# Rare sighting in Febuary.



## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

This county back in the hay days of Pheasant hunting was one of Michigan's premiere spots to go.
I have not seen or heard a pheasant sine a April 2003 ice storm that lasted nearly a week.
Then this February we have 3 hens show up in the front yard under the white spruce I have in rows, and a couple times along the creek. Then about a week later I see the rooster, then several times after that. But since the snow has melted have not seen them again.



 Al


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## HuskyBoris (Feb 14, 2013)

thats pretty cool,I was on my way to Fremont last week and seen one running between cornfields,been a few years since i have seen one as well


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

for a number of years we saw almost none , now I see a few , makes me wonder if the county coyote hunting group is getting them under control


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## Declan (Jan 18, 2015)

I have never seen one in the wild alive. I have seen them bred and caged and my dad killed on once which was illegal and he got caught by the game warden walking down the road. My then 4 year old nephew was with him and was carrying it and my dad told the game warden that my nephew was just so excited and wanted to kill it so he could say he got something hunting, my dad shot it and if he wanted to ticket him so be it because sometimes being a grandpa has to come first. The game warden let him slide (which is the only time I have ever heard of one letting someone off) which gave my nephew an even greater story to tell--Pops would have gone to prison if it weren't for him being there


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

This is mostly farm country. Isn't the same today as it was in the 50's and early 60's. Now a day the fence rows are few and far between and grassy swales are even farmed if it is dry enough to get a tractor on with out sinking. Corn & beans grow from road to road even to the point corners are a danger as you can't see past the corn to see any one coming down the other road. But after a while some will just chop the corn on the corner so it gets safer.
Any way there just isn't the cover for the hens to nest in the spring and so many possums, ***** and skunks that eat the eggs. Then when winter come there is no shelter for them like in the days when there was fence rows with weeds and small bushes to provide the shelter. I don't think the coyotes were doing to much damage in this area really. There is cover in a few places where I live since a big farm went belly up after the farmer passed away and was broken up into 10 acre plots and some just didn't sell and have grown up or the owners who did buy just let them. I have one next door to me.

 Al


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## Vahomesteaders (Jun 4, 2014)

We see a few. Use to see them all the time. But rarely now. I have been seeing more mountain grouse. They are bigger than their lowland counterparts. I think all upland game birds are falling by the wayside do to over growth, coyote and fix populations. I know here in va we have several counties that allow no fox hunting. They do it so they uppity horse hound hunters can chase them all day. Their population has exploded and all game birds on decrease.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

maybe that is it , we have a good section owned by the state not far from here , they buy up everything the river floods and burn it annually or every few years , and we can hunt it 

they have also put up more buffer space between the crop and creeks in some parts 

just a few miles south of here in ILL farms have no fence rows at all hardly and corn almost to creek edge , I suppose it is what the dnr sets as the rules that makes a difference

also with **** prices up in the 2 years ago there was a lot of pressure on them and when you catch **** your sure to get opossum also , not much point in letting them go jus t have them end up in another trap the next night , so they get what little is paid for them


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## littlejoe (Jan 17, 2007)

Get a occasional pheasant here. I'm uppermost irrigated on a Arkansas river tributary, and it has been (drier) the last few years. so theyre thin here. Main river valley, there are lots of pheasants.

I had a couple coveys of Mexican quail that made different trips into the corrals each day. I also had two dens of red fox within a half mile as well. THey completely wiped the quail out! My explanation, anyway?

This was during a time we had a Govmt trapper hunting coyotes from the air for several years. He did a heckuvajob thinning coyotes, but I'm thinking it contributed to the quails demise? Until a few years ago, I had never seen a red fox?


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

Habitat is the key to animal populations. With it they can withstand predators and bad weather. Without it they can't.

Predator populations are pretty resilient. I've read that in order to reduce coyotes you have to take 50+% of the population EVERY year and it has to be done over very large areas not just a couple of counties.


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