Pike Run Birds

[fleroo]

My Pal was Gobbler hunting on my place Saturday, and said he heard what seemed to be at least 1/2 dozen Pheasants cackling on the farm across the hill. This would be in the now defunct Pike Run WPRA. Matter of fact, this hillside seen the very first wild birds released from S. Dakota. It would be a real shocker if somehow these birds managed to take off for whatever reason on their own, after having the WPRA closed. I have my doubts, but apparently there are still some hardy survivors out there.

[galthatfishes]

Fleroo,

It will be AWESOME to see how these birds handle the hunting pressure. Do they thrive, doing better than before they closed the WPRA? They may.

Many species do better with moderate pressure. Time will tell.

[fleroo]

You'll find some rabbit hunters out that way, though not many. I'd suspect that at first, any Pheasants harvested will just be from ancillary shooting form random flushes by beagles. Once guys know they are there, they may actually start to target them, which would probably spell the end.

[wentzler]

Habitat is ALWAYS KEY!! Always...not my rule. If there is habitat, and reasonable scientific management wildlife thrives. Pheasants require more 'territory' and more specific habitat within that territory than many understand. A present day lack of fencerows and large fallow fields, the economic use of short season grasses and forage, and 'clean' crop fields is NOT conducive to wild breeding, sustainable pheasant populations. Anyone been to the Dakotas??

[Dutch]

In the case of pheasants, Flerro is right. They will be hunted until gone. There may be remnant popualtions, but not enough to increase the numbers.

Habitat and protection will be the key. There wasn't enough habitat to begin with, so, even with total protection, they did not thrive.

Stock 600 wild birds here in Lancaster County, close the season, and in 2 years, you will have zero birds, IMO.

[Roosterslammer]

I agree with you Dutch concerning Lancaster County. There's five words you don't see very often "I agree with you Dutch." ;D

[Dutch]

See Lynn, that weren't so hard.

[Fldbred]

Stock those same 600 wild birds in Bradford County with all it's CREP and now idle farms and you just may have a population explosion. Many people don't realize that sections of Bradford County were once rated as Class A pheasant range, many of the conditions that gave it that rating once again exists.
We've been saying all along that there were still wild birds at Pike Run.

[Dutch]

Is the CREP in Bradford concentrated?

[Deleted]

The main contributing factor to PA's pheasant decline is farmers started getting an extra hay cutting out of their fields every year. That extra cutting happens to come at a time when hens are nesting and the results have been devastating.

[Roosterslammer]

Moose, you nailed it. Alfalfa is the reason for the decline in most cases. Pheasants love to nest in it and haybines don't jump over pheasant nests. That is why CREP is a critical part of the wild pheasants program just as CRP is in the west. Most of our radio collared hens are nesting in the WSG fields. I believe this is because it is the best cover available when birds pick their first nest. If they are forced to renest, many of them will pick the lush alfalfa fields and end up in a hay bale.

I was at one of our large switchgrass fields today and it was amazing. Pheasants were flying everywhere and crowing the whole time I was there. It put SD to shame. We just need more of that habitat to launch this program into orbit.

[Deleted]

Very positive report!!

[bawanajim]

It truly would be a great thing for hunting in PA if pheasants made a come back.