WDNR good news!

[519vx]

WDNR has announced they intend to stock about 75,000 birds this fall. This is about what was stocked last year, and is higher than in previous years.

http://dnr.wi.gov/topic/hunt/documents/PheasantStocking.pdf

No, they aren't wild birds. But tell my dogs that hunting them isn't fun, and tell my wife they don't taste good.

 

[Kismet]

Mick and I had one of our best years last year, hunting on State land. I also sent a note to DNR remarking that the properties I've hunted for about 25 years were as well-maintained as I've ever seen them.

It was almost a problem, because I could have taken more birds than I'm legally allowed to possess (4 in total).

I gotta find some new, and kind of simple, pheasant recipes.

And, no, I'm not gawd's gift to shooting skills. I AM using a single shot Win model 370A, cut to 24inches and with an improved cylinder choke screwed in.
So, I'm kind of handicapping myself; but I never got that many birds with a second shot, anyway.

Going to be a good year, I hope. Mick's looking a bit older (I figgur he's about 10 years old now), but loves the work.

 

[parooster]

That is great news! :thumbsup: Have fun this year.

 

[519vx]

Kis - pheasant fajita's are quick, easy and delicious!

 

[Remtech]

I feel the last couple of years the DNR has really been doing things such releasing more birds improving cover and getting more land to hunt I hope they keep it up.

Remtech

 

[519vx]

I feel the last couple of years the DNR has really been doing things such releasing more birds improving cover and getting more land to hunt I hope they keep it up.

Remtech

Totally agree. I sent a note to a few of the upper mgmt folks at the DNR and at Poynette after the season last year to compliment them and thank them for providing us with a hunting opportunity that wouldn't be available to most of us if it werent for the DNR and this program. If we want this program to continue, I encourage others to contact the DNR and voice support. They too only have so much money to divy up. I'm super glad they have put some more towards Poynette.

 

[wisturkeyhunter]

The dnr folks I've emailed have also been very nice and they're not afraid to point you in the direction of good hunting.

Not a huge fan of how pheasant are managed here but I think they do the best they can with what most hunters want.

 

[519vx]

Well put Wisturk....I don't necessary like the way they are managed, but they do the best they can with limited resources and habitat, and still provide hunting opportunities that wouldn't otherwise exist.

 

[FCSpringer]

Good for you guys. Its just not a state set up for wild pheasants as beautiful as it is. But those birds when I was out there seemed plenty wild to me. That many birds are not used to human contact in the huge pens they are in and will most certainly rocket from cover just fine and dandy.:thumbsup: And within days, they get wilder and wilder. Maybe you will get lucky and some will remain sustained in some of those areas.:thumbsup: Are they releasing hens as well? And can you harvest the hens?

 

[Kismet]

Ken, on a few (I think, 2) sites, hens are released, but the DNR mandates that you send in for 10 leg bands in your hunting license's number, and must use a tag for a hen harvested at one of the two sites.

Years ago, the State lands required tags for both sexes of birds, and your season limit was 10.

There is virtually no carry-over at the sites I hunt.

 

[FCSpringer]

tttttttttttttttttttttttt

 

[Deuce]

I did see a hen pheasant at Bong a few weeks back. It's hard to tell though if it was left over from training or a test vs. made it through last season.

Can't say the same for the coveys of Chukar out there.

To stay on topic, I'm excited to see the numbers again. I had a blast last year finding places to hunt after moving. I look forward to hitting my spots and trying add a few to the list.

 

[FLDBRED]

Totally agree. I sent a note to a few of the upper mgmt folks at the DNR and at Poynette after the season last year to compliment them and thank them for providing us with a hunting opportunity that wouldn't be available to most of us if it werent for the DNR and this program. If we want this program to continue, I encourage others to contact the DNR and voice support. They too only have so much money to divy up. I'm super glad they have put some more towards Poynette.

Very well said! :thumbsup: :10sign:

 

[519vx]

There's actually a number of places where both hens and roosters are stocked ie Bong, Scuppernong, southern unit of Kettle Moraine, Vernon Marsh....

 

[FCSpringer]

Great. I would think some of them areas should hold a population. It may end up being private, but oh well. When coming out there running dogs, it seems some of that southern area should be able to keep some around. If not you guys still have other things that no other state has. The woods, the grouse, the deer etc.:thumbsup:

 

[wisturkeyhunter]

There are wild birds around if you're willing to put in the effort.

Unfortunately the majority can't or won't so the state puts money into throw away birds.

 

[Deweybagger]

There are wild birds around if you're willing to put in the effort.

Unfortunately the majority can't or won't so the state puts money into throw away birds.

I agree 100%
We have wild birds all over where I'm at, not in large numbers but if your willing to put the miles on your boots, have a good dog there's no reason to not have opportunity on a limit of birds, day after day.
Very few times have we left a field without a limit (or shot at a limit!)

Around my area you don't see anyone after the young easy roosters are shot up,
After gun season the bird hunting is awesome!

 

[519vx]

There are wild birds around if you're willing to put in the effort.

Unfortunately the majority can't or won't so the state puts money into throw away birds.

So...the State should put that money somewhere else and leave literally thousands of people who don't have access to private lands to either give up pheasant hunting or go to game farms.

The reality is that the Wisconsin landscape is way to segmented into small farms and woodlots for there to ever be a viable population of birds across the state on publicly accessible lands. Yes, there are a few wild birds on a handful of publicly accessible lands. Knocking on doors is nearly always fruitless unless you have some sort of "in" with the landowner.

I for one am VERY glad that the State has a put and take pheasant program. This state pizzes away MILLIONS of dollars on complete boondoggles and programs that do absolutely not one thing for me or the majority of people I know, hunt, and/or associate with. There are a lot of places to attack Wisconsin govt for wasteful spending on, the Pheasant program is NOT one of them.

 

[Deweybagger]

So...the State should put that money somewhere else and leave literally thousands of people who don't have access to private lands to either give up pheasant hunting or go to game farms.

The reality is that the Wisconsin landscape is way to segmented into small farms and woodlots for there to ever be a viable population of birds across the state on publicly accessible lands. Yes, there are a few wild birds on a handful of publicly accessible lands. Knocking on doors is nearly always fruitless unless you have some sort of "in" with the landowner.

I for one am VERY glad that the State has a put and take pheasant program. This state pizzes away MILLIONS of dollars on complete boondoggles and programs that do absolutely not one thing for me or the majority of people I know, hunt, and/or associate with. There are a lot of places to attack Wisconsin govt for wasteful spending on, the Pheasant program is NOT one of them.

I've never hunted down south, I know nothing about the property's that they release birds on but from what I've read on here that almost no planted birds live but a couple days, easy to kill, no survival skills.
Don't know if its true or not
I also read its about habitat, would that be a better way to spend the money?

I'm not against this just wondering, to be honest non of this affects me as I am fortunate to have some birds close to home and I understand some are not.

As I've posted before we hunt mostly public land with only two 80acre pieces up north that are private and a 100+ acre farm surrounded by public land. Last year we took limits from the wooded edges of the public areas, again no one around and thats fine by me.

 

[wisturkeyhunter]

So...the State should put that money somewhere else and leave literally thousands of people who don't have access to private lands to either give up pheasant hunting or go to game farms.

The reality is that the Wisconsin landscape is way to segmented into small farms and woodlots for there to ever be a viable population of birds across the state on publicly accessible lands. Yes, there are a few wild birds on a handful of publicly accessible lands. Knocking on doors is nearly always fruitless unless you have some sort of "in" with the landowner.

I for one am VERY glad that the State has a put and take pheasant program. This state pizzes away MILLIONS of dollars on complete boondoggles and programs that do absolutely not one thing for me or the majority of people I know, hunt, and/or associate with. There are a lot of places to attack Wisconsin govt for wasteful spending on, the Pheasant program is NOT one of them.

I don't blame the state dnr for putting the money into released birds because that's what "hunters" want. I know we could have better wild bird hunting then we do but most guys don't believe that so the state does what it can. Most guys think they are pheasant kings if they kill 20 released birds in this state. It is what it is though and the wdnr does alright with what they are given

I hunted private land one time last year late in the season with zero success when I'd been killing birds all year on public land both stocked and wild birds. Not sure where you are going with that.