2013 South Dakota Pheasant Hunting Season Outlook Forecast Report -Perfect Hatch Storm?

July 03, 2013 by Chris Hitzeman

A recent trip to the farm produces what?  More broods!!  I would say in the newly hatched 1 week or less range and brood sizes range from 8-10 chicks.  I flushed about 10 broods while out maintaining CRP acres.  I guesstimate that only 20% of nests have hatched.  So what is a "perfect hatch storm"?

A Perfect hatch storm in my opinion would look like this.......

* Warm and dry winter (we got it)

* No water in the sloughs (we had it)

* Not too cool or wet spring  (debatable but coming off record drought year may lessen the negative on this)

* Ample moisture for optimal nesting cover growth and insect production (we got it)

* Once hatched, chicks are in a warm dry weather pattern with 80 degree temps during day and 60 degrees at night (we got it)

* One unknown variable is that the peak hatch (which usually happens around June 15th or Fathers Day) appears to have been delayed about 2-3 weeks.  Maybe not an issue at all considering how optimal the weather is for the new broods.

* Insect production needs to be high.  Warmth and moisture are needed for a good bug environment (We got it).

Last fall all the road ditches were pretty much cut about July 1 due to the haying crisis from drought.  The grass in the ditches never grew back an inch until just this last spring.

Now the ditches are fully grown again and are lush.  As long as hay prices remain high, some ditch mowing will happen.  However, cow pastures are full of ample grass which may bring prices back to earth taking some pressure off the ditch mowing resulting in better hatches from roadside nesting hens.

The real measure of total pheasant numbers in the state always comes from the Game and Fish report on brood count surveys which comes out the last week of August.

Please post your comments, observations or questions in the blog below.

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