# Tough winter?



## ChukarBob (Sep 4, 2006)

How are the pheasants holding up under what has seemed like a pretty tough winter so far? Are you seeing a lot winter-killed birds? I monitor the weather conditions in NW North Dakota from my perch in damp and congested Seattle and say a little prayer for the birds each day.


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## Dick Monson (Aug 12, 2002)

CB, around my farm in EC ND we've lost about half the pheasants and we didn't have many to start with. Western ND is holding up pretty good according to reports. The population here is just hanging on after the poor hatch last spring. Huns are taking a beating too. The sharptails looks fine. It's going to depend on spring storms and weather during the hatch.


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## Katdog (Dec 30, 2009)

I've been watching from over here in Michigan too. Looks like ND had a little warm up in early January. Then hammered with snow and cold. Then a warm up a couple weeks ago but not enough to melt all the snow. Now more snow and cold again. Is this winter harder than last year in the south central part of the state?

Pray things ease up soon. A buddy and I and our dogs are counting the days till we get to chase birds in your fine state again! Messed up last year and went to Kansas instead, that's the last time I do that!


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## Bagman (Oct 17, 2002)

It has not been a tough winter here in SEND...its been BRUTAL. Every inch of ground is covered with hard, crusty snow. Build your ark now...the flood will be epic.


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## duckp (Mar 13, 2008)

Disaster for wildlife in NE SoDak.50 to 90% losses.Will be plenty of water for waterfowl.


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## Bustem36 (Feb 5, 2008)

Was Yote hunting in ND a week ago...shot 3 saw 18 and a fox....but hunted from Hankinson through to Steele area and north for 3 days and SE ND pheasants seemed to be better off than there friends farther NW...They were spread out a bit more in fields and had cattail sloughs to use...up in the Woodworth...Carrington area and just south of Jamestown only birds were in feed lots with cattle and no cover at all from sloughs...had to of lost lots of birds. Saw a few dead deer frozen on lakes too


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## indsport (Aug 29, 2003)

Definitely tough here. The extra snow hasn't helped. The weather combined with the loss of CRP will probably result in a dramatic decline in pheasants in SE North Dakota. Unless winter breaks soon, it looks grim for the year. We would normally see the first ducks start arriving within the next three weeks, but without a sudden warm up, that doesn't appear likely.


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## Rick Acker (Sep 26, 2002)

Was in Bismarck over the weekend for the Taxidermy competition and my son and I went out after the blizzard Saturday to shoot pheasants with the camera...Something we do every year...Not much happening North of Bismarck, saw very few birds, and probably only one or two hens...In years past we would film close to a hundred or so. Not good news.


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## stuckontheborder (Sep 28, 2010)

It has been a hard winter for Wildlife in NW North Dakota. We still have alot of deep snow. I have about 40-50 Pheasants still feeding out of my grain pile where at this time of year they normally would have left to feed out in the fields.


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## slough (Oct 12, 2003)

I would imagine these two March storms have been a low blow to pheasants in the Bismarck region. Winter has been long...


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## njsimonson (Sep 24, 2002)

How about another 8" of snow to help crush everything. Winter has sucked it, "spring" (if you can call it that) hasn't been much better. If things can straighten out by May 1 and dry off and warm up, that'd be a help. SW MN is still sporting birds and they're starting to crow, but we need a dry spring because numbers were low last year. Best of luck to those "Back Home" in the VC area, for the flood and the hunting.


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## darylrench (Nov 7, 2007)

CB - once again, you need to listen to your wise brother - the birds are in SD!


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