Extinction Of Pheasant Hunting In Parts Of Nebraska

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Pop Gun

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Pop Gun <lbg948@gmail.com>​

3:20 AM (0 minutes ago)


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Howdy All. In the early 60s when I was 12 and with a Red Ryder BB gun I went Pheasant hunting with my Dad and his friend in Chase County. Imperial Lamar and Champion area. It was mostly dry land farms, lots of fence lines with weeds as were the road ditches and a lot of wind breaks. Section roads were a must hunt as they were no man's land it was pretty safe to shoot off them and great to road hunt around sunset. Hunting was very good with lots of walking in hip and chest high cover. Being skunked was also part of the hunt and someone would say gee I'd like to at least get a shot or even kick up a hen or two. When I was 14 I gotmy dads bolt action 12 ga and I got my 1st Pheasant. I am now 75 and I have only missed 1 season. in 60 +yrs. I have hunted in NE, CO, IA. KS, ND, and SD I like SD as it is legal to road hunt and shoot from the road. I never understood why ya can't shoot and hunt the road ditch in other states.--- It's a possible $500 fine in NE and of course I never shot from the road in NE ----ya . Here is why I think Extinction Of Pheasant Hunting In Parts Of Nebraska. is a real possibility. When the pivot irrigation came in the late 60s and 70s almost all the fence lines and a lot of windbreaks were bulldozed. Now that left 4 corners and like a lot of these farm fields today all the road ditches are gone and the crops come up to the road . In the 4 corners they have wheat or something else and it goes right up to the road. We all know that Habitat is number 1 as far as Pheasants go. Here is what I think will doom and cause the extinction of the Pheasant. I have not hunted in NE. for about 15 or so years. so it may already be here. Subirrigation, Now you have fields that are square or rectangle and all butt up to the road. It is only logical to do this as the Ogallala aquifer depletion will be slowed with the Subirrigation system. I have had 4 wonderful Dogs they are all gone and I miss them all. I am going to get a Lab this spring and work with her in hopes I can get back to SD 1 more time. Good luck and happy hunting.
 
I miss pheasants too. We used to have plenty in KS. Not now.
 
I used to hunt Nebraska, but gave up the last couple of years cause there are no birds. Grew up in Nebraska and have been hunting there my entire life. It amazes to me the difference between Nebraska‘s game and fish and South Dakota‘s . There seems to be no effort towards conservation. Nebraska’s only answer seems to be buy a few pen raised birds and release them.
 
Man I love Nebraska. My wife lived in Vail, CO and North Platte was the halfway point. Our hotel we would meet at was 37 bucks a night. We treated it as such may I add. The people in that town are as nice as it gets. Its also the state I turkey hint in, by Maskell. If Nebraska gets their pheasant numbers back, theyre the perfect state. A bucket list trip is to fish bluegill south of Valentine. The sandhill are awesome.
 
I just started hunting it this year but I like Nebraska too. It’s to bad about the current situation in the sw part of the state it’s happening in Kansas too.
I found the parcels in the part of Nebraska I hunted more consistent than my home state. Not really many fireworks but seemed to be a few birds on every walk.
Not much different in drive time than western Ks for me. The other thing I liked about is being able to park on state management areas and boondock within a few miles of the areas I was hunting. I can do that in Kansas too but the drive times are usually quite a bit farther.
 
I grew up in NP. Used to hunt that area a lot. My brother still lives there, he used to hunt 2-3 times a week and would typically kill over 50 roosters a year. He only went out once this year and didn’t see one pheasant. He does a lot of scouting and rarely see a bird. He’s hoping they will make a come back but I have my doubts. Like Pop Gun said everything is farmed or if not farmed cowed out. Seems they used to fence out the shelter belts. Good luck Pop Gun, I hope I can still hunt when I get your age.
 
BritChaser said:
I miss pheasants too. We used to have plenty in KS. Not now.
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Brit, I remember when Pheasants were abundant in KS. Some of my best hunting was there. I remember back 15 years or so, we old timers were screaming for Wildlife people to help the birds in various ways. They just kept advertising for everybody to come to KS. Outfitters with vans would pull up to Whia land and dump them out 12-15 guys out. CRP was taken out for crops, etc. Loss of habitat is the main reason for the decline. But KS wildlife people had a chance to do something and they didn't bother.
 
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Phez are scarce but still here in Ohio. Would like to see bag limit reduced to 1 instead of 2. This year population was up in the little pocket I live and hunt in. As stated, habitat is every thing. Food is always abundant in the corn belt but not grass. We have disconnected crep/crp fields from 10-80 acres close enough for phez to migrate to and from. Landowner let slip that his payment was around $314/A for set aside! That’s real money that can compete with corn/soybean acres around here. That is what it will take.
 
Tomahawker said:
Phez are scarce but still here in Ohio. Would like to see bag limit reduced to 1 instead of 2. This year population was up in the little pocket I live and hunt in. As stated, habitat is every thing. Food is always abundant in the corn belt but not grass. We have disconnected crep/crp fields from 10-80 acres close enough for phez to migrate to and from. Landowner let slip that his payment was around $314/A for set aside! That’s real money that can compete with corn/soybean acres around here. That is what it will take.
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Hawk, That is good money. Bounties on varmits would be help also. Coons, Possums, Coyotes.
 
I and now my family have hunted this area for many years. In fact that was my beginnings back in the late 60s. Plenty of birds then but the hunting and farming habits were different. The walk in programs were a far away thought. As population has grown, farming habits and the development of the "walk in access" also grown, birds population have suffered. Im sure climate has also affected the bird environment. With our upland techniques changes, the specialized dog training and its modern electronic dog collar systems. one must hunt smarted and longer for a few birds. But I ask. would you rather be trying than staying home? I do not concern myself with the number of birds harvest anymore. That went away many years ago. I know focus on bird dog work and good time with my fellow hunters. The open country and outdoors beat the Sh..... from the daily life we now live to make a living and keep up.
This is what it has become when hunting (regardless of species) and our devotion to our sport.

To all happy bird chasing.
 
The deer has become the king in many of these states now. That's just what most people hunt so that's what the land is managed for. They are far more adaptable than upland birds. Won't be long until the wild turkey is gone too.

I would argue that the only state in the country that prioritizes pheasants is South Dakota. Every other state prioritizes deer (or other big game).
 
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What an odd post based on you haven't hunted there in 15 years so you are speculating? I have hunted near where you speak for the past 27 years. I don't see it as bad as you are speculating, there are still birds but drought has been the biggest issue there getting no rain the past few years. A lot of CRP has been taken out due to low prices and better harvest $$ to be made. Nebraska will bounce back once rain gets back to normal there.
 
gimruis said:
The deer has become the king in many of these states now. That's just what most people hunt so that's what the land is managed for. They are far more adaptable than upland birds. Won't be long until the wild turkey is gone too.

I would argue that the only state in the country that prioritizes pheasants is South Dakota. Every other state prioritizes deer (or other big game).
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Ah Deer hunting. Well I think that Pheasant Hunting draws more interest as the season is much longer and has no drawing for license and non-residents are fewer. That said I never had any interest in deer hunting but folks I know who hunt deer drive around and road hunt. The other thing I have seen only on TV is where they build a deer stand put out corn, licks, apples and such for 364 days a year. Then on the 365th day they climb up into the stand shot the deer and that is it, game over, done, see you next year. They have planted Wild Turkeys here on the River bottoms and they do very well. I guess Location Location Location Location. My son-in -law hunts Elk in Steamboat Sps. Colorado. They give out lots of licenses and he was told by the Game Warden that they have to many Elk in this area and they need to thin out the herd. What they are really sayings is we need the land to build more condos. You cannot believe how much Elk habitat has been Destroyed in Colorado for the ski industry. And they are now building a new ski resort somewhere I dont recall. Later
 
Pop Gun said:
Well I think that Pheasant Hunting draws more interest as the season is much longer and has no drawing for license and non-residents are fewer.
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I don't have exact numbers but I would bet that sales of a deer licenses outnumber sales of small game/pheasant licenses. Just a guess.

Here in MN, its not even close. There's more deer hunters than everything else combined.
 
Birdman2 said:
Brit, I remember when Pheasants were abundant in KS. Some of my best hunting was there. I remember back 15 years or so, we old timers were screaming for Wildlife people to help the birds in various ways. They just kept advertising for everybody to come to KS. Outfitters with vans would pull up to Whia land and dump them out 12-15 guys out. CRP was taken out for crops, etc. Loss of habitat is the main reason for the decline. But KS wildlife people had a chance to do something and they didn't bother.
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Ya thats not hunting. In ND I saw a group with all brand new trucks They looked like a group dressed as if they were right out of Cabela's catalog. Dogs everywhere. They were walking in a corn stock field so matted down and so flat a Robin could not hide in it. We are seeing a change in the hunting pay pay pay.
Bird Buster said:
What an odd post based on you haven't hunted there in 15 years so you are speculating? I have hunted near where you speak for the past 27 years. I don't see it as bad as you are speculating, there are still birds but drought has been the biggest issue there getting no rain the past few years. A lot of CRP has been taken out due to low prices and better harvest $$ to be made. Nebraska will bounce back once rain gets back to normal there.
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I only said I have not hunted that area but do go there on occasion for other reasons like fishing 7 times last year. I live just a few miles away. I was hunting there when you were cutting teeth I got 20 yrs on you. The only thing that's odd is your reply. Every forum has one of you. Google Earth it ,,,,,,,,, pivots everywhere. So you are saying its not habitat its the drought humm....;.; irrigated ----- don't they use water anymore. Those pivots leave standing water in furrows so that leaves your ideas out. Your Wrong and I know it. The motels in that area used to overflow with hunters and they are now ghost towns, that's odd. Prove me wrong on that. Whats real odd is you said you hunted NEAR there so that means you have not hunted in the area I am talking about thats odd. So you can say my statements odd when you have never been there, what a odd thing to say. We had record rain fall last year there is no drought there are no Pheasants to speak of there are a few around a famers houses and thats all. So you keep hunting because the pheasants will come back on the 12th of Never. You should learn the ghost dance for pheasants that is what the American Indians did to bring the American Buffalo back, hows that working out. Check out the rain fall for Imperial NE. in 2023.
 
Pop Gun said:
They looked like a group dressed as if they were right out of Cabela's catalog. Dogs everywhere. They were walking in a corn stock field so matted down and so flat a Robin could not hide in it. We are seeing a change in the hunting pay pay pay.
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This sounds like something the Goosemaster would say.
 
Pop Gun,
I’ve got relatives that moved to Imperial about 30 years ago to work at Imperial Beef when it was built. I’ve never hunted out that way, except for prairie dogs. Usually see a pheasant or two on the drive south of Grant when we get out there every couple years.
 
Golden Hour said:
Give pheasants adequate habitat and predators are inconsequential. Sparse cover equals easy pickings for the predators, but it goes back to the issue at hand. It's habitat, not predators.
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I would also argue that adequate weather also plays a much bigger role than predators.

Birdman2 said:
Coons, Possums, Coyotes.
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You forgot feral cats. Cats a much bigger problem than any of those natural predators.
 
gimruis said:
I would also argue that adequate weather also plays a much bigger role than predators.



You forgot feral cats. Cats a much bigger problem than any of those natural predators.
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Agreed that the weather can have a much more significant impact than predators, but again, we had over 90 inches of snow last year, and the cold and snow started in November, let up slightly in early December, then was full grown winter until the beginning of April. This fall was the best year in recent memory in the area that I hunt. Weather and predators are no match for habitat and the wild pheasant.
 
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