Helping Pheasants

C

captaincoot

Banned
What do you guys think of people putting corn along the road. Seems to get alot of them killed. I geuss its better then nothing. I put corn in the grove and got about 50 living in it. Hard not to hunt them.
 
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Good point, I think it is a nobel effort and is needed especialy this year. But along a highway can be bad, as long as it is a gravel they should be OK for the most part. I put it out on hill tops in a plowed field, that they use here, because it stays blown off, but down in IA by my reley's thats not an opption, too flat. I guess the groves and gravels are the only choice. Either way good Idea this year, they are stuggeling down in sth MN right now. We are lucky yet compaired to you folks down there. We only got 10" of powder so hills are OK in the fields for them. Also by the house I moved it closer and closer to the Pine trees and now they feed In the driveway.
 
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If you can put it in cover like groves, at least the birds aren't getting picked off or run over. I just hope the weather is going to warm up and melt some snow finally.
 
This goes against my upbringing, but I say feed them anyway you can. I "tried" to hunt the last day in my Kossuth area. My Brit made it a 100' feet from the truck, before I took her back. My buddy's bulldozer of a yellow lab made it about 700' and spent most the time trying to swim in the snow. We hunted a grand total of 25 minutes, We both had high tech snowshoes and they were worthless. The conditions are the absolute worst I've ever seen. I saw dozens and dozens of birds on the shoulder of the road as I drove to my spot. The only dead birds I saw were hens. Any wildlife biologist will tell you it's a waste of time to feed wildlife artificially. This year is different. We're not even a month into winter and I fear we will lose 75 to 80% of birds in the NW. If I lived closer I would be hauling corn every other day. The road is not good, but there's very little alternative. I say feed'em any way you can!
 
I know I can't spell. But what do you expect from a guy that while in first grade spelling was suppose to spell hart but spelled fart instead. Nun got really mad slapped my head and pulled my ear.:D
 
Pheasants Forever had a nice article on feeding pheasants, they suggested habitat that could help. Love the site, new to the board to.
 
captaincoot said:
What do you guys think of people putting corn along the road. Seems to get alot of them killed. I geuss its better then nothing. I put corn in the grove and got about 50 living in it. Hard not to hunt them.
Click to expand...

The DNR doesn't really advocate feeding wild birds. But IMO if you want to help out the birds in your own little piece of habitat you could do as I have done. http://www.ultimatepheasanthunting.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3174

Strategically placed these corn cribs will get the birds through the winter, but you will have to be dedicated to continually feeding throughout the winter as they will become dependent on it.
 
Do what your heart and gut feeling tells you. DNR as noble as a job as it is, is not always right. Several have told me that releasing birds does not work either. OKkkkk. I say, Hmmmm came from China I think.
Here is an article I found, weather one agrees or not OH well, I think they have no problem with one doing it, they just suggest some tips for what they think will make it more succesfull.




DNR offers pheasant feeding do’s and don’ts
(Released January 7, 2010)


Recent snowfalls have resulted in a deep blanket of crusty snow that is significantly limiting pheasants’ access to waste grain throughout much of their range in Minnesota, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Providing feed for pheasants during such conditions can increase their chances of survival.

Pheasants can survive as long as two weeks without food, but they become more vulnerable to predators and adverse weather conditions when they are forced to spend time and energy in the open looking for food.

The DNR offers the following tips for feeding pheasants:

Do not place feeders near a road. Attracting pheasants (and deer) to roadsides can be dangerous to motorists as well as wildlife.
Feeders should be placed within 150 yards of good winter cover. This allows the birds to feed and then return quickly to cover. The most important reason for feeding pheasants is to keep them in areas of good winter cover, such as large cattail marshes, shrub swamps, or shelterbelts with at least four rows of evergreens where they stand a much greater chance of surviving winter.
Place food where birds have been seen feeding in an open, windswept area near thick cover. A high spot with a southern exposure is best.
Simple feeder cribs can be constructed of hardware cloth that is 3 to 4 feet wide (1/2″ mesh) and is double-wrapped and hog-ringed together to form a cylinder. Wire the feeder to a steel post or another object to keep it erect. Designs for constructing barrel feeders can be found on the DNR Web site.
Once feeding is begun, don’t stop until there are large, snow-free areas in fields. Pheasants become dependent on feeders. One of the biggest mistakes is to stop feeding before waste grain becomes available.
Now is also a good time to work with local clubs or wildlife managers to assess local habitat needs and plan improvements for next year, such as food plots near winter cover. For additional information on pheasant feeding, contact a local DNR wildlife office.


(I am doing basicly exactly what they said, so I will just feed them.)
 
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Couple days ago while I was having lunch I noticed two bald eagles sitting in the cottonwood tree. I thought this is really cool until what they did next. One of them swooped down and killed one of my pheasant living in the grove:eek::mad: Actually it was kind of cool to watch. Hope they don't come back though.
 
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