ND GNF Newsletter 25-Sep-06

[marine_man]

Pheasant Season Opens Oct. 14, Good Conditions Expected

If the weather cooperates and temperatures remain mild, pheasant hunters can expect a season similar to 2005, according to Stan Kohn, upland game bird biologist for the North Dakota Game and Fish Department.

“We could be on target to match, if not exceed, last year’s harvest of 809,000 roosters,” Kohn said. “It should be a good pheasant hunting season in North Dakota this fall.”

Based on roadside brood count information gathered during late July and August, the 2006 pre-hunt pheasant population is up 37 percent from last year. Brood observations statewide were up 41 percent from last year, and average brood size was essentially the same as in 2005.

“The large number of broods increased the number of young observed, and that, coupled with the large number of adults in the population, will make for a high number of birds in the fall population,” Kohn said.

Average brood size was down slightly from last year in the southwest and south central portions of the state, Kohn said, but hunters should not notice a change in the fall population from a year ago. “This was somewhat expected in these parts because of drought conditions may have affected young survival,” he added. “However, the large number of broods observed in these regions will likely override the decrease in the number of young in the broods.”

The northwestern portion of the state should see much improved pheasant hunting over 2005, Kohn predicted, and the northeast will also see pretty good pheasant hunting conditions, especially in those counties right north of the interstate.

Parts of the southwest will see pheasant hunting similar to 2005, Kohn said, with many areas supporting more birds than last year. “The drought may have caused some problems with chick survival, but the large number of broods observed will cover the effects of this and hunting should be quite good,” he said.

Kohn said hunters in the southeast should have another good pheasant hunting season. “Some areas will be similar to last year, but many parts of the district will have much improved pheasant hunting,” he added. “Personnel are reporting many birds in the fields, especially in those counties bordering South Dakota.”

The 2006 regular pheasant season opens Oct. 14 and continues through Jan. 7, 2007. Limits are three roosters daily and 12 in possession. Hunting hours are one-half hour before sunrise to sunset each day. Hunters should refer to the North Dakota 2006-07 Small Game Guide for regulations.

North Dakota’s two-day youth pheasant season is Oct. 7-8, when legally licensed residents and nonresidents 12-16 years of age may hunt roosters statewide. Shooting hours, the daily bag limit, licensing requirements, and all other regulations for the regular pheasant season apply. Since the season is intended for youth ages 12-16, all hunters need to have passed a certified hunter education course. An adult at least 18 years of age must accompany the youth hunter in the field.

Hunters are reminded that Private Land Open To Sportsmen acreage and state wildlife management areas are open to hunting by resident hunters only from Oct. 14-20. Nonresidents, however, can still hunt those days on other state owned and federal lands, or private land.

New Practice Available to Landowners Improves Duck Nesting Habitat

A new duck nesting habitat practice (CP37) that enrolls wetlands and associated uplands into the Conservation Reserve Program is available to landowners after Oct. 1.

CP37, administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Services Agency, allocates 100,000 acres in five states – Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, South Dakota and North Dakota. North Dakota received 40,000 of the 100,000 acre allocation.

“Land may be enrolled in CRP under this practice on a continuous basis until the 100,000 acre allocation is reached,” said Kevin Kading, private land section leader for the North Dakota Game and Fish Department. “There is no restriction on the total acreage one landowner may enroll in CP37.”

Eligible land includes cropland within areas identified as having greater than or equal to 25 breeding duck pairs per square mile. To be eligible, the land must include wetlands and adjacent upland acreage. Up to 10 acres of adjacent upland acreage can be enrolled for every one acre of wetland. CRP contracts can be for a period of 10 to 15 years.

All wetlands on enrolled acres must be restored to their natural state, Kading said. FSA will provide 75 percent of the cost of restoring hydrology. In addition, FSA will also provide cost share for up to 50 percent of the cost to establish appropriate nesting cover.

The North Dakota Game and Fish Department will provide up to 50 percent of the cost of grass seed, as well as additional incentives for landowners who allow public access through the Department’s Private Land Open To Sportsman program. Other partners, such as Ducks Unlimited and the Natural Resources Trust, will also provide incentives to landowners enrolling land into the new practice.

Landowners interested in this new practice should contact their county FSA office or the North Dakota Game and Fish Department for more information.

Permit Required to Possess Protected Wildlife

The recent death of a black bear along Interstate 94 in western North Dakota has raised questions regarding possession of protected animals, according to officials at the state Game and Fish Department.

The bear, observed in numerous locations in Morton, Mercer and Oliver counties prior to Sept. 15, was found dead in the interstate ditch by a passing motorist. The motorist loaded up the bear and brought it to the Game and Fish Department’s district office in Dickinson.

While a well-intended action, Game and Fish Department enforcement chief Bob Timian reminds citizens that a permit is required to possess any protected wildlife. One type of permit is a hunting or fishing license that allows legal take of fish and game. Outside of that, Timian said, people need to contact the Game and Fish Department before taking possession of a dead animal they run across.

Since black bears are classified as a protected furbearer in North Dakota, that rule applies in this instance, but it also applies to deer or any other roadkills, or dead animals found away from roadways. “The first thing to do is to contact a game warden or department office,” Timian stressed. “Just picking an animal up and hauling it away is not legal.”

In many cases, Timian said, by following the proper procedure an individual may be able to keep the animals they find. The Game and Fish Department’s first interest, as is the case with the bear, is whether the animal might be needed for scientific or educational purposes, Timian said.

Secondly, Timian added, Game and Fish officials might want to investigate the scene of a dead animal, especially away from roadways, to determine if there was any illegal activity or disease involved. “It’s not that people can’t have anything,” Timian said, “in most cases we just want to verify what killed the animal before it’s moved. That information may be of value to us.”

For the bear incident, the state is not going to issue a citation to the individual involved, Timian said, and will allow him to keep the bear hide. The remainder of the bear will be used for scientific and educational purposes.

“He didn’t know he wasn’t supposed to move the animal, but he did the right thing by bringing it in to us,” Timian stated. “It’s a good opportunity for us to remind people that there is a process for obtaining a permit to possess protected animals, even if it’s obviously a roadkill.”