Syracuse.com - Fall pheasant hunting season opener in CNY set for Oct. 1

[HuntingNY-News]

For the fifth consecutive year, junior hunters (12-15 years old) have the opportunity to hunt pheasants the weekend prior to the opening of regular pheasant hunting season. In the northern and eastern zones, the youth hunt is this Saturday and Sunday.

The following is a DEC press release:

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) today announced that approximately 30,000 adult pheasants will be released on lands open to public hunting for the upcoming Fall pheasant hunting season. The pheasant hunting season begins on Oct. 1 in northern and eastern portions of New York; Oct. 15 in central and western portions of New York, and Nov. 1 on Long Island.

For the fifth consecutive year, junior hunters (12-15 years old) have the opportunity to hunt pheasants the weekend prior to the opening of regular pheasant hunting season.

In northern and eastern New York, the youth pheasant hunt weekend is this Saturday and Sunday. In western New York, the youth pheasant hunt weekend is Oct. 8-9.

Pheasants will be released on a number of select sites across the state to provide ample youth hunting opportunities (see table below). All current pheasant hunting rules and regulations remain in effect during the youth hunt.

In addition to the upstate youth hunts, DEC is working to establish a youth pheasant hunt on Long Island (Nassau and Suffolk counties) this Fall.

Legislation authorizing a youth hunt on Long Island was signed by Governor Cuomo in August, and DEC initiated a regulatory proposal that, if adopted, would have the youth hunt held on the last full weekend in October (Oct. 29-30, 2011).

Pheasants would be released prior to that weekend at certain sites. To review the proposal and submit comments visit the "Proposed Regulations" page on the DEC website. The public comment period on this proposal is open and comments will be accepted through Oct. 3.

The pheasants will be released on state-owned wildlife management areas and cooperative hunting areas prior to and during the Fall hunting season. All release sites for pheasants raised via state-funded programs are open to public hunting. A list of statewide adult pheasant release sites and sites receiving birds for the youth pheasant hunt weekends can be found on DEC's website:

The Day-old Pheasant Chick Program provides additional opportunities for pheasant hunters. This program was developed in the early 1900s to provide day-old pheasant chicks to cooperating 4-H groups and sportsmen and sportswomen.

The chicks are distributed to program participants in May and June, and cooperators incur all costs associated with rearing the birds, including feed, water, utilities and facility construction. The birds are raised to adulthood and released on lands open to public hunting before the season opens. This year, nearly 46,000 pheasant chicks were distributed statewide as part of this program.

Anyone interested in raising and releasing pheasants to expand next year's hunting opportunities should contact DEC's Reynolds Game Farm at (607) 273-2768.

Boundaries for pheasant hunting zones conform to Wildlife Management Units used for management of other wildlife. Wildlife Management Unit boundary descriptions can be found on the DEC website. In addition to knowing these unit boundary descriptions, hunters should review the 2011-2012 New York Hunting & Trapping guide for complete regulations and other important information before going afield.

Hunters who plan to use private lands should ask permission from the landowner prior to accessing those lands. See the DEC Web site for a list of pheasant release sites.

View the full article on The Syracuse Outdoors Blog