that don't have cattle that will benefit from them.
Abandoned farmsteads that have run out of well water forcing people to relocate and stripper header usage during wheat as provided tremendous habitat and helped offset the CRP acres that have disappeared, but I cringe when thinking about how many chicks are vacuumed during the harvesting process if they can't escape the "grim reaper"!
 
Back
Top