SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — Want to know where to hunt pheasants in South Dakota?
Based on forecast reports from Pheasants Forever and the South Dakota Game Fish and Parks Department, the numbers are looking good for most of the state.
“The 2024 upland bird hunting seasons are just around the corner and it’s shaping up to be one of the best in recent years,” the GFP said in a news release.
Pheasants Forever said in its forecast there is a bumper crop of birds this year.
That’s good news for hunters following a good year for the 2023 hunting season harvest at an estimated 1.2 million birds. The season ran from Oct. 21, 2023, through Jan. 31, 2024, last year.
The pheasant hunting season starts on Saturday this year and runs through Jan. 31, 2025.
Two Pheasants Forever Farm Bill biologists said the accuracy of the organization’s pheasant count is important.
“We are looked at pretty heavily for that information. It’s pretty important for us to do. You can’t say the birds look great…(if they aren’t). You lose your credibility,” said Sam Fryman, a Pheasants Forever Farm Bill biologist that works in the counties of Spink, Beadle and Clark. All three are prime pheasant hunting areas in the state.
Fryman and fellow biologist Cody Rolfes said they use their own observations as well as talk with local landowners and other sources to estimate the pheasant population in their regions. Rolfes works in the counties of Brown, McPherson and Marshall, another prime hunting area in South Dakota.
“For my own good, I need to keep knowledgeable on the condition of the birds and the numbers,” Rolfes said.
Why do the pheasant numbers look good in South Dakota?
The pheasant population is good for two major reasons: habitat and the weather. Pheasants need nesting ground that is often found in publicly-owned wetland or grassland areas or on private land enrolled in conservation programs such as the Conservation Reserve Program.
Rolfes said the Aberdeen area has a history of good pheasant habitat. “As far as habitat for the last couple of years, it’s been fairly consistent,” Rolfes said.
“We’ve had a couple of really good years of nesting seasons,” Fryman said. “We’ve had two years of back-to-back nesting success.”
The pheasants have found nesting areas to have and raise their young which means the population can thrive.
Part of southeastern South Dakota did experience floods in June. But “much of the primary
pheasant range was not impacted by flooding conditions,” the GFP said in its forecast.
Regional
Pheasants Forever breaks down its report by region.
Aberdeen: Field reports said it could be the best season in six to eight years.
Brookings: The expectation is that numbers could be as good as last year.
Chamberlain: The report is optimistic but it may require some walking as birds are spread through a lot of habitat.
Huron: Hunters should expect a good number of birds. The public hunting areas were looking good.
Miller: Solid pheasant hunting is predicted for the Miller area.
Mitchell: Numbers are similar to last year but there should be some thick cover.
Mobridge: Good-sized broods and some additional walk-in hunting areas are available to hunters this fall.
Pierre: Field reports said hunters should expect great hunting opportunities this fall.
Redfield: Reports said lots of broods include plenty of large broods. Limits should be attainable.
Watertown: The hatch was mixed but there are still plenty of birds.
Winner: Reports are optimistic about a great fall for hunters. Large broods have been reported.
Woonsocket: The numbers haven’t yet bounced back to those of the 1990s but the report said the two years have been the best for bird production in recent memory.
Southeastern corner: Areas that weren’t impacted by flooding are seeing broods
