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Post by yihunt on Jan 13, 2009 17:07:46 GMT -4
Western Pennsylvania getting thousands of pheasants from Montana Buzz up!By The Associated Press Sunday, January 11, 2009 Home Delivery
A group is trying to bring thousands of wild pheasants from Montana to western Pennsylvania, both to expand game bird hunting and benefit the environment.
Members of Pheasants Forever, a national group, are spearheading efforts to bring wild pheasants to sites across more than 14,000 acres. The plan calls for 1,000 birds to be transplanted to Washington and Montour counties and Brothersvalley and Stonycreek townships over the course of three years.
Group members hope the wild pheasants from Montana will survive, reproduce and start lasting flocks in the state.
To aid in the survival of the wild birds, the group is planting warm-season grasses, making food plots and clearing brush.
More than $200,000 will be needed to see the project through. Group member Greg Urban says grants and donations have paid for much of the work.
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Post by zodiakgsps on Jan 13, 2009 17:10:16 GMT -4
I certainly hope this works!!! I truly believe that with proper planting some wild phez populations can be brought back to PA. They already have been testing this & from what I understand, it has been succesful. Have to look for the link to where they did this though, don't remember offhand.
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Post by mrlongbeard on Jan 13, 2009 17:49:38 GMT -4
hey the foxes and coyote have to have something to eat to. without the cover they will be sitting ducks
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Post by zodiakgsps on Jan 13, 2009 18:05:05 GMT -4
More importantly, they need good cover to get through the winter. Most of the cover planted now gets knocked down completely in heavy snows, good phez cover needs to protect the birds through this and allow them access to food in addition to hiding from predators.
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Post by zodiakgsps on Jan 13, 2009 18:22:02 GMT -4
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Post by tbass on Jan 13, 2009 19:15:55 GMT -4
Wasn't there something posted on here about deer hunting and a lack of public land in that area? Besides that, why would it make that great of a difference? The SW section gets 25% of the 100,000 birds each year. How many do you need to have to get a few chicks each year? Its nothing more than "put and take" just like trout fishing is in most streams that are still stocked. I certainly hope they stock them in late February, or March so they can at least have a chance to propagate. Allocations: www.pgc.state.pa.us/pgc/cwp/view.asp?a=518&q=168752
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Post by Buckslayer on Jan 13, 2009 19:18:38 GMT -4
hey the foxes and coyote have to have something to eat to. without the cover they will be sitting ducks id have to agree with longb eard on this..
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Post by zodiakgsps on Jan 13, 2009 19:35:12 GMT -4
That's why the planting of appropriate cover is important....w/o it the phez have no chance of surviving and propagating. We had a good population at one time and not to long ago. It's possible, I believe to get one again, maybe not across the whole state, but in many parts. tbass....how much SGLS do you have as opposed to state forest?? Phez need mainly field type cover, they don't live in forests, in my area, there is a good amount of field as opposed to wooded gamelands which could have soemthing to do with how many & where they are stocked. I really cannot give a good answer for that, not sure??
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Post by tbass on Jan 13, 2009 19:44:18 GMT -4
We have 1000's of acres of public land that is mixed fields and agriculture. The area along 220 between Tyrone and Sayers Damn is brush, fields, and river bank. We have great pheasant habitat there. Nonetheless; I did not once mention my area. SC Pennsylvania was prime for pheasants in the 80's and 90's, especially around Lancaster, so why are they excluded? My point is that it is put and take. They stock them in certain game lands where everyone and their bother runs and slaughters them. We fisherman have had this same argument with trout for decades.
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Post by mrlongbeard on Jan 13, 2009 19:56:44 GMT -4
when you talk about good habitat for ringnecks you should have fence rows between all the fields.
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Post by zodiakgsps on Jan 13, 2009 20:22:54 GMT -4
It's put and take here also right now, we have no native birds, some do make it past the season & I have seen hens with broods before, but that is few and far between. They get slaughtered here also, guys used to follow the trucks and do continental shoots when they stocked, thats why they passed the law you cannot shoot birds as they stocked........
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Post by skwirl on Jan 13, 2009 21:17:26 GMT -4
Pheasants Forever is doing habitat improvement prior to the placing of the wild birds.They aren't about to throw thousands of $$$$$$$$$$$$$ for something that had no chance of success.
The advantage to using wild birds is they are used to predation and the harsh winters believe me when I tell you this is not a put and take deal
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Post by tbass on Jan 13, 2009 21:27:46 GMT -4
If it works then great. My point is the state is already putting 25,000 birds there who are not propagating. That says something about the survival rate. I agree wild birds would be better suited to make it. I stand by my "put and take" comment though. Unless they give them a chance to learn the area and breed the survival rate won't be great enough to make a difference. Any time in history that we have restored a species to the wild, it needed some protection. Be it wolves in Yellowstone, red wolves in the Carolina's or the elk in Pennsylvania. The difference is that with pheasants there wont be a period of no hunting. Don't get me wrong, I want to see wild pheasants in PA.
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Post by Buckslayer on Jan 13, 2009 21:30:30 GMT -4
it will take years i reckon but it would be so nice to hunt pheasants in the wild someday.. we need to hunt something other than deer because thats not looking to good in pa..maybe the pgc should introiduce the wild boar to pa??
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Post by netboy on Feb 18, 2009 23:40:37 GMT -4
There is a pheasant plan and the area is being closed to pheasant hunting.
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