ShopArchive for the ‘Conservation’ Category
The Fort Riley Ramble-My season’s last hunt in Kansas
Thursday, February 2nd, 2012
Hunting Fort Riley in Kansas from left were Conner Greening, Nicholas Dombrowski, SGM Mark Dombrowski (active duty, Nicholas’s father), Tom Greening (PF member and Tom’s father), Alan Hynek, (PF member; Fort Riley Conservation Branch Chief ) and Shawn Carlson, (PF member).
Three gun dogs struck point, hard, not 10 feet before me. I pulled up my 20 ga. just before a bobwhite broke right. My first shot was behind, but the second put him down.
It was an exciting moment at the Fort Riley Army Base with the Fort Riley Pheasants Forever chapter in south central Kansas. I was also hunting last Friday with members of
Alas, the author with the last bird of the 2011-12 hunting season. Farewell, it was a good one. Let's hope 2012-13 is as good.
the Flint Hills Quail Forever chapter. Both chapters work hard to improve habitat for quail at the 100,656-acre Fort Riley Army Base, most of which is open to public hunting for a small fee.
For you history buffs, the fort was founded in 1853 and was named after Major General Bennett C. Riley, who ran interference against understandably upset Native Americans on the besieged Santa Fe Trail. The base, home to about 25,000 people on any given day, was also once home to the late General George Armstrong Custer.
Not only was the quail hunting exciting at times, but the live fire too. Yes, at one point we were directly beneath the flight path of 105mm artillery shells flying overhead. We also heard 50 cal. machine gunfire off in the distance. Of course, we were hunting far from any firing or impact zones. It was fascinating, though. I always wondered what real artillery fire sounded like. My thanks to our armed forces at Fort Riley and elsewhere, especially overseas, for their service!
As we hunted the expansive prairie and wood lots, civilian Alan Hynek, Fort Riley PF chapter leader and base conservation branch chief, explained the many things the chapter is doing to improve habitat for quail, but also for pheasants, prairie chickens, elk, deer and endangered Topeka shiners, piping plovers, least terns and much more. The chapter’s work includes controlled burns, native plant restoration, food plots, tree control, base youth hunts and much more.
Read more about this interesting adventure in coming issues of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever magazines. If you can’t wait to learn more about Kansas, attend our National Pheasant Fest & Quail Classic Feb. 17-19 in Kansas City.
The Nomad is written by Mark Herwig, Editor of the Pheasants Forever Journal and Quail Forever
Journal. Email Mark at MHerwig@pheasantsforever.org.
6,526,717
Wednesday, February 1st, 2012
- I’m guessing this sharp-tailed grouse and rooster pheasant were the last birds taken off this CRP land before it was plowed under.
6,526,717. That’s how many acres currently under a CRP contract are set to expire this autumn. If you thought last hunting season was tough, think about the ramifications to pheasants, quail, ducks, deer and our nation’s water quality if we lose 6.5 million acres more of critical habitat created by CRP lands. The clock to re-enroll those acres started this morning when the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a new CRP General Signup.
Here are the key pieces of information on the upcoming signup:
- Timing: Starting date is Monday, March 12th and it will run through Friday, April 6, 2012
- EBI: Offers for CRP contracts are ranked according to the Environmental Benefits Index (EBI). USDA’s Farm Service Agency collects data for each of the EBI factors based on the relative environmental benefits for the land offered. Each eligible offer is ranked in comparison to all other offers and selections made from that ranking. EBI rankings will use the same factors as the 2011 CRP general signup.
- No Acre Target: The USDA has said there is no current acre target for this signup, so it’s critical that all landowners with an interest in enrollment check out their options at their local USDA Service Center.
- Technical Assistance: Pheasants Forever Farm Bill Biologists are eager to assist landowners make the most competitive offers possible. Contact your local Pheasants Forever Farm Bill Biologist.
- National Pheasant Fest & Quail Classic 2012: All attendees to this year’s event in Kansas City can sit down with a biologist and receive one-on-one expert advice on their CRP offer or any other federal conservation program. Stop by the Landowner Habitat Help Room at the show to learn more.
At last year’s National Pheasant Fest in Omaha, USDA Secretary addressed our attendees, “Over the past 25 years, support for CRP has grown thanks to strong backing from partners like Pheasants Forever, farmers, ranchers, conservationists, hunters, fishermen and other outdoor sports enthusiasts. Not only has CRP contributed to the national effort to improve water and air quality, it has preserved habitat for wildlife, and prevented soil erosion by protecting the most sensitive areas including those prone to flash flooding and runoff.”
If you know a landowner interested in CRP, make the call and get them informed on the new CRP General Signup. The clock on 6.5 million acres is ticking. The pheasants and quail that call those acres home are depending on us.
The D.C. Minute is written by Dave Nomsen, Pheasants Forever’s Vice President of Government Relations.
Celebrating The Life and Humor of Kim “Sweet Home” Price
Saturday, January 28th, 2012
(left to right) Bob St.Pierre, Howard Vincent, Kim Price and Dave Nomsen in 2008
I remember the first time I ever met Kim Price. It was at SHOT Show in 2005. Pheasants Forever was investigating the formation of Quail Forever and Kim owned Covey Rise, the nation’s only monthly publication dedicated exclusively to the bobwhite quail.
“I bet you couldn’t even hit a quail over a pointed covey,” Kim poked me. “Son, after shooting those basketball-sized pheasants all fall long, a covey of quail would eat you alive.”
It turns out Kim was right about my shooting prowess, but he grossly underestimated the survival instincts of a flushing rooster.
“B Saint P, that basketball was hummin’,” Kim giggled after a rooster flushed behind two empty barrels of his over/under a few years later on a South Dakota prairie.
Kim was a man who favored over/under shotguns, laughed easily, recognized good habitat, loved bird dogs, enjoyed writing and appreciated solid journalism; which is to say we were fast friends.
Around the marketing department, my team affectionately referred to Kim as “Sweet Home” referencing his Alabama roots, southern drawl and steadfast support for our PR efforts. As you probably heard, or inferred by now, Kim passed away last week after a lengthy battle against cancer. He was a champion for quail and for pheasants, he was the epitome of a professional, and he is a friend I will miss forever.
I conducted the following Q&A for a blog post last year. I thought it appropriate for all of you to learn a little more about my friend Kim from his own words.
Kim N. Price
Born in what town: Alexander City, Alabama
Current Town of Residence: Alexander City, Alabama
Family: Wife, Janet; Chilluns, Whitney, Matt, Chase, & Griffin
Occupation: Owner and President of Price Publications, Inc. , publishers of three weekly newspapers and Covey Rise, national quail hunting publication
Dogs: Baxter, a Boykin Spaniel and Herkimer, Collie/lab mix
Favorite place to pheasant hunt: South Dakota
Favorite place to quail hunt: Thomasville, Georgia
Favorite pheasant hunting shotgun: Beretta Lightweight 12- gauge
Favorite quail hunting shotgun: Browning Citori 28-gauge
Best pheasant hunt of your life was: My first time six years ago in Clark, South Dakota, and my last time in Kansas.
Best quail hunt of your life was: Albany, Texas at the Stasney Cook Ranch. We saw probably 60 coveys on the roads driving into the ranch, and over the next two days the dogs found about 70 coveys.
How did you first get involved with Pheasants Forever & Quail Forever? I was asked to serve on the national board to help institute Quail Forever as part of a national organization seeking to restore quail populations across the Northern Bobwhite’s landscape. I also serve as treasurer now.
What is your favorite aspect about serving on the National Board? Conservation is my life and PF/QF is truly all about conservation. Our board is made up of dedicated conservationists who give of their time to work on important conservation issues whether locally at a chapter meeting, at a quarterly national board meeting, a committee meeting or working on pushing conservation issues in Washington, D.C.
What is the single biggest challenge facing Pheasants Forever in the future?
My biggest concern not just for PF/QF, but for all conservation organizations is the loss of critical conservation programs in the 2012 Farm Bill. That one issue is the great challenge for Pheasants Forever/Quail Forever. Fortunately, PF/QF is the hands-down leader in conservation work in Washington on the Farm Bill and PF/QF has an awesome respect among the decision-makers – I know because I’ve seen it in person. It’s about habitat. The loss of sensitive brood rearing habitat and food cover areas that could get plowed under due to a lack of Farm Bill program funding could be disastrous. The Conservation Reserve Program alone helped return pheasant populations to the landscape and without CRP and other conservation-friendly programs, pheasants, quail and other upland species are in for a rough time down the road.
Times are bleak for America’s bobwhite quail. What is it going to take to turn the tide?
Habitat restoration. I know that sounds basic, but it is. States with on-the-ground programs are making a difference using federal and state programs available to landowners. That is key. Since the 1980s bobwhite quail have lost much of their reproductive and successional habitat. Farming practices changed, timber practices changed and fire was removed from the habitat for too long. That closed the timber canopy – ever heard of Kudzu – and quail had no place to live under the tall Southern pine forests. Predators began dominating the shadows and populations started declining in the 70s. By the 1980s, some states, like my own Alabama, had seen as much as 80 percent to 90 percent loss of bobwhite populations. That is significant. Quail Forever’s goal is to get as many on-the-ground chapters working with as many individual landowners on a contiguous basis to promulgate quail restoration. Along with state wildlife quail biologists – many who serve on the National Bobwhite Technical Committee – and federal agencies like the Farm Service Agency, we can work together to make this happen. In a perfect world, the “Deep South” would have just as many Farm Bill biologists helping landowners plan, plant and burn so the landscape benefits Mr. Bob. I asked FSA Administrator Jonathan Coppess at the recent Pheasant Fest in Omaha if it is possible for states and FSA to team up with QF chapters to get these Farm Bill biologists on the ground. He said he would work to help us notify his state managers in the south. That cooperation is what it will take because it represents the biggest opportunity for faster landscape change. Then, we will see bobwhite populations return. They may never get back to the 1960s, but they’ll be back to a point you can go on the back porch and hear that ole man whistle again.
I’ll miss you Sweet Home. I’ll rejoin you down the road for a hunt, so remember to leave a few birds in those coveys for seed.
The Pointer is written by Bob St.Pierre, Quail Forever’s Vice President of Marketing. Follow Bob on Twitter @BobStPierre.
TriStar O/U is New PF Visa Program Gun
Thursday, January 26th, 2012
The TriStar Setter S/T 12 Gauge Over/Under is the new shotgun model for Pheasants Forever’s Visa Program.
Over the last decade, Pheasants Forever’s Visa card, brought to you by U.S. Bank, has helped to raise more than $500,000 for Pheasants Forever’s wildlife habitat conservation efforts. Local Pheasants Forever chapters* use the gun as a raffle prize for members who apply for the card at the banquet.
The TriStar Setter S/T 12 Gauge Over/Under will be appearing at Pheasants Forever banquets in 2012. For your chance to win:
- Attend your local Pheasants Forever banquet
- And apply for the Pheasants Forever Visa card at that local banquet – absolutely free
You’ll be entered to win the TriStar Setter S/T to be given away that night. It’ll be the cheapest raffle you enter, and even if you don’t win, feel good about the fact that all cards give a percentage of every net purchase back to Pheasants Forever.
The TriStar Setter S/T 12 Gauge Over/Under.
*Participation in the Pheasants Forever Visa Program is optional for Pheasants Forever chapters.
Field Notes are written and compiled by Anthony Hauck Pheasants Forever’s Online Editor. Email Anthony at AHauck@pheasantsforever.org and follow him on Twitter @AnthonyHauckPF.
VIDEO: U.S. Sen. Klobuchar Addresses PF
Monday, January 23rd, 2012
U.S. Senator Klobuchar understands the value of conservation, including programs like the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) and the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP). Since 2006, when she became the first female U.S. Senator from Minnesota, she has fought for the sportsmen and women of Minnesota and across the nation. She comes from a family of hunters, anglers and conservationists and she’s fought hard to uphold those traditions in Washington, D.C.
We are very much looking forward to working with Senator Klobuchar in crafting a strong conservation title in the upcoming 2012 Farm Bill.
Here is Senator Klobuchar addressing Pheasants Forever’s 2012 Minnesota State Convention in a video message:
The D.C. Minute is written by Dave Nomsen, Pheasants Forever’s Vice President of Government Relations.
Happy Birthday, Aldo!
Thursday, January 12th, 2012
Leopold with his bird dog, Gus.
January (the 11th to be exact) would have been Aldo Leopold’s 125th birthday. What is remarkable is that people still notice and publicize his birthday 64 years after he died. It speaks to the legacy that Leopold left with his land ethic and stewardship message and his still well-read book A Sand County ALMANAC (published in 1949 a year after his death).
Leopold’s message of restoration of the land and concern for the health of wildlife echoes the mission of Pheasants Forever. Leopold was a hunter and enjoyed hunting pheasants. He was an astute observer of the natural world and worked to live a peaceful co-existence with nature while understanding the need for balance. He raised his five children to also appreciate the natural world and time spent outdoors was special to all of them. I think he would have liked our No Child Left Indoors® initiative and I know he would have approved of the Leopold Education Project and the work PF does with educators, our chapters and others to teach about the importance of habitat and restoration of land.
If you have not read A Sand County ALMANAC, I really encourage you to do so (available in paperback from Pheasants Forever). If you don’t know about the Leopold Education Project, PF’s award-winning conservation education program, and the materials we have, go to www.lep.org for more information. Leopold’s messages are even more important today and can be used in schools, book clubs, churches (great Earth Day material), community centers, PF chapter events and university classes.
Get ‘em Outdoors is written by Cheryl Riley, Pheasants Forever’s Vice President of Education and Outreach. Email her at CRiley@pheasantsforever.org.
PF Receives Two SportDOG Conservation Fund Grants
Friday, January 6th, 2012
SportDOG, a Pheasants Forever National Sponsor, supports conservation with its annual grants program.
SportDOG has named a pair of Pheasants Forever projects as grant recipients in its annual SportDOG Brand Conservation Fund® program.
- $5,000 conservation grant – Funds will be used toward the purchase of a no-till native grass drill for creating and enhancing wildlife habitat within the Prairie Pothole Region of North Dakota.
- $,1000 youth grant – The Marion County (Iowa) Pheasants Forever chapter will use its grant to help fund activities that educate youth on the importance of building habitat and the importance of conservation.
SportDOG Brand created its Conservation Fund program in 2007, and introduced the annual grant program in 2008.
“It’s rewarding to see this program continue to grow,” said Lance Tracy, SportDOG Brand VP. “Each year has seen an increase in the number of applicants for these grants. We believe it’s important for us to continue giving something back to the conservation initiatives our employees and customers care about.”
Pheasants Forever chapters or members with a wildlife habitat project or program in need of support are encouraged to apply for one of four $5,000 conservation grants or one $1,000 youth grant that SportDOG will award in 2013. Applications must be submitted by October 1st, 2012. For more information about the grant application process, click here.
Field Notes are written and compiled by Anthony Hauck Pheasants Forever’s Online Editor. Email Anthony at AHauck@pheasantsforever.org and follow him on Twitter @AnthonyHauckPF.
PF Long Life Members
Friday, December 30th, 2011
Pheasants Forever Life Members, from left, Marco, Mateo and Emilia.
Pheasants Forever Life Member John Surma from Kountze, Texas thinks very highly of Pheasants Forever’s wildlife habitat conservation mission, enough that he’s purchased PF Life Memberships for his niece and nephews. Five-year-old Mateo, and two-year-old twins, Marco and Emilia, were gifted Life Memberships, and the trio proudly wear their Rudy the Rooster (PF’s youth mascot) stocking caps. No matter where life takes these youngsters, they’ll always receive the Pheasants Forever Journal!
For more information about Pheasants Forever Life Membership – at any age – visit www.pheasantsforever.org/join.
Field Notes are written and compiled by Anthony Hauck Pheasants Forever’s Online Editor. Email Anthony at AHauck@pheasantsforever.org and follow him on Twitter @AnthonyHauckPF.
Iowa’s Three Rivers PF Chapter Keeps Hope Alive
Wednesday, December 14th, 2011
Humorist Mark Twain once said, “the news of my death has been greatly exaggerated.” Well, after a visit with the Three Rivers Pheasants Forever Chapter in far northwest Iowa’s Lyon County, news of the total demise of pheasant hunting in the Hawkeye State is equally exaggerated. Iowa pheasant hunting has taken a beating of late, and it certainly isn’t what it used to be, but you can still bag a limit in places, which several of us did last week.
Here in Minnesota (I work at PF’s national office in the Twin Cities), hunting late season in Iowa used to be as big a tradition as the Vikings losing the Super Bowl. Iowa’s pheasant season once extended well after Minnesota’s closed. Since those days, however, Iowa pheasant habitat and hunting has generally declined in most areas – like many other states.
Northwest Iowa’s Three Rivers Chapter has worked hard to preserve quality habitat and they’ve still got quality pheasant hunting because of it. Here is some of the chapter gents after a hunt last week with Pheasants Forever Journal Editor Herwig. Kneeling from left are Larry Wibben, Dustin Timmerman and Craig Van Otterloo; standing from left are Sean Grotewold, Tim Dammann and Jeff Schram.
But, let’s not dwell on the negative just now. Rather, I’d like to report the folks at the Three Rivers chapter have worked hard to improve their public lands and the birds have survived. We hit only one public site where we saw no roosters, but there were hens. We probably bagged half our 11 birds on public land and the other half at two private sites. We missed some birds and saw more roosters flushing long along with numerous hens.
Our hunting conditions were great: a few inches of snow to tamp down the grasses, but not enough to bog down your feet; temps in the 20s so both hunters and dogs could walk long and hard and remain comfortable; and the habitat was great…diverse and tall in places for the birds to hide and stay warm, while other areas were more open for easier walking. It
was also great to see beaver sign along the creeks, deer, Hun tracks, short-eared owls, bald eagles and many fur-bearer sign.
We also hunted through a unique and thriving oak and walnut planting done by agency partners with chapter help to benefit deer, turkey, waterfowl and non-game species alike. I can see why this chapter is successful. At a get-acquainted dinner the night before our hunt, 25 folks showed up to meet the PF editor. This chapter is organized and motivated. Thanks to Pheasants Forever’s Western Iowa Regional Representative, John Linquist, for arranging my visit with the Three Rivers Chapter.
Lastly, I visited an impressive and growing project taking place on either side of the northwest Iowa-South Dakota border where about 700 acres have been protected so far. The interesting thing is both states are pushing for the area, which includes a very large and ancient native American site, to be expanded and protected as either a national monument or park. Thanks to Craig Van Otterloo, chapter habitat chair and Lyon County Conservation Board director, for giving me a tour. Stay tuned to Pheasants Forever Journal next year for more details on this exciting project.
The Nomad is written by Mark Herwig, Editor of the Pheasants Forever Journal and
Quail Forever Journal. Email Mark at MHerwig@pheasantsforever.org.
New Indiana PF Member Wins Rooster Road Trip Citori
Tuesday, December 13th, 2011
David Schager joined Pheasants Forever during PF’s Rooster Road Trip 2011 last month. The Carmel, Indiana resident’s name was randomly selected as the grand prize winner from the online event’s membership drive for a Browning Citori 12 gauge shotgun.
David Schager, a new Pheasants Forever member, proudly shows off his new Browning Citori, which he won by following along and becoming a member during PF's Rooster Road Trip.
Pheasants Forever’s Rooster Road Trip 2011 visited five states in five days, including lands that Pheasants Forever has played a significant role in opening up to public access; either through land purchase, restoration or legislation. The effort focused on how important pheasant hunters that are Pheasants Forever members are to creating and improving publicly accessible habitat.
Special thanks to Browning, one of the sponsors of Rooster Road Trip 2011, for providing Browning PF hats to those who joined Pheasants Forever during the event, and the grand prize. Congratulations David, enjoy your new shotgun, and thanks to you and all members who signed up during the Rooster Road Trip for supporting Pheasants Forever and wildlife habitat conservation.
If you’d like to join Pheasants Forever, the nation’s leading upland conservation organization, visit www.PheasantsForever.org/Join. No organization does more to improve wildlife habitat for pheasants and quail, and we can only do it with your support.
Field Notes are written and compiled by Anthony Hauck Pheasants Forever’s Online Editor. Email Anthony at AHauck@pheasantsforever.org and follow him on Twitter @AnthonyHauckPF.
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