To all of you who think Pennsylvania can't ever agein have wild pheasants to hunt, please read what a few concerned organizations have done. Let's hope the PGC will get on board and make this a reality all over Pennsylvania.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/outdoors/s_464699.html















Advanced Search




View all stories by date

[ul][*]Pittsburgh Slots[*]Capitol Cash Grab[/ul][/align]All Special Reports
All Multimedia

[/align]News[/align]Sports[/align]Steelers[/align]Penguins[/align]Pirates[/align]College[/align]High School[/align]Sports Toons[/align]Columnists[/align]Top Sports[/align]Major League Baseball[/align]Hockey[/align]Basketball[/align]Tennis[/align]Sports Week Gallery[/align]NASCAR & Other Auto Racing[/align]Golf[/align]Outdoors[/align]SkiEngine.com[/align]Business[/align]Opinion & Commentary[/align]Living[/align]Obituaries[/align]ESPAÑOL[/align]TODAY IN HISTORY[/align]CENSUS[/align]About Us[/align]Help desk[/align]Contact Us[/align]Frank L. Craig,
Editor[/align]Robert Fryer, Managing Editor[/align]Joe Chudicek, Multimedia Editor[/align]Customized RSS News Feeds[/align]What is RSS?[/align]Staff blogs[/align]Newspapers in Education[/align]AP Podcasts[/align]









Back to headlines
Larger Text Smaller Text
Cal U crew working to restore pheasants, habitat








Tools[/align] Print this article
E-mail this article




Subscribe to this paper
Larger / Smaller Text

By Chasity M. Capasso
FOR THE TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, August 6, 2006


Pheasants were once a popular game bird in Pennsylvania, until the population crashed for unknown reasons.
Pheasants Forever, in conjunction with California University of Pennsylvania and many other organizations, has been working to bring the beautiful birds back to the state and restore the population to what it was in the 1950s.
Some of the pheasants came by way of South Dakota in a trade.
The Pennsylvania Game Commission has made arrangements to trap and ship wild turkeys in exchange for pheasants from South Dakota, known as "the pheasant capital of the world," said Rich Kovacic, president of the Tri-County Chapter of Pheasants Forever.































http://www.pittsburgh3cdepot.com][/url]
http://www.pittsburgh3cdepot.com][/url]




The first shipment of 150 birds came in the winter of 2004 in return for 56 turkeys. The birds were released on 57,000 acres of farmland at the Pike Run Watershed in Washington County, between Route 40 and Interstate 70.
"We hope to bring in 200 pheasants a year, if we can get them," Kovacic said. "It all depends on the weather out West. The winters there have been mild over the past few years. They need to have a bad winter in order to trap the birds easier."
Cal U's Fisheries and Wildlife Biology students have an opportunity to gain hands-on experience in their field by becoming involved in the pheasants' habitat restoration project.
"All of my employees are or were Cal U students," said Jose Taracido, the university's wildlife conservation specialist and a member of Pheasants Forever. "The first component of the project is habitat, which is basically putting the pheasants' habitat on the ground. We have students out of the university that help with that part of it.
"The second component is monitoring. Students study and monitor the birds, habitat, water and so on. All of the research is done by the students."
Taracido said there are many advantages to having an active pheasant population.
"Landowners like to hear and see them, and they're a popular game bird," he said. "Other wildlife also benefit from the pheasants. It's a good thing for ducks, shore birds, rabbits and other grassland species to live around their native grasses. I've even seen an upland sandpiper here, which is very rare."
Dave Putnam, wildlife biologist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, said he predicts the pheasant population will be "back to what it once was" within the next five to 10 years.
"Some of the habitat in Pennsylvania is as good as it ever was, so the pheasants have an opportunity to expand," he said. "In Pennsylvania, historically, pheasants were a popular bird. In the 1970s hunters here killed over 1 million of the wild birds per year. The population declined greatly and, unfortunately, never recovered here.
"Some people believe it was due to the habitat, but disease may have played a role as well. We'll never know. But the birds have recovered to record numbers in other places in the United States.
"As far as Pennsylvania," he added, "it all depends on how many birds we will get shipped to us from South Dakota. We anticipated getting 600, but only got 150. Hopefully, this year they won't have such a mild winter."
The project began in the late 1990s and is funded mainly by private grants and other fundraising.
"We were able to make enough money through grants and other financial help," Kovacic said. "Every dollar we receive goes toward the project. We couldn't do this on our own.
"We've been at it for a long time," he added. "In a few years, we could have a huntable population. The trade is supposed to continue for about another two years or so, and we may even be getting more birds from other places in the Midwest, like Nebraska or Montana."
"The landowners are very excited about the project," Putnam said. "Everyone's been very helpful, and all of the groups involved have worked very hard."
Taracido said the project would extend its reach this winter, releasing pheasants, possibly from Montana, in Montour County in east central Pennsylvania.
Pheasants Forever will hold its annual banquet at 6 p.m. Sept. 23 at the Ramada Inn in Washington, Pa., to support the project. The event is open to the public and any donations are appreciated.
For ticket information or questions about the habitat restoration project, contact Rich Kovacic at 724-785-3540.

[/align]