Wesslpointer, we need studies because things are not always clear cut and dry. As you know knowledge is power. The more we know the more apparent things can be, hence, a solution can be at hand.
A very good example I can give you comes right from my home county here in IL. We now have 4 very large (square miles) sections of prime pheasant habitat that include great winter cover, nesting cover, crops lands, water, hedgerows, rail road tracks w/habitat--making it easier for birds to travel safely from on area to another, with some areas getting local predator control.
Within these 4 areas there ARE pheasants. Some have good numbers of birds, anthers not so good to poor. The problem is, the wild pheasant populations in these areas are nowhere near as high as they should be--or would be if we were living pre-winter 95/96
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There's seems to be another underlining cause to the problem besides habitat and predation. Right now, studies are showing there is a HUGE issue with genetic concentration. The studies are showing us that the line of wild pheasants here in IL are not moving from one area to another as our wild birds in the past did. Why not?
Small things that did not effect wild IL pheasants pre-95/96, such as a highway being between one area and another or a section of woods that they refuse to take chances on entering to get to another habitat section are blocking post 95/96 pheasants from moving as needed to expand their population and genetic pool.
One more thing that I personally have witnessed in my area, is an increase in breeding roosters taking only one hen each spring. This is DESPITE the fact that there's many more hen's that could be breeding with one particular rooster, and there's an abundant amount of nesting habitat within that roosters "breeding territory".
So you see, there's more to it than habitat and predation. For such issues studies are needed to find a solution.
Nick
