Pheasant season opens in Iowa Saturday at eight in the morning. Lowell Washburn of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources says it’s an opening day thousands anticipate — some 130-thousand in fact are expected to take the fields. The D-N-R’s survey showed pheasant numbers were down — but Washburn says there’ll still be plenty of birds out there.
Washburn says pheasant numbers were down about 20-percent, but he says last year the numbers were up about 20-percent. Even with the numbers down, Washburn says Iowa still has some of the best pheasant hunting that draws people from all 50 states and several foreign countries. Washburn says a couple of key factors will determine the success of the hunters. He says the weather and corn harvest are the two “make or break” factors in the season.
Washburn says about 50-percent of the corn is out of the fields about the same as it was last year. He says the good news is that more birds will be chased out for hunters as the harvest progresses. Washburn says part of the appeal of the event is getting together with others. Washburn plans to attend a pre-hunt breakfast with a group at the Ventura gym. Hunters are expected to leave behind millions of dollars while taking 700 to 750-thousand pheasants during the hunt that runs until January 10th.