Good News For All Hunters

[Golden Hour]

Federal government awards $23 million for Prairie Pothole Region • South Dakota Searchlight

The federal government plans to spend $23 million on the Prairie Pothole Region, which includes land in South Dakota.

southdakotasearchlight.com

 

[BritChaser]

<if only i was a waterfowl hunter. big sigh>

 

[Golden Hour]

<if only i was a waterfowl hunter. big sigh>

While I hunt waterfowl from opener until things ice up, I don't hunt the Waterfowl Production Areas for ducks and geese. But 2/3 of my pheasant hunting takes place on WPAs. Pheasants will nest about anywhere, but the large tracts of uninterrupted grass that WPA's provide are critical for nesting and brood rearing of pheasants, ducks, etc. Implementing the right kinds of grass on the WPAs that are lagging in quality will have a great benefit to the overall pheasant population, in my experience/opinion.

 

[A5 Sweet 16]

Federal government awards $23 million for Prairie Pothole Region • South Dakota Searchlight

The federal government plans to spend $23 million on the Prairie Pothole Region, which includes land in South Dakota.

southdakotasearchlight.com

Some money is better than no money, but at the end of the day, I'd sure be interested to know how many pennies on the dollar of that $23M are spent on labor/materials that directly maintain/improve the land. Also, it seems to me that when I hear about restoring native grassland in this area, a lot of emphasis is put on tallgrass prairie. And I see lots of tallgrass prairie type grasses on WPAs in my area, which I don't believe to be particularly good pheasant nesting/brooding habitat. I'm guessing it's not particularly good for ducks either. Much of the Prairie Pothole Region (Duck Factory) was NOT tallgrass prairie. It was mixed &/or shortgrass prairie. We talk about "restoring" these lands, but to WHAT?? I'd like to see closer attention paid to returning them to conditions that existed 250 years ago; not 150 or 100 years ago. I have to think EVERYTHING that uses that land (or COULD use that land) would be better off, especially species that have struggled so much recently, like Hungarian partridge.

 

[Weimdogman]

I believe the prarie pothole region was always tall grass prarie. If you go back to the time of the Buffalo herds ate it down and fertilized it. Fire would wipe it out and help to restore it. Both are mostly history.
WPA's are waterfowl production areas. Most ducks nest in the grass. Early spring grass is not too tall. Late season grasses and clump grasses are most beneficial to pheasants during the winter. They also hold/catch snow for improving ground moisture.

You are 100% correct WPA'S aren't suitable for partridge

 

[Pheasants & a Lab]

I like it! No more inflation guys! Just messing, no political talk here. I am from the camp of "take what you can get" and work for more to support the cause.
I appreciate public land as it is the only land that I hunt. I appreciate the efforts to increase opportunities for anything out in nature. Yes, I struggle with some restrictions, the slow growth expansion, and selfishly, the lack of "visible" improvements close to me.
These ARE the "good ole days". I can't hunt the memories when I could hunt any farm in a fifteen mile walking radius of my house. I'll take this and push for more. Great news IMO!!! Glad you posted this GH as I feel its important for sportsman to know these gains and work for more in the future.
After reading the article and going to the total project list, I am going to research the one that hopes to create a climate resilient forest in the Midwest. Cactus??? Deer resilient would a winner in WI.

 

[A5 Sweet 16]

I like it! No more inflation guys! Just messing, no political talk here. I am from the camp of "take what you can get" and work for more to support the cause.
I appreciate public land as it is the only land that I hunt. I appreciate the efforts to increase opportunities for anything out in nature. Yes, I struggle with some restrictions, the slow growth expansion, and selfishly, the lack of "visible" improvements close to me.
These ARE the "good ole days". I can't hunt the memories when I could hunt any farm in a fifteen mile walking radius of my house. I'll take this and push for more. Great news IMO!!! Glad you posted this GH as I feel its important for sportsman to know these gains and work for more in the future.
After reading the article and going to the total project list, I am going to research the one that hopes to create a climate resilient forest in the Midwest. Cactus??? Deer resilient would a winner in WI.

Well put, Mike.

 

[Smasher]

Hey there! I saw this news about the federal government awarding $23 million, and it's great to see that they're taking steps to preserve such an important area for wildlife. As someone who loves spending time outdoors, I think it's crucial to protect natural habitats like this. Plus, it's always cool to see animals like ducks, geese, and other birds in their natural environment. Speaking of spending time outdoors, have you heard of games that pay real money? I recently stumbled upon an article about some interesting ones that you can play on your phone or tablet. It's a fun way to pass the time and maybe even earn a little extra cash while you're at it. But I think it's important to balance screen time with getting outside and enjoying nature too!

Games that pay real money??? How about robots that make real posts? Or trolls spamming web forums. Unless your the hot chick on the right in your avatar, no one wants you here.

 

[3car]

I believe the prarie pothole region was always tall grass prarie. If you go back to the time of the Buffalo herds ate it down and fertilized it. Fire would wipe it out and help to restore it. Both are mostly history.
WPA's are waterfowl production areas. Most ducks nest in the grass. Early spring grass is not too tall. Late season grasses and clump grasses are most beneficial to pheasants during the winter. They also hold/catch snow for improving ground moisture.

You are 100% correct WPA'S aren't suitable for partridge

The mixed grass prairies versus tall grass is mostly determined by soil types/rainfall and what grasses are suitable for those areas. Most of the dakotas are Mixed. Tall Grass prairies are generally the river bottoms and are now crop land. Very few WPA's are located in the tall grass prairies. By far the majority of the WPA's are located in the Mixed grass range.