North Dakota pheasant hunters are reminded the season opens Oct. 7 and continues through Jan. 7, 2018.
In past years, the season typically opened the second Saturday in October. However, the 2017 state legislature passed a law which requires the pheasant hunting season to open no later than Oct. 12. The 2017 North Dakota OUTDOORS calendar, which was printed prior to the start of the legislative session, lists opening day as Oct. 14.
Shooting hours are one-half hour before sunrise to sunset. The daily limit is three and possession limit is 12.
Hunters, regardless of age, must have a fishing, hunting and furbearer certificate, and a general game and habitat license. In addition, hunters age 16 and older need a small game license.
For further season information and regulations, hunters should consult the North Dakota 2017-18 Small Game Hunting Guide.
Wetland Conditions Fair for Duck Hunting
The North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s annual fall wetland survey indicates fair, but declining wetland conditions for duck hunting throughout the state.
Andy Dinges, migratory game bird biologist, said the number of duck hunting wetlands are down statewide about 40 percent from last year, and are the lowest since 2008. He said the number of wetlands in every region lying north and east of the Missouri River is down since last fall, with the southeast suffering the most from the drought. Dinges said hunters should find more wetlands available for hunting in the northern reaches of the state.
“Wetland conditions are declining, however, we are still holding on to most of our semi-permanent wetlands,” Dinges added. “These remaining wetlands are in fair to good shape, providing a hopeful outlook for the season. However, hunters should expect some wider mud margins around wetlands, possibly making hunting more difficult.”
Dinges added that moisture conditions were good early in the year because of substantial snowfall that covered much of the state last winter, but the severe drought that hampered the state during early and mid-summer caused conditions to rapidly deteriorate.
“Some much-needed August precipitation helped green up many areas of the state, but not enough to reverse declining wetland conditions,” he said.
The quality of waterfowl hunting in North Dakota is largely determined by weather conditions and migration patterns. Dinges said fair reproduction for ducks in traditional breeding areas this year still makes for good fall hunting potential in North Dakota.
“Hunters should always scout because of ever changing conditions and distribution of waterfowl,” he added. “Hunters should also be cautious driving off-trail to avoid soft spots, and while encountering areas of tall vegetation that could be a fire hazard.”
The fall wetland survey is conducted in mid-September, just prior to the waterfowl hunting season to provide an assessment of conditions duck hunters can expect. Duck hunting wetlands are classified as seasonal and semi-permanent wetlands
Youth Waterfowl Trailer Available
The North Dakota Game and Fish Department and Ducks Unlimited co-sponsor a trailer full of waterfowl hunting gear that is available to families with young hunters.
Purchased by the Game and Fish Department’s Encouraging Tomorrow’s Hunters grant program, the trailer is designed for families who don’t have the appropriate gear for their young hunters to hunt waterfowl. The equipment is donated by Avery Outdoors.
Use of the trailer is free, and it is equipped with goose and duck decoys for field hunting, and two bags of floating duck decoys and marsh seats for hunting a wetland.
For more information, or to reserve equipment, contact the Ducks Unlimited office in Bismarck at 701-355-3500.
Accepting Registrations for Youth Pheasant Hunt near Regent
The North Dakota Game and Fish Department, along with sponsors Pheasants Forever and Don Clement, is accepting a limited number of registrations for the Joe Clement Youth Pheasant Hunt on Sept. 30 near Regent.
Game and Fish hunter education coordinator John Mazur said there is room for six more kids between the ages of 11-15. “This event is for youth who do not have the opportunity to hunt pheasants, but would like to have the experience,” Mazur said.
Interested individuals should contact Mazur at 328-6316, or jmazur@nd.gov.
Youth Pheasant Weekend Sept. 30, Oct. 1
North Dakota’s two-day youth pheasant season is Sept. 30 and Oct. 1. Legally licensed residents and nonresidents ages 15 and younger may hunt roosters statewide.
Resident youth hunters, regardless of age, must possess a fishing, hunting and furbearer certificate and general game and habitat license. Nonresident youth hunters from states that provide a reciprocal licensing agreement for North Dakota residents qualify for North Dakota resident licenses. Otherwise, nonresident youth hunters must purchase a nonresident small game license.
Shooting hours are one-half hour before sunrise to sunset. Youth ages 12 and older need to have passed a certified hunter education course. The daily bag limit and all other regulations for the regular pheasant season apply.
An adult at least 18 years of age must accompany the youth hunter in the field. The adult may not carry a firearm.
See the 2017 North Dakota Small Game Hunting Guide for additional information.
Hunting from Duck Boats Requires Safety
Waterfowlers hunting from boats are encouraged to wear properly-fitted life jackets while on the water.
Hunting jackets with life jackets already built in are light and comfortable to wear. In addition, wearing a life jacket will not only keep the overboard hunter afloat, but also slow the loss of critical body heat caused by exposure to cold water.
Capsizing and falling overboard from small boats are the most common types of fatal boating accidents for hunters.
Eight people have drowned in state waters since 1998 while hunting from a boat, and none were wearing life jackets.
First-Come, First-Served Deer Gun Licenses Available Sept. 27
More than 970 antlerless whitetail deer gun licenses are still available in three units after the North Dakota Game and Fish Department recently completed its second lottery drawing. Individual results are available online at the Game and Fish website, gf.nd.gov.
Whitetail doe licenses remaining in units 3F1 (314 licenses), 3F2 (477 licenses) and 4F (183 licenses) will be issued on a first-come, first-served basis beginning at 8 a.m. Central Time on Sept. 27. These licenses are only available online, and to individuals who have not already received a lottery or landowner license.
These licenses are valid only during the regular deer gun season, Nov. 10-26. Residents and nonresidents are eligible to apply.
Fall Turkey Lottery Held, Remaining Licenses Available Sept. 28
The 2017 fall wild turkey lottery has been held and more than 800 licenses remain in seven units. Unsuccessful applicants who applied online will have a refund issued directly to their credit card.
Beginning at 8 a.m. Central Time on Sept. 28, all remaining licenses will be issued on a first-come, first-served basis. Hunters are allowed a maximum of five licenses for the fall season.
Resident and nonresident hunters must apply online beginning Sept. 28 at the Game and Fish Department website, gf.nd.gov.
The fall turkey season runs from Oct. 14 – Jan. 7, 2018.
Licenses remain for the following units: Unit 13, Dunn County, 140 licenses; Unit 19, Grant County, Sioux County and portions of Morton County, 28; Unit 25, McHenry County and portions of Pierce and Ward counties, 336; Unit 30, a portion of Morton County, 137; Unit 31, Mountrail County, 23; Unit 45, Stark County, 69; and Unit 51, Burke County and portions of Renville, Bottineau and Ward counties, 85.
Whooping Crane Migration
Whooping cranes are in the midst of their fall migration and sightings will increase as they make their way into and through North Dakota over the next several weeks. Anyone seeing these birds as they move through the state is asked to report sightings so the birds can be tracked.
Whoopers stand about five feet tall and have a wingspan of about seven feet from tip to tip. They are bright white with black wing tips, which are visible only when the wings are outspread. In flight they extend their long necks straight forward, while their long, slender legs extend out behind the tail. Whooping cranes typically migrate singly, or in groups of 2-3 birds, and may be associated with sandhill cranes.
Other white birds such as snow geese, swans and egrets are often mistaken for whooping cranes. The most common misidentification is pelicans, because their wingspan is similar and they tuck their pouch in flight, leaving a silhouette similar to a crane when viewed from below.
Anyone sighting whoopers should not disturb them, but record the date, time, location, and the birds' activity. Observers should also look closely for and report colored bands which may occur on one or both legs. Whooping cranes have been marked with colored leg bands to help determine their identity.
Whooping crane sightings should be reported to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service offices at Lostwood, 701-848-2466, or Long Lake, 701-387-4397, national wildlife refuges; the North Dakota Game and Fish Department in Bismarck, 701-328-6300, or to local game wardens across the state. Reports help biologists locate important whooping crane habitat areas, monitor marked birds, determine survival and population numbers, and identify times and migration routes.
Governor Proclaims Sept. 23 Hunting and Fishing Day
The North Dakota designation coincides with the annual National Hunting and Fishing Day, celebrated on the fourth Saturday of every September, as an effort to spotlight the conservation accomplishments of hunters and anglers nationwide.
Gov. Burgum’s proclamation highlights the rich and storied tradition of hunting and angling in North Dakota, and that hunters and anglers, through their license fees, have helped fund state efforts to provide for healthy and sustainable natural resources. The proclamation also says this “user pays – public benefits approach … is widely recognized as the most successful model of fish and wildlife management in the world, and is celebrating its 87th anniversary this year.”
On the national front, the honorary chair for this year’s NHFD is NASCAR hall of famer Richard Childress, a nationally recognized champion for fish and wildlife conservation, who is asking hunters and anglers to participate in the new NHF Day Challenge by taking someone hunting, fishing or target shooting. "Mentoring is critical to ensure our outdoor tradition lives on through future generations,” Childress said. “Make the commitment to take someone outdoors and show them why you value hunting, fishing and target shooting."
By pledging to introduce someone to the outdoors between now and NHF Day on Saturday, Sept. 23, participants will be eligible to win a Richard Childress Racing VIP race weekend package or the Ultimate Outdoor Experience in America’s Conservation Capital from Big Cedar Lodge and Johnny Morris’ Wonders of Wildlife National Museum and Aquarium.
To get involved in the NHF Day Challenge, visit NHFDay.org; or call 417-225-1162. North Dakota organizations holding special NHF day events can have them listed on the Game and Fish Department’s events calendar by sending information via email to ndgf@nd.gov.
Waterfowl Hunters Reminded of ANS Regulations
Waterfowl hunters are reminded to do their part in preventing the spread of aquatic nuisance species into or within North Dakota.
Waterfowl hunters must remove plants and plant fragments from decoys, strings and anchors; remove plants seeds and plant fragments from waders and other equipment before leaving hunting areas; remove all water from decoys, boats, motors, trailers and other watercraft; and remove all aquatic plants from boats and trailers before leaving a marsh or lake. In addition, hunters are encouraged to brush their hunting dogs free of mud and seeds.
Cattails and bulrushes may be transported as camouflage on boats. All other aquatic vegetation must be cleaned from boats prior to transportation into or within North Dakota.
In addition, drain plugs on boats must remain pulled when the boat is in transit away from a water body.
More ANS information, including regulations, is available by visiting the North Dakota Game and Fish Department website, gf.nd.gov.
Game and Fish Summarizes Pheasant Brood Survey
North Dakota’s roadside pheasant survey conducted in late July and August indicates total birds and number of broods are down statewide from 2016.
R.J. Gross, upland game management biologist for the North Dakota Game and Fish Department, said the survey shows total pheasants observed per 100 miles are down 61 percent from last year. In addition, brood observations were down 63 percent, while the average brood size was down 19 percent. The final summary is based on 279 survey runs made along 103 brood routes across North Dakota.
“Brood data suggests very poor production this spring when compared to 2016, which results in less young birds added to the fall population,” Gross said. “The majority of the state was in extreme drought conditions during critical times for pheasant chicks. This resulted in poor nesting/brood habitat and more than likely a less than ideal insect hatch.”
Statistics from southwestern North Dakota indicate total pheasants were down 59 percent and broods observed down 60 percent from 2016. Observers counted eight broods and 68 birds per 100 survey miles. The average brood size was 4.3.
Results from the southeast show birds are down 60 percent from last year, and the number of broods down 70 percent. Observers counted two broods and 24 birds per 100 miles. The average brood size was 4.7.
Statistics from the northwest indicated pheasants are down 72 percent from last year, with broods are down 76 percent. Observers recorded three broods and 24 birds per 100 miles. Average brood size was 5.2.
The northeast district, generally containing secondary pheasant habitat, with much of it lacking good winter cover, showed one brood and six birds per 100 miles. Average brood size was 3.5. Number of birds observed was down 54 percent, and the number of broods recorded was down 63 percent.
The 2017 regular pheasant season opens Oct. 7 and continues through Jan. 7, 2018. The two-day youth pheasant hunting weekend, when legally licensed residents and nonresidents ages 15 and younger can hunt statewide, is set for Sept. 30 and Oct. 1.
North Dakota Game and Fish Department