# Just old school



## Upland

this may seem like a stupid question but like the heading I'm old school my question starts with a statement when I was younger pheasants was wild not farmed raised and dropped off to be hunted within a few days of their new home So my question is Is there a area public or private that holds Pheasant's STOP LAUGHING it's a legitimate question Okay not really But since I'm old I would like to hunt pheasant without shoulder to shoulder and hunter's to the left of me and hunter's to the right of me forward and behind me oh well maybe in my dreams What's that Megan Fox another back rub be right there


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## garhtr

Not sure where your located but I've seen wild birds at Deer Crk and Big Isl.
At one time I could find a few at Paint crk but I haven't hunted there in a few years so unsure how that would pan out.
Good luck and good hunting !


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## 9Left

Nope... not wild ones anyway… And if you do see any, they more than likely escaped from a pheasant farm. I never really understood the desire to hunt pheasant… It's not even native to the United States, it's a Chinese bird.


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## Southernsaug

Ever hear of South Dakota . My daughter lives there but I have never hunted it, even though I go out there every year.

garhtr is right there are some wild birds at deer creek and there are many small wildlife production plots in central Ohio that has wild birds. I used to hunt them a lot and killed many wild pheasants off them, but they got so they were hunted pretty hard and my good dogs died so I just quit hunting birds. Here is a link to a map:

https://gis.ohiodnr.gov/MapViewer/?config=ODNRLands


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## garhtr

https://www.pheasantsforever.org/Bl...ever/Ohio-Pheasant-Hunting-Forecast-2018.aspx
This is from 2018 but gives you an idea of where wild birds are. 
We always enjoyed chasing them and had more than one beagle that excelled on pheasant. My beagles are long gone and my old legs wouldn't keep up anyway.
Good luck and good hunting !


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## Muddy

Big Island has wild birds. Find the habitat, and you will find pheasants. I have a pretty good population on my property because I have the cover. I have part of our farm in CRP under the Pheasant SAFE program, and the neighboring property has good upland cover as well. I don’t shoot them here, I just enjoy watching and listening to them.


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## Upland

garhtr said:


> Not sure where your located but I've seen wild birds at Deer Crk and Big Isl.
> At one time I could find a few at Paint crk but I haven't hunted there in a few years so unsure how that would pan out.
> Good luck and good hunting !


located in Alliance Ohio always wanted to fish Deer Creek for Crappie


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## ReadHeaded Hunter

Like people said, Deer Creek and Big Island are both good options. We hunt wild birds all year in Ohio. Even areas where birds are released have wild birds. Not every bird is killed on release day, and the survivors become wild and have future generations. Wild birds will find the good managed habitat on those public lands as well and immigrate, so just because there are releases on a certain area, does NOT mean there are no wild birds. The CRP program in Ohio continues to improve habitat for wild birds across the state. There are plenty of cynics that will tell you wild birds dont exist in Ohio. Trust me, if you sit inside believing there are no birds to be had, you certainly wont find any!


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## c. j. stone

Upland, there are two Deer Creeks, one(I think) is in central Ohio, the one mentioned w/Wild birds. The Deer Creek reservoir north of you is not but could easily have birds gone wild but stocked at Berin headwater areas off 183. I think that's the Deer Creek you want to crappie fish. Yes, this is always a confusing topic!!


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## c. j. stone

ReadHeaded Hunter said:


> Like people said, Deer Creek and Big Island are both good options. We hunt wild birds all year in Ohio. Even areas where birds are released have wild birds. Not every bird is killed on release day, and the survivors become wild and have future generations. Wild birds will find the good managed habitat on those public lands as well and immigrate, so just because there are releases on a certain area, does NOT mean there are no wild birds. The CRP program in Ohio continues to improve habitat for wild birds across the state. There are plenty of cynics that will tell you wild birds dont exist in Ohio. Trust me, if you sit inside believing there are no birds to be had, you certainly wont find any!


Just windering how you hunt wild birds "all year" in Ohio.(Not xplained?)
The State does not raise or release any Female pheasants for Public Land hunting. It simply is not cost-effective. I agree, there are "carry-over(male) birds that revert to "wild" after a while on public lands however(could be days or weeks?) Have hunted some of the best Ohio Public Lands for pheasants, bagged hundreds over past 50 years, Never flushed a hen. I hunted wild birds prior to that and hens were common. I know the Pheas Forever gang says "if there is suitable hahitat, there WILL be wild birds"! Where do they come from?? Fall out of the sky?


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## Upland

c. j. stone said:


> Upland, there are two Deer Creeks, one(I think) is in central Ohio, the one mentioned w/Wild birds. The Deer Creek reservoir north of you is not but could easily have birds gone wild but stocked at Berin headwater areas off 183. I think that's the Deer Creek you want to crappie fish. Yes, this is always a confusing topic!!


the Deer Creek in Stark Co NE Ohio is the one I fish at I want to fish the one below Columbus its over 2 1/2 hours away and this is also the one with birds and the birds at Berlin that are released are killed off the first two days none left to go wild I wish that they would release birds after the season so they could breed in the wild


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## ReadHeaded Hunter

c. j. stone said:


> Just windering how you hunt wild birds "all year" in Ohio.(Not xplained?)
> The State does not raise or release any Female pheasants for Public Land hunting. It simply is not cost-effective. I agree, there are "carry-over(male) birds that revert to "wild" after a while on public lands however(could be days or weeks?) Have hunted some of the best Ohio Public Lands for pheasants, bagged hundreds over past 50 years, Never flushed a hen. I hunted wild birds prior to that and hens were common. I know the Pheas Forever gang says "if there is suitable hahitat, there WILL be wild birds"! Where do they come from?? Fall out of the sky?


I guess I should've said "all season" not "all year". We hunt all private land nowhere near public land release sites. Hens are common, as are roosters. They nest and make babies that then grow up and make more babies, and so on-- I will spare the details on how that happens. Plenty of people will argue no wild birds exist and that's fine. They certainly are not as common as they are in other states, but they are here in much more abundance than most people think. I dont mind if people want to argue that the only birds in the state are released 3 times a year. Where I get frustrated is the fact that if we really do want to grow our wild bird population in this state, it takes people acknowledging that wild birds can be sustained here


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## Upland

ReadHeaded Hunter said:


> I guess I should've said "all season" not "all year". We hunt all private land nowhere near public land release sites. Hens are common, as are roosters. They nest and make babies that then grow up and make more babies, and so on-- I will spare the details on how that happens. Plenty of people will argue no wild birds exist and that's fine. They certainly are not as common as they are in other states, but they are here in much more abundance than most people think. I dont mind if people want to argue that the only birds in the state are released 3 times a year. Where I get frustrated is the fact that if we really do want to grow our wild bird population in this state, it takes people acknowledging that wild birds can be sustained here


I agree that wild birds can be sustained here But here in NE Ohio where I'm at , After the birds are released ,seeing one a week later is like having dinner with Darrell , Easter bunny and Sharron Stone Ain't happening They should release after the season or have a closed season after release to allow bird population to grow


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## garhtr

Upland said:


> They should release after the season or have a closed season after release to allow bird population to grow


Those domestic pheasants aren't going to have a high enough survival rate to sustain a population of birds.
The tame pheasants don't have the correct genes for surviving in the wild, you could release 10 million and they would be wiped out in a short time. The only way to build a population in Ohio is to improve habitat and release "wild" birds. 
Good luck and good hunting


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## Upland

garhtr said:


> Those domestic pheasants aren't going to have a high enough survival rate to sustain a population of birds.
> The tame pheasants don't have the correct genes for surviving in the wild, you could release 10 million and they would be wiped out in a short time. The only way to build a population in Ohio is to improve habitat and release "wild" birds.
> Good luck and good hunting


no argument there I agree seems to me that would be costly at first but to introduce wild birds in certain areas with a closed season would pan out in the long run (did it with Turkeys) tired of no rabbits, Pheasants,


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## Karl Wolf

The habitat in Ohio and amount of hunting pressure would not permit a wild and breeding population to flourish. 
It's a straight out and take program just like trout


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## Upland

Karl Wolf said:


> The habitat in Ohio and amount of hunting pressure would not permit a wild and breeding population to flourish.
> It's a straight out and take program just like trout


I'm not sure I agree with you on that simply because as far as Hunting pressure I pass the Berlin wildlife areas just about every day and the only time I see a fair amount of cars is when opening day of pheasant season ,a few cars bow and gun season (Deer) so limited hunting pressure and I feel safe to say that due to less hunters each year and as far as Habit in Ohio pheasant flourished years ago


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## Karl Wolf

Even out west where the habitat is prime for them, they raise them and breed them for release to be able to keep up with the hunting pressure. 

I did the pheasant thing a few times with my father out off cableline road at westbranch many years ago. Got a few.
I'd never do it again though,to many kids out there with their dads cramed together with birdshot flying everywhere.


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## Upland

Karl I can remember times of kicking up rabbits with and without dogs Pheasants plentiful and yes hunting pressure killed them off but over the years the amount of hunters decreased I can recall gong to High school and having my 22 and a shotgun in the rack parked beside other trucks with the same not so today I hate to say this because I know there are those that will be on me like white on rice, But our woodlands are pretty much self maintained, the trees grow, grass lands, creeks flow, with out help from anyone but mother nature I spoke with a ODNR fellow nice guy and he said that I along with others should go to the district 3 and complain about access to hunting and fishing so that being said not much maintainance on parking lots lol so perhaps that maybe a worthwhile project to do with income brought in


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## Upland

Karl Wolf said:


> Even out west where the habitat is prime for them, they raise them and breed them for release to be able to keep up with the hunting pressure.
> 
> I did the pheasant thing a few times with my father out off cableline road at westbranch many years ago. Got a few.
> I'd never do it again though,to many kids out there with their dads cramed together with birdshot flying everywhere.


I agree with you it's a nightmare 

its always packed opening day hunter in front of you ,beside you, don't know wither to duck or shoot and after the release no hunters maybe a few looking for any left lol so if you want one be there after release and that's why I say if there bird's available during the whole season not just the one day you would enjoy Pheasant season 

I watched a video one time I forget what lake it was but they was stocking a lake with trout and there was hundreds of fishermen there ready to catch them but you can bet within a few days no trout fishermen


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## c. j. stone

"Upland, I guess I assumed you meant the DC in our area? Anyways, All the birds do not get shot the first day after stocking. I have had fair success around Xmas and New Years hunting my Brits on the "way back"(long walk, tough to negotiate the greenbriar and thornapple "!jungles") at Berlin. By then, the carry-over birds are "wild/smarter" and quick to flush and won't hold for a point!
Red, I know there are Wild birds(Not "carry-overs") still in a few grown up, thick, overgrown wetland areas(I'm familiar with) in Stark and Columbiana counties. Too bad there's not more Lands set aside by State involvement for them to propagate. They are going the way of our eastern Ohio ruffed grouse(also pretty much Not managed)!


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## T-180

Karl Wolf said:


> The habitat in Ohio and amount of hunting pressure would not permit a wild and breeding population to flourish.
> It's a straight out and take program just like trout


Have you gone out, put the work & boot time in to back up your statement ?!! I personally know of at least a dozen different areas/properties in several counties that hold wild birds and are self sustaining. Pheasants Forever has worked hard with landowners creating habitat but some areas obviously are far better than others. There are also far more farmers & private land owners that maintain their properties for birds and they tend to be rather tight lipped, for good reason.


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## One guy and a boat

T-180 said:


> Have you gone out, put the work & boot time in to back up your statement ?!! I personally know of at least a dozen different areas/properties in several counties that hold wild birds and are self sustaining. Pheasants Forever has worked hard with landowners creating habitat but some areas obviously are far better than others. There are also far more farmers & private land owners that maintain their properties for birds and they tend to be rather tight lipped, for good reason.


X2 on that. I had a few properties in Ashtabula county that I would always kick pheasant up. And they were a good distance ( 20 + miles )from the Grand River release point. 

Sent from my Pixel 3a XL using Tapatalk


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## Karl Wolf

T-180 said:


> Have you gone out, put the work & boot time in to back up your statement ?!! I personally know of at least a dozen different areas/properties in several counties that hold wild birds and are self sustaining. Pheasants Forever has worked hard with landowners creating habitat but some areas obviously are far better than others. There are also far more farmers & private land owners that maintain their properties for birds and they tend to be rather tight lipped, for good reason.


Please notice I said "flourish" and pheasants surely do not "flourish" in Ohio. There can be a small pocket here and there and those are often maintained through breeding.


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## T-180

Well Karl let me rephrase mine ; I know areas where they flourish without supplemental stocking. Again, we put the time in scouting not just assuming & there are places very likely within a very short drive of you that flourish too. I'm ok with all the naysayers though, leaves more for me & my boys to hunt !!


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## Karl Wolf

T-180 said:


> Well Karl let me rephrase mine ; I know areas where they flourish without supplemental stocking. Again, we put the time in scouting not just assuming & there are places very likely within a very short drive of you that flourish too. I'm ok with all the naysayers though, leaves more for me & my boys to hunt !!


Again sir, what I said is correct. Pheasants do not flourish in Ohio due to the exact reasons I mentioned. There are a few pockets that do hold wild birds,i never said there was not.

Also the wild pheasant population is currently at a historically low level.

I'm happy for you though that you've put in the work to find these pockets that hold a few wild birds, use a google search and you'll probably find more.


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## Upland

I still say that areas in Ohio that used to have Birds without release can support wild birds and I am also sure that there are a few areas that hold wild birds I just wish they (state) stock all areas that have held birds in the past


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## ReadHeaded Hunter

Upland said:


> I still say that areas in Ohio that used to have Birds without release can support wild birds and I am also sure that there are a few areas that hold wild birds I just wish they (state) stock all areas that have held birds in the past


I agree. I think there is a lot of habitat in the state that could hold birds, it just needs a kickstart. I wish the state would release birds with the intent of creating a sustainable population, similar to what they've done with turkeys. Release young hens and roosters into areas of the state with good habitat and let them breed and spread out, versus throwing them out of the back of a truck on predetermined days to be shot up. Fact of the matter is though, the DNR is stretched thin and there isnt the demand for large scale pheasant programs like there are deer and turkey. It's really going to come down to local Pheasants Forever chapters and individuals to push things forward. I know a few people that hatch and release birds and now have a self-sustained population around their place


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## T-180

Karl Wolf said:


> Again sir, what I said is correct. Pheasants do not flourish in Ohio due to the exact reasons I mentioned. There are a few pockets that do hold wild birds,i never said there was not.
> 
> Also the wild pheasant population is currently at a historically low level.
> 
> I'm happy for you though that you've put in the work to find these pockets that hold a few wild birds, use a google search and you'll probably find more.


I don't need Google search, I do it on my feet !! If you'd like up to date info , contact local pheasants forever chapters or regional biologists. 
Question for you Karl since you feel you have the scoop; when was the last time you put in hours of boot time either hunting or scouting for wild pheasants or speaking to people who do? Just curious where your coming from with your comments.


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## Morrowtucky Mike

When I was younger we used to raise and turn loose pheasants. I’m talking like 25-30 years ago. The biggest thing was we released them at around 10 weeks old and always in late spring early summer. We still have wild birds to hunt and the habitat isn’t really that great. River bottoms and thin fence rows with RR tracks running through. Seemed like the rooster/hen ratio was around 25/75% which makes sense if your wanting birds to survive. Nobody hunts them around here anymore either. I wish the state would release hens and have an early release date along with the normal hunting release dates. Our state managed lands have great cover and there are enough hidden pockets that get little to no pressure to sustain a population imo.


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## bustedrod

i know of some of my old farms i hunt still have resident birds, there there because nobody would put the boot work in on that rough terrain. up untill the 80s there was a great population of birds, pheasant, qual, grouse, partridge. but the snows were so deep our birds mostly died off and never recovered. i used to see pheasants living in the clover leaves on the free ways ...there are also quail around , hardly ever see a grouse though.


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## Lewzer

Ran across this guy last Wednesday.


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## buckeyebowman

ReadHeaded Hunter said:


> Like people said, Deer Creek and Big Island are both good options. We hunt wild birds all year in Ohio. Even areas where birds are released have wild birds. Not every bird is killed on release day, and the survivors become wild and have future generations. Wild birds will find the good managed habitat on those public lands as well and immigrate, so just because there are releases on a certain area, does NOT mean there are no wild birds. The CRP program in Ohio continues to improve habitat for wild birds across the state. There are plenty of cynics that will tell you wild birds dont exist in Ohio. Trust me, if you sit inside believing there are no birds to be had, you certainly wont find any!


I've found this to be the case. I and my buddy are members of a sportsmen's club that releases pen raised pheasants. We buy them from a pheasant farmer, big, strong flying birds. I've noticed that they don't have to long out of the crate before they figure out what their legs are for. They won't hold as well for a point. A bigger problem than the hunters are the 'yotes, *****, owls and hawks. 



Karl Wolf said:


> Again sir, what I said is correct. Pheasants do not flourish in Ohio due to the exact reasons I mentioned. There are a few pockets that do hold wild birds,i never said there was not.
> 
> Also the wild pheasant population is currently at a historically low level.
> 
> I'm happy for you though that you've put in the work to find these pockets that hold a few wild birds, use a google search and you'll probably find more.


I can't remember the last time I saw a wild pheasant in Ohio. I'm sure there are some where the habitat is still suitable. But the way farming practices have changed it's a rarity anymore. It's like seeing a wild grouse. Timbering practices changed, and so did the habitat that grouse depend on.


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## Karl Wolf

buckeyebowman said:


> I've found this to be the case. I and my buddy are members of a sportsmen's club that releases pen raised pheasants. We buy them from a pheasant farmer, big, strong flying birds. I've noticed that they don't have to long out of the crate before they figure out what their legs are for. They won't hold as well for a point. A bigger problem than the hunters are the 'yotes, *****, owls and hawks.
> 
> 
> 
> I can't remember the last time I saw a wild pheasant in Ohio. I'm sure there are some where the habitat is still suitable. But the way farming practices have changed it's a rarity anymore. It's like seeing a wild grouse. Timbering practices changed, and so did the habitat that grouse depend on.


I haven't seen a grouse in Ohio since I was a little boy. Up on the road on the east side of mosquito


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## BaddFish

I'm 48....so over 32 years ago...(darn I'm getting old) in Bloomfield (Northern Trumbull Cty) we had 2 spots that held wild pheasants. 
Today- nope.
#1 cause IMO - Farmers are cleaning their ravines/ditches and deep valleys now, the areas that used to be brushy and full of weeds are clean shaven and have been for over 25years. these areas are now developed as part of their every year crop yield.

In Mespo, we had 2 farms that held Grouse, in one case, Amish moved in and cleaned/developed the landscape, all the wild grape vines and brush- GONE.
Another area, basically same thing as #1 problem above.

My group of friends in Bloomfield High School didn't know how good we had it... we still talk about it today as we are pushing around these planted ditch chickens now in Grand River- waiting for our next planned trip to the West! Kansas is next week! 

IMO- Loss of Habitat is #1 cause for loss of game- at least in Northern Trumbull. Southern Ohio probably holds some, good luck with that.


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## Karl Wolf

BaddFish said:


> I'm 48....so over 32 years ago...(darn I'm getting old) in Bloomfield (Northern Trumbull Cty) we had 2 spots that held wild pheasants.
> Today- nope.
> #1 cause IMO - Farmers are cleaning their ravines/ditches and deep valleys now, the areas that used to be brushy and full of weeds are clean shaven and have been for over 25years. these areas are now developed as part of their every year crop yield.
> 
> In Mespo, we had 2 farms that held Grouse, in one case, Amish moved in and cleaned/developed the landscape, all the wild grape vines and brush- GONE.
> Another area, basically same thing as #1 problem above.
> 
> My group of friends in Bloomfield High School didn't know how good we had it... we still talk about it today as we are pushing around these planted ditch chickens now in Grand River- waiting for our next planned trip to the West! Kansas is next week!
> 
> IMO- Loss of Habitat is #1 cause for loss of game- at least in Northern Trumbull. Southern Ohio probably holds some, good luck with that.


I see them suckers all along the highway in Kansas,Eastern Colorado and South Dakota.


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## buckeyebowman

BaddFish said:


> I'm 48....so over 32 years ago...(darn I'm getting old) in Bloomfield (Northern Trumbull Cty) we had 2 spots that held wild pheasants.
> Today- nope.
> #1 cause IMO - Farmers are cleaning their ravines/ditches and deep valleys now, the areas that used to be brushy and full of weeds are clean shaven and have been for over 25years. these areas are now developed as part of their every year crop yield.
> 
> In Mespo, we had 2 farms that held Grouse, in one case, Amish moved in and cleaned/developed the landscape, all the wild grape vines and brush- GONE.
> Another area, basically same thing as #1 problem above.
> 
> My group of friends in Bloomfield High School didn't know how good we had it... we still talk about it today as we are pushing around these planted ditch chickens now in Grand River- waiting for our next planned trip to the West! Kansas is next week!
> 
> IMO- Loss of Habitat is #1 cause for loss of game- at least in Northern Trumbull. Southern Ohio probably holds some, good luck with that.


For grouse, exactly! Way back in the day, I and a buddy had a great grouse hunting spot. There were wild grape vine tangles all over the place, and we'd hunt every one of them. That's where the grouse were. Otherwise, it was just a big mature forest. Ohio's best grouse years were when the land was being timbered leading to successional growth that grouse love. 

One year, we went down in there and noticed that all the grape vines, some as thick as my upper arm, had been cut! I asked around about it, and was told that the landowner had probably sold the timber rights, and didn't want any more trees dragged down by the vines. 

My buddy used to have a trailer in a campground in PA that bordered a State Game Land. Since you can't pen raise grouse and release them like you can with pheasant, the PGC would manipulate the habitat to benefit grouse. They'd sell timber tights to outfits, and have them cut to allow the successional growth that grouse like! We loved that place.


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## dem5349

I'm A little late on this post but I have traveled to SD and Iowa this year (Yes 2020). Seen pliantly of birds in both. Ohio is not a bird state. I will say I chased wild birds in Ashtabula about 10 years ago but they slowly died out. If you don't see hens then their not wild birds period...

Plan a trip to SD. Plenty of hunting land opportunity, just don't book a preserve, it is a waist of money. Just find a place to stay on Verbo or Airbnb near Aberdeen or Webster and find the CERP or walk in. It is worth the trip for sure. I can help if you PM me, always willing to help. I have hunted SD for the last +10 years and know lots of places to go that have good hunting. Fishing is excellent as well. We take a boat with us and fish Waubay and Bitter lake. I know other lakes that produce great fishing but those are secret due to the locals request.

Just remember, wild birds are not easy to get close to, they are very smart and will flush way ahead of you. A good dog is a big help. Always scout in the mornings, Wild bird move in the mornings and evening. Very cool to see and hear them. I actually like to roast them and let them come to me as they move to the roasting areas. It is something you will never forget. 

Its not about how many you shoot, but the great time chasing and seeing them them.

Just my two cents!


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