By Bill Hilts Jr.
“Easy!” shouted Bruce Blakelock of Lewiston. He was instructing Jack, his Munsterlander, to stay on point while the other hunters — Karen and Bob Cinelli of Newfane, as well as this writer, moved into position.
Jack was a statue as he peered into the grass protruding from the snow. While we couldn’t see the bird, he could smell it. Bruce proceeded to flush the bird and out flew a Chukar, one of 14 planted in this Cambria field. One shot, one bird as it exploded from underneath Blakelock’s boots. Well, maybe it was two shots. This time, it was Bob doing the shooting. Jack retrieved the small game bird and dropped it at the feet of his master.
It was a beautiful morning. Overcast skies, a light breeze and temperatures around the 30 degree mark. There was some snow on the ground, but not too much. We were able to keep the white stuff out of our boots with the exception of the time I fell into an animal den hole that had been covered up by the snow — right up to my waist — and the time that Bruce was walking a ditch line and went in over the top of his foot wear. Each instance brought laughs from the peanut gallery. I think I twisted my back, affecting my shooting for the morning. That’s what I’m sticking with.
The shooting itself brought a fair share of criticism, too. There was pressure with every shot. If you missed, then the other three witnesses would immediately point out that person’s shortcomings. For the most part, everyone did very well with only two birds escaping the aim of the hunters or the perseverance of the dog. In the end, Jack flushed all 14 birds and even added a pheasant to the lot. Good food for the dinner table and some great fellowship with friends and canine.
Cambria Game Farms — which can be reached by calling 434-5003 — offers this type of winter hunting alternative to keep those dogs working after the seasons close (shooting preserves are generally open until March 31). One season in particular is pheasant. The season normally runs from the third Saturday in October until the Friday before the regular deer season in November here along the Lake Ontario plains — a cocks-only area. In the Southern Tier and the eastern portion of the state, cocks and hens may be taken through Dec. 31. With New York’s pheasant numbers down by 90 percent or more since the peak in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the state released their 10 year management plan for ringnecks earlier this month. For the most part, the news isn’t good.
We know why pheasant numbers declined. Loss of habitat like fallow grasslands for nesting and brood-rearing; the use of pesticides; an increase in predators like hawks, owls, foxes and coyotes; expanding development; and changes in agricultural practices. While groups like Pheasants Forever work hard to re-establish critical habitat for these birds, it will never be like it once was. While the state will continue to concentrate on a focus area in Western New York for wild pheasant management, sportsmen will continue to rely heavily on the birds reared by the state.
Expect the following changes to take place in the near future: Extended pheasant hunting season in most areas of the state to provide greater opportunities; reducing the size of the cocks-only area in Western New York; discontinuing the young pheasant release program after 2010, while continuing with the Cooperative Day-Old Chick Program; increasing adult pheasant production from 25,000 to 30,000 birds beginning in 2011; discontinuing the supply of adult birds for field trials; and establishing one or more pheasant hunting areas for people with disabilities.
If you’d like a copy of the 21-page plan, log on to www.dec.ny.gov/animals/7071.html or call 607-273-3763 to request a hard copy.
Money woes
Of course, license sales are a key component to continuing programs like this pheasant program in the state. We almost lost it last year. Some of the concerns stem from what’s going to happen with the huge number of lifetime licenses that have been sold just prior to the most recent license fee increase. That increase will mean a double whammy for sportsmen.
First, it’s a no brainer that the license fee increase will mean fewer licenses will be purchase in the coming year. Past history substantiates that as some sportsmen refuse to ante up and pay the extra ducats. I saw that happen several times last fall when sportsmen came into license issuing agents and walked right out when they found out about the increase — especially if they fell in the 65- to 69-year-old age bracket. Rather than buy a lifetime license, they simply hung the boots up rather than “give the state” any more money. Money from license sales is actually earmarked for the Conservation Fund and must be used for hunting and fishing programs.
Still, there will be fewer people buying licenses in 2010 — especially when the word gets out to nonresidents. Anglers that arrived on the scene from out of state in October (the start of a new license year) were shocked to find out about the increase. Because many of them were already here, they paid the money for a license. However, many of those people said that they would not return. It has to be a serious concern and I predict that it will have an effect on how the state does business.
The other important consideration is the huge number of lifetime licenses sold in the state just prior to the Oct. 1 increase. We mentioned in an earlier column that lifetime license sales was 2,536 in 2007-08 and 3,168 in 2008-09. For 2009-10, lifetime license sales jumped to 87,656. In the words of Billy Fuccillo, that’s huge! Your initial reaction is probably — wow, that has to be a ton of extra money! Well, it is. Gross license sales in 2009-10 jumped to $51.8 million, up from $27.9 million the previous year. The bad thing is that money for lifetime licenses goes into a trust fund and only a small percentage of that fund is transferred into the Conservation Fund to offset the dollar value of the licenses sold. To date, there has not been a year when the money transferred from the trust fund totally offset the cost of those licenses.
For example, in 2004-05, the value of the licenses sold was $793,473. The money transferred was $203,781. In 2005-06, the money transferred was $464,941 but the license value was $876,000. Then you have to factor in a whole new consideration. Due to the fact that it has been mandated that everyone have a copy of the regulations booklets that are printed up each year, they are required to mail out a copy to all the lifetime license holders. Mailing costs alone will probably exceed $100,000 — money they don’t have.
Sounds like someone needs to make some changes and quickly. Talk about a waste, the inside word is that up to half of all the fishing regulations guides are thrown out because they simply aren’t picked up from license issuing agents. Since all the regulations are now on the internet, license buyers should be able to check off that they will look at or read the regs on the internet to save some much needed dollars for the real fish and wildlife programs. If not, DEC will be falling further into the hole, along with sportsmen and women.
Bill Hilts Jr. is a past president of the New York State Outdoor Writers Association. Contact him at bhiltsjr69@cs.com.
