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Good News and Bad News for Fall Pheasant Stocking

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The Pennsylvania Game Commission has some updated figures on the number of pheasants lost due to flooding.  They’ve recovered about 8 to 9 thousand of the birds they thought were lost to flooding from Tropical Storm Lee. Those birds were still running around outside the holding pens.  In addition,   there was not quite as much damage to two of the agency’s game farms in Lycoming County as first feared.

Game Commission spokesman Jerry Feaser says the flooding at the Loyalsock and Northcentral game farms did not impact core equipment or resources they will need to ramp up pheasant production next year.  They expect to take the number of birds to the 200,000 level.

Feaser says some of the buildings, like the hatcheries, just got a little flood water inside, and need clean up.  For the most part, all of the mechanized and computerized equipment escaped damage.  He says the barns, workshops, farm equipment and water lines in the fields were all relatively untouched.

However, because of the loss of about 31,000 pheasants, they’ll only be able to stock about 74 thousand birds this year. The commission had planned to stock just over 100,000.

***Photo of Ring Necked Pheasant by Joe Kosack/PGC Photo

Flooding From Lee Causes Damage to Game Commission Properties

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Flooding from Tropical Storm Lee has taken at toll on property owned by the state Game Commission.   Damage is still being assessed, but is expected to be in the millions.

The losses include thousands of pheasants at two Lycoming County game farms, Loyalsock and Northcentral,  that were killed or escaped.  There was also damage to buildings and holding fields at the farms.  

Game Commission Executive Director Carl Roe says nearly 30 to 40 thousand pheasants that had been raised and ready for release for this fall’s hunting season have perished or escaped.  He says they’re doing what they can to recapture those that escaped, but the losses could total up to 40% of the total pheasant production planned for this year.

Roe says these are significant losses that will force them to re-evaluate fall stocking plans.  He says it’s too late in the season to raise additional pheasants or purchase birds from private property owners to replace these losses.  Roe adds the facilities were recently improved using Growing Greener II dollars.  He says the damage could jeopardize plans to double production next year.

There was also road and bridge damage state game lands 12, 36, 57 and 211 in Bradford, Wyoming, Luzerne, Dauphin and Lebanon Counties. Roe says roadways on state games lands 12 and 36 are impassable and several bridges are gone as flood waters washed them away. State game lands 57 had considerable road damage from flooding. State game lands 211   had the old railroad grade washed out in several places.  He says the damage forced postponement of the public tours planned in October for those game lands.

***Photo of Ring Necked Pheasant by Joe Kosack/PGC Photo