Syracuse.com - CNY pheasant hunting season kicks off Saturday (includes video)

[HuntingNY-News]

“Having the dog work the fields and flushing birds, it’s a rush unlike any in hunting,” one hunter said. Watch video

Tom Fernandez remembers hunting pheasant for the first time several years ago in South Dakota with his girlfriend’s father.

“It was on that trip that I cut my teeth on pheasant hunting and I haven’t turned around since,” he said.

That trip had another memorable moment.

“I also asked him if it was OK to marry his daughter,” he said. “He said yes and I asked Alison that Thanksgiving — and she accepted.”

Fernandez, who today is vice president of the Central New York Chapter of Pheasants Forever, is among those planning to hunt this weekend in the pheasant season opener in the Southern and Northwestern zones. While his first exposure to the sport had a romantic angle, his continued love for pheasant hunting gravitates more toward his relationship with his dog, Purgatory, a lab/springer mix.

“Having the dog work the fields and flushing birds, it’s a rush unlike any in hunting,” the Syracuse resident said.

Pheasants, originally from China, must be stocked each year because so few make it through the winter as a result of declining habitat and the growing numbers of predators, such as coyotes and hawks. In most of the state, it’s the state Department of Environmental Conservation that raises and stocks the birds, with the help of volunteers at the Reynolds Game Farm, just outside of Ithaca.

In Onondaga County, day-old chicks are secured from Reynolds and transported to a pheasant rearing facility at the Jamesville Correctional Facility. There, they’re raised to adulthood and stocked in the fall throughout the county by volunteers.

Ed Pugliese, of Manlius, oversees the Jamesville program. He said the last of nearly 3,000 adult birds were distributed throughout the county this week — all on land open to public hunting.

Chuck Thousand, 62, of Sandy Creek, plans to be out this weekend hunting birds with Adi, his 2-year-old golden retriever.

“Pheasants are beautiful birds. And when you’re out there working your dog on a sunny day, with all the fall colors — there’s no greater experience,” he said.

The added extra is pheasant meat is delicious.

Chris Yard, of Fabius, said he either grills the meat or fries it in a pan with bacon.

“There’s a thousand different ways to do it,” he said.

Know the law

Pheasant hunting in the Southern and Northwestern zones open Saturday morning and the season lasts until Feb. 28. The daily bag limit is two birds.

Where to hunt

The state Department of Environmental Conservation lists stocking locations across the state on its website, www.dec.ny.gov. There is no such list for Onondaga County. To get in touch with the local pheasant scene, join a rod and gun club that helps stock the birds, or join the Central New York Chapter of Pheasants Forever. See cny.pheasantsforever.org.

View the full article on The Syracuse Outdoors Blog