Stocking Pheasants in 2009

By Jerry Deal - Idaho Department of Fish and Game The Idaho Department of Fish and Game will continue stocking pen-reared pheasants on Southwest Region Wildlife Management Areas for the 2009 fall season. Fort Boise, Payette River, Montour and CJ Strike wildlife management areas will be stocked throughout the season, which runs from October 17 through December 31. Because upland game rules are set on a two-year cycle, hunters can expect no significant rule changes from last year. But there will be a few more birds available. Last year 7,635 pheasants were distributed on four regional management areas and this year 9,673 birds will be available. That includes 300 birds that will be released before the youth hunt season, which begins on Saturday, October 3, at noon and ends on October 9. Some rules are different on areas where pen-reared pheasants are released. A WMA pheasant permit, which covers a portion of the stocking program cost, is required. The $23.75 permit allows the harvest of up to six pheasants. The daily bag limit is two birds, with four in possession after the first day of the season. Upland game hunters also must wear at least 36 square inches of visible hunter orange above the waist during pheasant season - an hunter-orange ball-cap meets this requirement. Complete hunting rules for pheasant and other upland species are available in a printed booklet or on line at http://fishandgame.idaho.gov/cms/hunt/rules/ug. The exact release times and dates are not 1 to give everyone a fair chance of harvesting a pheasant. On busy management areas, such as Fort Boise and Montour wildlife management areas, most birds are harvested within a day or two of being released. On C.J. Strike Wildlife Management Area, some stocked birds usually survive a little longer, but hunters will have to work the heavy cover to find them. Jerry Deal is the habitat manager in the Southwest Region.