Crp ground

L

live to hunt pheasant

New member
Interesting therory i have ! In the 3 mile area around my house, i have alot of crp ground that has been in for 15-20 years. So when i have hunted , even when the population was down i saw lots of birds.... Is it possible that the increase of crp ground in my neighborhood, "7 new parcels totaling aprox. 500 acres has created more coverage for the amount of birds that we have in this area? The 160 acres i hunted sat and and sunday and another 25 acres, produced 1 rooster and 4 hens... In the past 5 years when we didnt have many birds i would always see 20-30 birds, on this same ground..... Probably a good problem for the future of the pheasants, but sure making it hard on me and the dog !!! Have a happy holiday
 
That is an interesting theory and it may be right but, this has been a strange year. I think it may have to do more with the weather this year. It has been so warm and windy this fall that I am finding that fields with lots of birds in them one day may not have hardly any a week or so later. I think birds are spending a lot of time in the picked corn and bean fields because most if not all of the birds I got this year had gullets full of corn or beans. If you happen to get to a field when they are feeding you may not see the numbers you used to see. When I hunt with my dog by my self I try to increase the odds and hunt the edges of fields along a fence line when I can find them or edges of cattails. I try to focus on places where there is a transition from one type of grass to another because I can use those transitions to slow down and sometimes stop the birds from running. It has been my experience that when you hunt in the middle of a field by yourself even with a good dog the birds can give you the slip. Now today the weather changed with the 1st snow of the season and I will still hunt the edges but with a little snow on the ground I think birds will sit tighter so if the edges don't produce results I would feel more comfortable moving deeper into the field because it may produce some birds. I hope you have a good rest of the season, good luck.
 
My experience in Iowa is that if there is good cover, there will be birds. Iowa is farmland, with the occasional patch of good habitat. You know how it is? There are places you can see for miles, table top flat, not a spec of any cover, but have a creek ditch, or a little slough and there will be birds in it. I think the expansion of CRP in your area is a good thing and will pay dividends in the future. This year is just a down year.
 
I don't have any info to back me up either, but it sure seems the CRP "ages out" in vegetation and doesn't hold birds as well. I hunted one stretch from first year to last of a 10 year program, and definitely held fewer birds in the last 2-3 than the beginning. The WRP ground that came online about halfway through held the birds instead. I'd like to see more "light management" of CRP with an occasional burn thrown in...
 
too many miles with nothing but bean stubble............and no field cover at all. CRP will have to come back before birds reestablish themselves.
 
Live to hunt pheasant keep us posted I think you are getting set for a pheasant explosion in the upcoming season ; the key is undisturbed nesting habitat ; An area in northeast Kansas that was way down on pheasants in an area the Crp acres doubled and so did. The pheasants ; keep and eye on that early Crp : I think years 2 through 5will be most productive : Maybe you know the landowners but if you get acces ask to help them out with mid contract management ; usually burning and light discing
 
hunter94 said:
too many miles with nothing but bean stubble............and no field cover at all. CRP will have to come back before birds reestablish themselves.
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Well, it does take work. I'm at my personal best on roosters and seen all sorts of birds yet this weekend. But, more guys that quit trying means more birds for me...
 
well good for you, homeboy! i could do the same thing if i lived there or close by........fact is i drove 520 miles one time to hunt 5 days this season, made some contacts, but drove by too many sections of bean stubble with no grass waterways or creeks or sloughs.......except for beat up public ground, you have to know your honey holes to brag about great hunting, birds were down and cover scarce.........saw way more hog confinement ops than birds.
 
hunter94 said:
well good for you, homeboy! i could do the same thing if i lived there or close by........fact is i drove 520 miles one time to hunt 5 days this season, made some contacts, but drove by too many sections of bean stubble with no grass waterways or creeks or sloughs.......except for beat up public ground, you have to know your honey holes to brag about great hunting, birds were down and cover scarce.........saw way more hog confinement ops than birds.
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So you’re writing off the state based on a failed 5 day trip. Good call.
Reality is, from an actual Iowan, parts of the state do suck. And parts are awesome, I wouldn’t trade it for the Dakotas (and I’ve lived there too).
For the OP- the other recommended tactic of offering to spruce up the older crp, etc if you have the capability is a great one. It would payoff for you big time I’d expect.
 
well at 4:30 the season comes to an end for another year. the worst day of the year. yes I had a tough year, and actually had feet on the ground way more this year than in the past. the temperatures and lack of snow allowed this. but the bird's on my cleaning table were way down. but like KS said, with all the new crp ground, maybe there will be an explosion in the coming years. I hope so !! so far the birds have not had to scratch for food as most all of our snow is gone this morning. if this winter stays good and the nesting season is good, we should be in GREAT shape. it's nice to see all of the crp ground. hope you all have a good year.
 
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