Forecast: Utah doesn’t conduct crowing counts, brood surveys, or other field data collection for pheasants, so a hunting forecast is a bit of a guessing game.
But, says Avery Cook, upland game project leader for the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, “Another mild winter should have led to high over-winter survival. We had a somewhat dry spring and summer that will likely lead to average brood survival. Overall pheasant numbers will likely be similar to 2015.”
The best places to hunt with the most birds will be private lands in the northern half of the state, says Avery. “Box Elder, Cache, and Utah Counties contain the highest concentrations of good pheasant habitat and have the largest pheasant populations,” he says. For hunters without access to private land, walk-in access areas and state wildlife management areas “are great options for hunters.”
In addition to wild birds, the Division of Wildlife will release more than 10,000 rooster pheasants on public hunting grounds this year. A map of release sites will be posted before the season.
Season Dates: General season: November 5 through November 20, 2016; Extended season: November 21 through December 4, 2016
Daily Bag Limit: 2
Possession Limit: 6
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