Minnesota Wildlife

Pheasant hunting opens this weekend

The Minnesota pheasant hunting season opens at 9 a.m., Saturday, Oct. 15. Make sure to check regulations before heading out into the field. Pheasant hunters ages 16-64 must purchase a?small game license and pheasant stamp. Also, all pheasant hunters must wear at least one visible article of clothing above the waist that is?blaze orange or pink. Bag and possession limits, pheasant transportation requirements, a hunting prospects map and more information are available on the DNR pheasant hunting webpage.

Anyone curious about learning how to hunt pheasants can watch a recorded DNR webinar about pheasant hunting strategies, techniques and how to get started.

Pheasants Forever, DNR join forces to get new hunters into fields, forests

The DNR and Pheasants Forever are inviting hunters to join the Hunter Mentor Challenge and take someone hunting who has never hunted before or has not hunted in a while.

When Minnesota hunters make a pledge through the Hunter Mentor Challenge to take a new hunter to the fields or forests, they will qualify for a discount code for ALPS OutdoorZ gear and be entered to win a custom YETI cooler from Pheasants Forever.

The program is open to all types of hunting in Minnesota that are legal and in-season ? including but not limited to pheasants, grouse, waterfowl, squirrels, deer or wild turkey in the fall and spring. People can also participate by taking someone hunting who hasn?t hunted for a few years.

Participation is simple: hunters visit the DNR page on the Pheasants Forever website where they take the pledge. After taking the pledge, hunters are asked to take action by mentoring a novice or returning hunter during the 2022-23 season and snapping a picture or short video of the hunting trip. The last step is to submit contact information, a story and a photo or video on the submission page to be entered for prize giveaways. All online entries must be received by June 30, 2023.

The DNR has helpful information for new hunters and experienced hunters who would like to become mentors. To learn more, visit the DNR hunting mentor page.

DNR webinars cover CWD information, tundra swans

We?ve got webinars coming up on?CWD testing requirements and other CWD-related information, as well as the tundra swan migration. Registration is free for these webinars.

The first webinar is at noon Wednesday, Oct. 19. Logan Neu, with the DNR wildlife health program, will highlight changes to Minnesota deer hunting permit areas and new hunting opportunities, CWD testing requirements and options, and other important information related to deer hunting in areas with confirmed or suspected cases of CWD.

The second webinar is at noon Wednesday, Oct. 26. Mary Stefanski, Winona district manager for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, will share the fascinating migration of tundra swans, their life story and how you can view them up close before they head south for the year. The tundra swan migration is a highlight of the fall on the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge. At its peak, which usually occurs the second week of November, there can be as many as 50,000 swans on the refuge primarily between Wabasha and Brownsville.