Westward to the Birds
Phil Taunton
Friday, November 3, 2006
Today, this evening and on into the night, anyone traveling the highways of Kansas will notice an orange army of hunters traveling to central and western Kansas for the opening of pheasant season.
Excitement is in the air. Hunting dogs are on their toes and ready to go! Wily pheasants beware!
For this native Kansan, there is nothing like the opening day of pheasant season. Vacations and days off are scheduled just for this occasion.
Permission to hunt lands should be secured by now, new boots broken in and waterproofed, shotguns patterned and enough food and beverages packed to last the hunters for days.
Part of the excitement of the hunt is the planning and preparation. For me, making the trip and seeing and being with family and friends is paramount to any harvest of game birds I might be fortunate to get. This is all part of the heritage and tradition of hunting.
The traditional upland game bird season opener in Kansas has changed, with each of the state’s three species having its own season opener.
For the last 25 years, the upland game bird season always opened the second weekend in November.
Some landowners out West aren’t too happy about this break in tradition.
Crops might not be out of the fields this early in November and other feel changing the date of the traditional opener is a ploy by Kansas Wildlife and Parks to increase tourism and bring more non-resident hunters into the state.
We will just need to see how it goes.
And remember, Kansas Wildlife and Parks has enlisted over one million acres in the Walk-In Hunting Access Program (WHIA), and more than 50 percent of these lands are in CRP, a prime habitat for pheasants.
Upland game bird seasons for 2006-2007 include the following:
- Pheasant season opens Nov. 4 (the first Saturday in November) and runs through Jan. 31, 2007.
- Quail season opens state-wide Nov. 11 (the second Saturday in November; units have been eliminated) and runs through Jan. 21, 2007 (the third Sunday in January).
- Prairie chicken season opens Nov. 18 (the third Saturday in November) and runs through Jan. 31, 2007, in the Northwest and East units.
Locally and in most of eastern Kansas there is no real population of wild pheasants to hunt.
Why?
No one really knows. I’ve heard a lot of reasons. One being that eastern Kansas has too many chiggers. That never made much sense to me.
We do see a population of prairie chicken and quail, though not in as great of numbers as in years past.
I also heard there is too much clay in our soil. After rains, the damp clay would stick to the brood’s feet and cause fatal fatigue to the chicks in their pursuit of food. No one ever mentioned wild turkeys feasting on the young! I am sure glad of that.
Wanting to find a more scientific reason, I contacted Roger Wells, the National Habitat Director of Quail Unlimited and a former small game biologist for Kansas Wildlife and Parks.
Wells said he doubts if anyone has the complete answer. And this mystery applies to a lot of other animals as well.
Why do some critters survive in one area and are not found at all in other seemingly similar habitats?
Concerning pheasants, some studies have shown a combination of high summer temperatures and high humidity are partially responsible for poor nesting success and brood rearing in the Southeast United States, and this includes eastern Kansas.
Wells also said another study showed a combination of barium and calcium in the soil reacted physiologically in pheasants which, according to another biologist, caused eggs to be weak, resulting in smaller clutches and brood sizes.
Only Mother Nature knows for sure.
As for recipes for after your hunt, make sure you carefully inspect and remove all bone fragments, shot, fur or feathers from any wild game you prepare if you want the dish to be a success.
To make pheasant fingers, filet the breast meat off bone, cut it in strips, batter and pan or deep-fat fry. It is very simple to make and one of my favorites. Salt and pepper to taste.
To make pheasant and noodles, boil or crock pot the bird until the meat is easily separated from the bone. Prepare your favorite noodles, add onion, chicken broth and butter with enough water for the noodles to cook. Stir in pheasant and serve. Season to taste.
Good luck with your outdoor adventures this weekend — field or stream.
Once again, word of your outdoor stories, hunts and adventures, or any comments concerning a previous column would be appreciated. Contact me at ptaunton@cableone.net or call 342-5016.