Back in the hunt
Phil Taunton
Friday, October 27, 2006
Can you remember the excitement of your first upland game bird hunt?
The pointing dogs were locked up tight and their eyes were about to pop out of their heads with anticipation of the flush?
Do you remember how the quail startled you when they exploded into the air from under foot that frosty morn, or the wing beat of the cackling rooster pheasant as it turned you upside down in its haste to escape?
I do, and that was more than 50 years ago. I carry that excitement with me each time I go into the field.
Hopefully this weekend’s Youth Upland Game Bird Season will be a great experience for a new generation of hunters to enjoy the camaraderie of family and friends in pursuit of their quarry.
On Saturday and Sunday, youth 16 years old and younger can hunt pheasant and quail as long as they are under the direct supervision of an adult 18 years of age or older. The adult may not hunt, and daily bag limits are half that of regular season limits. This means two rooster pheasants can be harvested and four quail.
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Kansas Wildlife and Parks reports the 2006 Kansas upland bird hunting outlook appears promising. Good numbers of birds and more than 1.6 million acres open to public hunting make Kansas a premier destination for hunters pursuing pheasants and quail.
Experienced hunters should be aware that there will be some changes to the upland game bird seasons this fall. Most notably, the regular pheasant season will open one week earlier, on Nov. 4, and run through the end of January.
Tradition had the upland game bird season starting the second weekend in November.
Also, the quail units have been eliminated and a statewide quail season will run from Nov. 11 through Jan. 21. The daily bag limit for pheasants will be four (roosters only), and the daily bag limit for quail will be eight.
Possession limits will be four times the daily bag.
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To the readers:
I am going to depend on you, the reader, to help me write this column. I would like to hear your stories and share your outdoor adventures as well as my own.
Stories like the 28-pound flathead catfish Fred Agin caught last spring while trolling for crappie. What a surprise!
Fred was also surprised when he found out the Tiger Fire colored lure he caught the fish on was in his wife’s tackle box the next trip out!
Another interesting story I can’t wait to write about is the five-bearded turkey Gib Rhodes harvested last fall, which scored a whopping 103.5 points on his application for a trophy turkey award.
I would like to have readers send in questions concerning wildlife appreciation, hunting, fishing, wildlife conservation, bird feeding, gun control, firearm safety programs, hunter education or any other pertinent topic.
Once again, I want this to be your column and be a gateway to the wonders of the Great Outdoors.
Interested readers can e-mail me at ptaunton@cableone.net or call me at 342-5016. Feel free to leave a message.
I like talking to the public about outdoor issues and lending an ear to their concerns.