Stearns County Chapter of Pheasants Forever
DNR & LOCAL PHEASANTS FOREVER CHAPTER OFFERS HUNT OPPORTUNITY FOR YOUTH AND WOMEN
Youth and women can apply can apply for a chance to step into the field with an experienced guide this fall and create a flush of pheasant hunting memories. The Pheasants Forever’s 3rd Annual Special Mentored Youth Hunt and first ever Women’s Mentored Pheasant Hunt are co-sponsored by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and takes place on Oct. 23. Deadline to apply is Sept. 8.
“This great opportunity will teach inexperienced youth and women about hunting techniques, skills, safety and wildlife habitat,” said Mike Kurre, DNR mentoring program coordinator. “The adventure will also provide fond memories, new friends afield and a better appreciation of the outdoors.”
Guides from Pheasant Forever chapters throughout Minnesota will be paired with inexperienced hunters and in a youth’s case, their guardians. After scouting places to hunt and securing landowner permission when necessary, guides will take participants into the field.
To apply for the lottery, a youth must be 12-17 years old as of Oct. 23; possess a valid firearms safety certificate; and have a parent, guardian or adult authorized by a parent or guardian accompany them as a non-firearms carrying mentor to the pre-hunt orientation and the hunt. Women 18 and older do not need a parent or guardian. All applicants must specify in which county they’d like to hunt. If their 1st choice is not available, they should indicate if they are willing to travel to an alternate county.
Applications for the hunt lottery are due at 11:59 on September 8, and are available on the DNR Web site at www.mndnr.gov/discover or by contacting the DNR Information Center at 888-MINNDNR (646-6367) or local Pheasants Forever chapter members. The lottery will be conducted by Sept. 13 and only successful applicants will be notified via mail or email by Sept. 25.
The winner’s notice will contain specific information about hunting license requirements, equipment and contact information of the hunt coordinator. Youth and women winners must contact their hunt coordinator after receiving their notice.
Pheasants Forever is also looking for people who want to assist with the hunt, by providing access to private land on Oct. 23. If you or someone you know has pheasant producing property that could be used for making the event a memorable one day hunt, please contact Eran Sandquist at (763) 242 1273 or Scott Roemhildt at 507-327-9785 at Pheasants Forever.
Help new hunters experience the excitement of a rooster pheasant busting from under their feet as they pull the trigger on an incredible outdoors opportunity!
Stearns County's conservation efforts are spearheaded by Pheasants Forever’s Farm Bill Wildlife Biologist Jason Selvog and SWCD Technician Vince Manderfeld. They explain the benefits of the conservation programs, and provide the one-on-one technical assistance for program implementation. To reach this 20,000 acre milestone, this initiative involved more than 5,300 landowner contacts and approximately 13,000 hours working directly with landowners. Pheasants Forever's efforts are part of an overriding Minnesota Farmbill Initiative that includes the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR), the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR) and the Stearns County SWCD.
In 2004, the Stearns County SWCD further accelerated their promotion of CRP by partnering with several local groups to implement CRP within their respective areas of the county. With Pheasants Forever and USDA’s help, partnerships were created between the Sauk River Watershed District, North Fork Crow River Watershed District, Clearwater Watershed District, Stearns County Chapter of Pheasants Forever, Rice Lake Association and the Koronis Lake Association. Efforts were concentrated on several CRP practices that focus on water quality and wildlife habitat.
Jason Selvog, Pheasants Forever Farm Bill Wildlife Biologist, stated, “Ultimately, we have a common goal; we are trying to put more conservation on the ground to improve the quality of our environment with cleaner waters, protect vulnerable soils, and create more wildlife habitat in Stearns County.”
“We can attribute the success of this initiative to the partnerships that were created. This gave us the opportunity to reach more people and implement more conservation,” said Selvog.
Stearns County will now start working on the next 20,000 acre mark with help from the upcomming General CRP Sign-Up – the first since 2006 – Here's the latest CRP news from Pheasants Forever:
• PF Applauds USDA Action Aimed Toward Fulfilling 32 Million CRP Acres – USDA Action Creates $2 Billion for Farm Bill Programs.
• CRP General Sign-Up on Horizon – blog from Dave Nomsen, Pheasants Forever's Vice President of Government Affairs.
Get Your Ticket NOW!
Contact one of the SCPF Directors to get your ticket
Need NOT be present to win
Drawing will be held on September 26, 2010
Pheasant chicks have a tough go of it. They will be 2 to 10 weeks old in July and August and a good number will die. The first of July when chicks are 2 weeks old, 25% have died since hatching. When 7 weeks old in August, 33% are dead. At 10 weeks old, up to 48% are dead. The reasons for this annual die-off vary, but may be due to: 1) the poor breeding condition of some hens after a tough winter, 2) the early or lateness of nesting, 3) the number of renesting attempts made by the hen, 4) the susceptibility of chicks to cool spring temperatures, 5) summer heat, 6) chemical spraying for insects, or 7) all the above.
To the hen, a nest is successful even if only one egg hatches. Once she sees a chick, her brooding instinct takes over and thoughts of starting another nest vanish. Most eggs hatch from June 16 to 30, after 23 days of incubation. This peak hatch can vary one to two weeks depending on weather. Nebraska research found that February through June weather significantly affect peak hatch. Above normal temperatures caused early hatches, while above normal precipitation delayed hatching. Precipitation caused 66% of the variation in hatching peaks, while temp caused 34%. Because the hen does not start incubation until the nest is full, all the eggs will hatch within two hours of each other. Of her 12 eggs, 9 or 10 will be fertile. But all fertile eggs may not hatch. If the hen neglected to turn the eggs several times a day during incubation, or if air humidity levels were low (as during hot, dry springs), the embryo may stick to the inside of the egg shell. If stuck, the chick can not turn a complete circle to pip away the top of the shell. It will die trying to hatch.
If by chance you're not familiar with the Stearns County Chapter of Pheasants Forever, be sure read up about us on the Chapter History page. If you're not familiar with the Pheasants Forever organization, be sure to check out the organization's national website at www.pheasantsforever.org or the Minnesota Pheasants Forever website at www.minnesota.pheasantsforever.org. Pheasants Forever (PF), and its quail branch, Quail Forever (QF) are national conservation organizations "dedicated to the conservation of pheasants, quail, and other wildlife through habitat improvements, public awareness, education, and land management policies and programs." Note how there is no reference to hunting our mission statement. PF/QF is not centered around hunting as many may believe. Nor is it focused solely on pheasant or quail conservation. PF/QF is an all-around conservation organization dedicated to the conservation of all wildlife and their habitats.
How do we operate? PF/QF is unique in that it allows local chapters such as ours to keep 100% of the money we raise and spend it locally on conservation efforts right here in our own community. Thus, every dime we raise at our banquet and from every fundraiser we have throughout the year is spent right here in Central Minnesota on valuable habitat and conservation education efforts. No other national conservation organization operates under such a truly grassroots structure. That local control of money we raise right here in Stearns County has allowed us to do some pretty amazing things.
Our goal for this website is to bring you the best, most up to date news on upcoming events and conservation projects as well as educate our site visitors on the conservation needs of Stearns County and surrounding area. Be sure to check back regularly for updates.
If you have any questions, comments, or ideas for our website, let us know.
Read
Recent Press Releases
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August 05, 2010: Oskaloosa Native Named PF's Newest Farm Bill Biologist in Iowa
August 04, 2010: Schweitzer Crosses Border to Lead Pheasants Forever in Western Kansas