Upland Bird Regional Forecast

STATEWIDE SUMMARY

PHEASANT – Due to good production last summer and a relatively mild winter, the number of pheasants going into the 2009 nesting season was slightly higher than in 2008. A cool, wet spring slowed development of the wheat crop, resulting in a later-than-usual harvest. Because many of Kansas’ pheasants nest in green wheat, the timing of wheat harvest plays a big role in the number of young produced each year. The delayed wheat harvest gave hens a longer time period to hatch their nests and rear young. The timing and quantity of early summer precipitation also plays a big role in game bird productivity. Success of nests and survival of young is generally best when rain comes slowly and in near average amounts during May and June. Most of the areas in Kansas’ primary pheasant range met that prescription. A few areas did receive heavy rainfall during the nesting and early brood rearing period. As a result of the wet weather, production was likely below average in portions of Barton, Rice, McPherson, Marion, Reno, Stafford, Republic, Washington, and Cloud counties. Because habitat and weather conditions were favorable in much of Kansas’ pheasant range, the number of pheasants available to hunters should be better than last year in most regions. Compared to 2008, pheasant numbers will be much improved in northwest Kansas, slightly improved in southwest, northcentral, and northeast Kansas, and down in most of southcentral Kansas. The best pheasant populations will be found throughout the western two-thirds of Region 1 and northern portions of Region 3 where the pheasant hunting is expected to be outstanding.

QUAIL – Going into the breeding season, quail numbers were up nearly 30 percent from last spring across the state. The increases were the result of a mild winter with little ice and snow cover. Vegetative conditions and summer weather were good for nesting and brood rearing in most locations. A few localized events negatively impacted the number of quail that will be available this fall, but the majority of the state will have much improved quail populations from last year. The best quail hunting will be found throughout the central part of the state from the red hills northward all the way to the Nebraska line and eastward to the edge of the Flint Hills. Field data and landowner reports from central and northcentral Kansas indicate that populations are higher than they have been in many years in those regions. Compared to last fall, quail numbers will be up substantially in northcentral and northeast Kansas and slightly improved from last year across the remainder of the state.

PRAIRIE CHICKEN – Kansas is home to both greater and lesser prairie chickens. Both species require large blocks of native rangeland. Lesser prairie chickens are found in the prairies of west-central and southwestern Kansas. Greater prairie chickens are found primarily in the tallgrass and mixed grass prairies that occur in the eastern one-third and northern half of the state. The spring prairie chicken lek survey indicated that the lesser prairie chicken breeding population was down from the previous year. This decline was most likely due to poor production in 2008 as a result of the drought that affected much of southwestern Kansas. Nesting conditions for lesser prairie chickens were improved this summer throughout their range due to timely rainfall that occurred in southwest Kansas. It is likely that populations will be up from last year and the best hunting will be in the central and northern portions of their range. Greater prairie chicken breeding populations were down this spring in the southern Flint Hills and up farther north and west throughout the Smoky Hills. In the Flint Hills, almost all pastures were burned again this spring, and there was little vegetative cover available during the nesting season. A few small areas within the central Flint Hills were also hit with heavy June rainfall that likely hurt local production. Conditions were good for production throughout most of the northern Flint Hills and the Smoky Hills. The best greater prairie chicken hunting should be found in the northern Flint Hills westward throughout the Smoky Hills region.

REGIONAL SUMMARIES

Region 1 - Northwest and Northcentral Kansas

Last winter was relatively mild across Region 1, and carryover of upland birds was good. Productivity across the region was generally good as a result of timely rainfall and a late wheat harvest. There were two localized weather events within the region that negatively affected populations. There was one severe hail storm in late July that hit the extreme northwestern counties in the region. The baseball and softball sized hail that fell during that storm likely resulted in some severe losses in those localized areas. The far northeastern counties in the region experienced heavy rainfall during early June near the peak of the pheasant hatch. In addition to more than 90,000 acres of state and federal land, more 473,000 acres of WIHA will be available to Region 1 hunters this fall.

Pheasant – The 2009 breeding population was up more than 10 percent from 2008 across Region 1 and at the highest level that has been recorded since spring crowing counts were initiated in 1997. Good habitat conditions and a late wheat harvest meant good production in the region. The exception was in the far northeastern counties within the region where heavy rainfall occurred near the peak of hatching. Pheasant populations in these areas will be lower than the remainder of the region. Some localized populations in the far northwestern portions of the region may be down too as a result of a hail storm that occurred in late July. Pheasant numbers in the eastern one-third of the region will be similar to last year or slightly down. Bird numbers will be up again in most of the central and western counties within the region and the hunting in that area is expected to be the best it has been since the early 1980s.

Quail – The breeding population in Region 1 was up substantially from last year due to good production in 2008 and a mild winter. Vegetative conditions were generally good for nesting and weather was favorable during late June and July when most young quail are produced. As a result, quail numbers across the eastern two-thirds of the region should be much improved over last year and offer some excellent hunting opportunities this fall. Populations in the far western and northwestern reaches of Region 1 are improved, but quail are typically pretty sparse in the far west. This portion of the state is at the fringe of the quail’s range and populations are still recovering from the deep snow that blanketed the area during January and February of 2007.

Prairie Chicken – Prairie chicken populations have expanded in both numbers and range within the region over the past 20 years. The better hunting opportunities will be found in the eastern and central portions of the region in the area known as the Smoky Hills. Spring lek counts in that region were generally up from last spring and nesting conditions were generally good, so there should be some improvement in chicken numbers in that area.

Region 2 - Northeast Kansas

The weather in Region 2 over the last year was favorable for overwinter survival and production of game birds. Breeding populations were improved from last year and production was generally good. In Region 2, there are approximately 180,000 acres of public land and more than 101,000 acres enrolled in the WIHA program.

Pheasant – Pheasants came through the winter in pretty good shape across Region 2 due to the relatively mild winter. Heavy rainfall that fell in the far northwestern portion of the region this summer negatively impacted production in that area. Elsewhere throughout the region, the conditions for nesting and brood rearing were good. Although numbers will be somewhat improved across most of the region, the hunting will still probably be only fair because the pheasant population has been down for several years.

Quail – Breeding populations were up from the previous year across the region, likely due to good overwinter survival. Habitat conditions and weather were also very good during mid-summer when most quail are produced. As a result, production across Region 2 was very good in 2009 and will result in substantial increases in bobwhite numbers this fall. Field data and local observations indicate that quail numbers are up across the entire region. The better populations will likely be in the western and northern portions of the region where more quail habitat exists. In these portions of the region, there should be some very good hunting opportunities this fall.

Prairie Chicken – Greater prairie chickens occur only in the central and western counties of Region 2. Spring counts indicated that the number of birds heading into the nesting season was similar to last year. The heavy June rain that hurt pheasant production in the northwestern portion of the region probably had a similar effect on chickens. It is likely that chicken numbers across the central and southwestern portions of the region will be up this fall. Chicken numbers in the far northwestern corner of the region will likely be down due to the heavy June rain that fell on the area.

Region 3 - Southwest Kansas

Upland game populations in Region 3 were down substantially last fall in the southwestern portion of the region as a result of the severe drought. Fortunately, a relatively mild winter in that area lead to good overwinter survival and timely rains helped to improve habitat conditions for nesting and brood rearing. The same conditions occurred in the northern and northeastern portion of the region where populations were already strong. A late spring snow fall in excess of 20” hit the southeastern portion of the region. The snow cover did not last for an extended period of time but it may have lead to some localized losses. Heavy rainfall that came during mid June negatively impacted game bird production in a few localized areas in the far northeastern portion of the region. In Region 3 there are approximately 149,500 acres of public land and >416,000 acres of WIHA enrolled for the upcoming seasons.

Pheasant – Spring crowing counts were similar to last year across most of the region but down somewhat in the eastern most counties affected by last spring’s snow fall. Production varied considerably across the region from good in far southwest Kansas to very good in the central and northern portions of the region to average or below in the easternmost counties. Pheasant numbers will be very strong in the central and northern portions of the region offering some of the better hunting in the state. The counties in the far northeastern corner of the region will still offer good hunting too because there was good carry-over of adults from last year. Populations in the far southwestern portion of the region will be improved but the hunting will generally be only fair with better populations occurring in a few localized areas. Pheasant numbers in the southeastern portion of the region will be down somewhat from last year but those counties don’t compare with the rest of the region even during good years.

Quail – Quail made it through last winter in good shape across most of Region 3. The exception was in the far southeastern portion of the region where an early spring storm dropped more than 20” of snow. Production was good across the region due to good vegetative conditions and timely rains. Quail hunting will be improved in far southwestern Kansas this fall but populations will still be fairly low due to the severe drought that affected the area during the summer of 2008. Quail populations will be very strong in the southcentral, central, and northeastern portions of the region offering some of the best hunting in the state. The number of birds available to hunter in the southeastern counties will be down from last year due to the deep snow that blanketed the area last spring.

Prairie Chickens – Most of the prairie chickens in Region 3 are lesser prairie-chickens with a few greater prairie-chickens in the northcentral and northeastern counties. Counts this spring were down from last year except in the northern portion of the region. Conditions were good for productivity this summer within chicken range in Region 3. Expect prairie chicken numbers to be similar to last year in the southwest portion of Region 3 and improved in the northern counties.

Region 4 - Southcentral Kansas

The winter in Region 4 was relatively mild which lead to good overwinter survival of game birds in the region. There were some heavy thunderstorms that occurred between mid June and mid July in the northcentral and northeastern portions of the region. Several of these storms dropped 2 to 4 inches of rain and negatively impacted production in those areas. In Region 4, there are approximately 38,000 acres of public hunting land along with more than 32,000 acres of WIHA open to public hunting.

Pheasant – The breeding population was generally similar to last year across the region. Vegetative conditions were good for nesting throughout the region but mid-summer rainfall hurt production in the northern and northeastern counties. Pheasant numbers in the southwestern portion of the region will be up somewhat, offering some fair hunting opportunities. There will be fewer pheasants in the northwestern and northern portions of the region, and hunting is expected to be poor in those areas this fall. Pheasants are sparse in the eastern reaches of the region even in good years.

Quail – The spring breeding population across Region 4 was similar to last year or slightly improved. Production was very good across the region with the exception of the northcentral and northeastern counties where heavy rainfall fell during the peak of quail hatching. Expect quail hunting to be improved throughout the region except for those areas affected by the heavy mid-summer rains where populations will be down. The best hunting in the region will be in the western and southwestern portions of Region 4 where good quail hunting opportunities will exist this fall.

Prairie Chicken –Greater prairie chickens occur in the northern and easternmost portions of Region 4. Spring counts were generally down in the southeastern portion of Region 4 and similar or improved from last year in the more northern areas. Most of the chicken habitat in the region is burned annually in early spring. These annually burned pastures provide little cover for nesting even when weather is suitable. However, annual burning is much less prevalent in the northern and northeastern portion of the region. Weather conditions in that portion of the region were only fair for production due to some heavy rainfall that occurred during mid- to late June. These rains fell 2-3 weeks after the peak hatching period but probably still had a negative impact on survival of young prairie chickens. Expect the best chicken hunting in Region 4 to be in the northcentral and northeastern counties, and bird numbers in that area will probably be similar to last year.

Region 5 - Southeast Kansas

The southeast region of the state experienced a relatively mild winter last year allowing game birds to survive well through the winter months. Unfortunately, there were few game birds across the region last fall due to terrible production in recent years. During the summers of 2007 and 2008, much of Region 5 was affected by heavy rain and flooding. Those wet conditions coincided with the time when most quail nests were hatching and prairie chickens were rearing their young. Two consecutive years of poor production pushed game bird populations to record lows last fall in Region 5. Favorable nesting conditions did exist this summer across the region and production was good resulting in improved game bird populations. However, populations were very low going into the breeding season, so the hunting outlook is still not good for game birds in the region. In Region 5, there are approximately 82,000 acres of public hunting land along with more than 39,000 acres of WIHA open to public hunting.

Pheasant – The vast majority of Region 5 is outside of the pheasant range. There are a few areas in the western and northwestern counties were pheasants persist at very low densities.

Quail – The winter was mild across Region 5 with very little ice and snow resulting in an increase of more than 40 percent to the spring breeding population. Vegetative conditions were very good for nesting due to the above average rainfall that occurred across most of the region during the previous year. For the first time in three years, the region did not experience heavy rain and flooding during the nesting season, which lead to improved production. While production was improved, the hunting will still not be good because quail populations were near record lows heading into the breeding season. Expect hunting to be better than last fall, but quail numbers will still be fairly low across the region.

Prairie Chickens – Greater prairie chickens are most abundant in the western and northwestern parts of Region 5. Spring counts were down across most of the region likely due to poor production in 2008. The exception was in the far northwestern counties that missed most of the heavy rains in June 2008. Weather across the region was good for productivity this summer but most of the pastures in the region were burned again last spring leaving little suitable cover for nesting. Prairie chicken populations in Region 5 will likely be down from last fall across most of the region. The exception would be in the far northwestern portion of the region where habitat and weather conditions were more favorable. Expect populations to be up somewhat in that area and offer some fair hunting opportunities.