Rog's Rod & Nimrod

I had never given much thought to hunting pen-raised pheasants until I saw the article “Wild VS. Preserve Birds” by John B. Snow in the fall 2018 edition of Outdoor Life magazine.

The role played in South Dakota by “preserve” or pen-raised birds smacked me right in the face when I worked at the Mitchell Cabela’s in the fall of 2003. I had the opportunity to talk with hundreds of out-of-state hunters, and I was amazed that almost all of them who were preserve hunting believed that they were hunting wild birds.

Do some preserves lead their hunters to believe that they are hunting wild birds? While conceding that their wild bird population is supplemented with pen-raised birds, is enough being said just because the hunters may flush an occasional wild bird?

South Dakota offers the finest pheasant hunting lodges in the world with five-star accommodations and amenities beyond my wildest imagination. I don’t believe that these businesses would compromise their reputations by stretching the truth. I also believe that there are differences in the quality of pen-raised birds, and that the five-star lodges go with the best they can get.

Quoting John B. Snow, “Some wingshooters are wild-bird snobs,…..but I’ll never look down my nose at a well-run outfit with planted birds…..they provide bird-shooting opportunities to thousands of sportsmen who otherwise cannot access wild birds.”

Snow goes on to say that wild birds fly harder and flush faster, and most of the time they don’t hold as tight as preserve birds. I don’t know much about that as my preserve hunting is limited. I have hunted on friends’ places where some birds were released prior to the opener, but I never felt I could tell by flight behavior whether the bird was pen-raised or not. I have seen preserve birds no more wary than domestic chickens wander about aimlessly or sit on a tree branch and look at me. This is borderline disgusting.

Snow claims that on some hunting operations the line between wild and stocked birds isn’t very clear as the premium lodges put out large quantities of birds early in the season, and by the time he hunts them later in the season, they fly and act much like wild birds. I don’t doubt this observation.

While I have in the past questioned the genetics of pen-raised birds and their effect on the genetics of wild birds, the positive economic impact of pheasant preserves on our state’s economy is significant. With regard to pheasant preserves, the assets out-weigh the liabilities in my opinion. Preserves are also required to release a rooster pheasant for every pheasant taken on their operation.

I quoted Outdoor Life magazine. Outdoor Life has gone from monthly magazines to quarterly magazines. It makes me wonder where printed publications are headed. This brings to mind The Mitchell Daily Republic where Monday’s newspaper is on-line only. I’m not knocking it. I’m only acknowledging that times are changing, and I wonder if a day will come when my column is electronic only.

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Over the past few months I have expressed my dislike for the SD Game, Fish, & Parks proposal to change the deer hunting license application format. This whole thing is under the guise of putting more hunters in the field. Are more tags going to be issued? I think not as this varies from year to year as it should. By SDGF&P’s own admission, all tags are sold. I have neither talked to a single person in favor of the new proposal nor have I heard from anyone in favor. It is my understanding that the commission received an 8000 sportsmen electronic petition in favor of leaving the process in its present form. It is also my understanding that 80% of the people oppose the change.

In spite of the people’s opposition to change, our commissioners voted unanimously in favor. We haven’t heard the last of this as our lawmakers will now become involved. Revision, namely a vote by our 2018 deer hunters, is in order. I’ve always favored having a knowledgeable commission, and not lawmakers, oversee our wildlife and parks. Now I understand why lawmakers must sometimes become involved.

The governor appoints SDGF&P commissioners. I don’t like seeing politics in the mix, and the recent decision reeks of politics at its worst. Let Mrs. Noem and Mr. Sutton know that a new slate of commissioners might be in order. Our commissioners are good people, but right now it seems they’re in someone’s back pocket.

See you next week.