In This Issue
A weekly list of news briefs about fish, wildlife, and habitat management.
Youth waterfowl weekend is Sept. 9-10
During the youth waterfowl hunt Sept. 9-10, youth hunters will have a special opportunity to learn how to hunt waterfowl with an adult who is not hunting. During the two-day hunt, waterfowl hunters 17 and younger, when accompanied by a non-hunting adult 18 and older, can take ducks, geese, mergansers, coots and moorhens from a half hour before sunrise to sunset. Hunters should review important details about participating in this hunt on page 8 of the Minnesota Waterfowl Regulations (mndnr.gov/regulations/hunting).
Throughout Minnesota, the youth waterfowl weekend happens when many people are engaged in a wide range of water-based activities, including harvesting wild rice. The Minnesota DNR urges all over-water waterfowl hunters to be aware of and cautious about people participating in other activities on the water, no matter where they hunt.
Winner chosen for waterfowl stamp contest
 Albert Lea artist Mark Kness won the Minnesota waterfowl stamp contest with an acrylic painting of a ring-neck duck. Jake Levisen of Austin earned second place with a ring-neck duck painting done in open acrylics, soft body acrylics and water-mixable oils. Third place went to Stephen Hamrick of Lakeville with a painting of a ring-neck duck done in acrylic on illustration board. The winners were selected out of 13 eligible submissions. The waterfowl stamp can be purchased in combination with a hunting license, or as a collectable. Visit the Minnesota DNR website (mndnr.gov/stamps) for more information about habitat stamps and contest guidelines.
Reminder: Deer lottery application deadline is Sept. 7
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources reminds firearm and muzzleloader hunters who want to harvest antlerless deer in a deer permit area designated as antlerless permit lottery this hunting season to purchase their license by Thursday, Sept. 7. Hunters who purchase their license on or before this date are automatically entered into the lottery for the deer permit area or special hunt area they declare.
Successful applicants will receive a postcard in the mail authorizing them to take an antlerless deer using their regular license in that antlerless permit lottery area. No application is needed to take antlerless deer in permit areas with either sex, two-deer limit, three-deer limit or five-deer limit designations.
Hunters who want to participate in special firearm or muzzleloader deer hunts also need to apply for permits that are issued through a lottery. That application deadline is also Sept. 7.
More information about designations and regulations for deer permit areas, as well as details about special hunt opportunities, are available on the Minnesota DNR website (mndnr.gov/hunting/deer) and in the 2023 Minnesota Hunting and Trapping Regulations Handbook, available online and in print wherever Minnesota DNR licenses are sold.
Minnesota Twins offer free hats
Anyone with a 2023 Minnesota fishing or hunting license can receive a free special edition orange Minnesota Twins logo cap and a ticket discount from the Minnesota Twins through a partnership between the Twins and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
The final DNR Days at the Twins game for this season is 1:10 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 9 vs. the New York Mets. Promotion details, instructions for purchasing tickets, and information on buying a fishing or hunting license are available on the Minnesota DNR Days webpage (mndnr.gov/twins). Tickets must be purchased ahead of time using a special DNR link (twins.com/dnr) to receive this offer.
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Registration open for new sessions of the Minnesota Outdoor Skills and Stewardship Series
With summer waning, fall outdoor activities are around the corner. Anyone who wants to experience the outdoors in a new way can boost their fishing, hunting, habitat and outdoors know-how with webinars from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
?Fall is a time to savor the outdoors and for those doing the same activities year after year, I?d offer that our webinars are a great first step toward broadening your outdoors horizons,? said Benji Kohn, volunteer mentor program coordinator.
The webinars are part of the Minnesota Outdoor Skills and Stewardship Series that started in March 2021, with new webinars this fall on topics that will appeal to people interested in nature, including anglers and hunters. The live webinars are at noon on Wednesdays and last an hour or less. All webinars are live-captioned, recorded and made available on the Minnesota DNR website (mndnr.gov/discover), and the recordings are popular with those who can?t make the live events.
Fall webinar topics include hunting deer with a crossbow, woodcock hunting, sandhill cranes, planning a bird hunting road trip, fall turkey hunting, fall fishing tips, ciscos in Minnesota lakes, knife care, elk in Minnesota, the No Child Left Inside Grant Program, planning a wilderness canoe trip, plant diseases like galls on goldenrod, and emerald ash borers.
In this week?s webinar on Wednesday, Sept. 6, Kraig Kiger, DNR shooting sports specialist, and Morgan Sussman, DNR public information coordinator, will share their experiences as successful crossbow hunters. They will talk about how crossbow equipment differs from traditional archery equipment, related hunting strategies, and ways to get ready to try crossbow hunting this fall.
In the following webinar on Wednesday, Sept. 13, Lindsey Shartell, DNR northeast regional wildlife manager, will discuss everything about the American woodcock. She will cover where to find woodcock in Minnesota, how to hunt them, using dogs, appropriate guns, ammo and more.
The webinars are free, and participants must pre-register. More information, including fall session topics and how to register, is available on the outdoor skills and stewardship page of the Minnesota DNR website (mndnr.gov/discover).
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Once Minnesota?s archery deer season opens Saturday, Sept. 16, hunters will be clad in camouflage sitting in tree stand perches or concealed spots on the ground, watching and enjoying time outdoors.
As about 100,000 Minnesota archery hunters look forward to the season, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is encouraging them to make a plan for the season by considering safety, hunting regulations, chronic wasting disease and steps they need to take to process their deer.
?This archery season is the first time we?ll have crossbows allowed for all hunters, and there are a number of other regulation changes that hunters need to be aware of before they head out,? said Barbara Keller, Minnesota DNR big game program leader. ?It?s critical for hunters to consider these changes, think ahead and make a plan for a safe, successful and enjoyable season.?
Crossbows are allowed for all deer hunters with an archery license, a new change signed into law this year. Additionally, synthetic ground blinds on public lands are required to have blaze orange covering during firearms seasons, some chronic wasting disease zones have changed, and some harvest limits have changed. Many deer permit areas in northeast and north-central Minnesota have reduced harvest limits, while DPAs in south-central Minnesota have increased harvest limits.
Archery hunters will be asked whether they harvested their deer with a crossbow or vertical bow when they register their deer. Before this season, crossbows were only allowed for hunters 60 years or older, individuals with a disability who had a valid permit, or any hunter with a valid firearms license hunting during the firearms season.
The blaze orange on ground blinds change applies during open firearms seasons on public land and requires that fabric or synthetic blinds must have a blaze orange safety covering on top of the blind that is visible from all directions, or a patch made of blaze orange that is at least 144 square inches (12x12 inches) on each side of the blind.
Hunters should know the DPA number of the area they plan to hunt prior to buying a license and ensure they understand CWD regulations and sampling options for that particular area. Archery hunters can use the DPA lookup tool on the Minnesota DNR?s make a plan for deer season webpage (mndnr.gov/deerhunt) to check if the DPA they plan to hunt has carcass movement restrictions, or has deer feeding or attractant bans in place.
CWD sampling options (mndnr.gov/cwd/cwd-testing.html) include requesting a mail-in kit (mndnr.gov/cwd/cwd-kits.html) before hunting or utilizing kits obtained but not used last year. Hunters may participate in the partner sampling program (mndnr.gov/cwd/cwd-partners.html). Hunters can also make an appointment to have their deer sampled at Minnesota DNR area wildlife offices. Contact information is available on the Minnesota DNR website (mndnr.gov/areas/wildlife).
Archery hunters are also reminded that blaze orange clothing is required during the youth and early antlerless seasons from Thursday, Oct. 19, through Sunday, Oct. 22, and during any other open firearms season. Deer hunting regulations are available on the Minnesota DNR?s deer hunting webpage (mndnr.gov/hunting/deer) and in the hunting and trapping regulations booklet.
Deer season dates for 2023
- Archery: Saturday, Sept. 16, through Sunday, Dec. 31
- Youth and early antlerless: Thursday, Oct. 19, through Sunday, Oct. 22
- Firearms: Saturday, Nov. 4, with various closing dates depending on a hunter?s location
- Muzzleloader: Saturday, Nov. 25, through Sunday, Dec. 10
- Late CWD hunt (DPAs 605, 643, 645, 646, 647, 648 and 649) Dec. 15-17.
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Outside southwest and west central areas, other areas in pheasant range see declines
Southwest region pheasant numbers saw significant, triple-digit increases in the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources? annual roadside pheasant survey.
?Pheasant hunters certainly have reason to cheer in the southwest region this year and we also saw increases in the west central portions of the state,? said Tim Lyons, Minnesota DNR upland game research scientist. ?Other regions saw declines in pheasant numbers, possibly because of more severe winter weather, and more severe drought during breeding season.?
The pheasant index increased 101% in the southwest region and 38% in the west central region. Other areas saw decreases in pheasant numbers, with numbers dropping 39% in the central, 63% in the east central, 11% in the south central and 50% in the southeast regions.
Statewide, pheasants averaged a 10% increase from 2022 and 26% above the 10-year average. This year?s statewide pheasant index was 53 birds per 100 miles of roads driven, compared to 48 in 2022.
Weather and habitat are the main influences on Minnesota?s pheasant population trends. Weather causes annual fluctuations in pheasant numbers, while habitat drives long-term population trends. Shifts this year are due to weather conditions, with pheasant populations benefiting from favorable weather conditions in the southwest and west central areas. Long term, there is nothing to suggest that some areas? increase in pheasant numbers will continue as a trend, given that there is not a corresponding increase in habitat.
The Minnesota pheasant hunting season opens 9 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 14.
Partridge numbers increase
Gray (Hungarian) partridge is a less frequently encountered game bird, and partridge numbers increased in this year?s roadside survey. Partridge numbers ticked up in the southwest region, from 2.7 in 2022 to 7.6 birds per 100 miles driven in 2023. The northwest saw the largest boom, with an increase from 2.2 to 14.9 birds per 100 miles driven.
?While some of the increase in partridge numbers could be due to expected, year-to-year fluctuations in the survey, we are hearing from area offices that they?re also seeing more partridge in those areas than they have recent memory,? Lyons said. ?Hunters could have some excellent partridge hunting opportunities this season.?
Habitat factors
Conservation Reserve Program acres play a large role in providing habitat for pheasants in Minnesota. The program, authorized under the federal Farm Bill, pays farmers to remove environmentally sensitive land from agricultural production and restore vegetation that will reduce soil erosion, improve water quality, and provide habitat for wildlife and pollinators.
The long-term downward trend in CRP enrollment persisted in 2023, with a loss of 18,000 acres in the pheasant range. The impact of the lost CRP acreage was somewhat mitigated by increases in land enrolled in easement programs like the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program and Reinvest in Minnesota as well as acquisitions by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and by the Minnesota DNR offset some of the losses of CRP. Overall, there was a net loss of approximately 9,000 acres of protected habitat compared to 2022.
Pheasant hunting areas
Many publicly owned lands are open to hunting, as are private lands enrolled in the state?s Walk-in-Access program (mndnr.gov/walkin). Hunters can use the Minnesota DNR?s online mapping tools to find WMAs by accessing the WMA finder (mndnr.gov/wmas), and the Minnesota DNR Recreation Compass (mndnr.gov/maps/compass) to help locate state hunting grounds and private lands enrolled in the Walk-In Access program, including updates on the condition of specific properties.
Additional resources
The 2023 August Roadside Survey report, a map of pheasant hunting prospects, data for other surveyed species, and information on hunting regulations and bag limits are available on the Minnesota DNR pheasant hunting webpage (mndnr.gov/hunting/pheasant).
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