THE PHEASANT FARM

For a multitude of reasons, a program started in the 1930s to reintroduce pheasants to Wyoming hasn't been overwhelmingly successful. But it was such a hit with hunters that each year around 25,000 pheasants are released into the wild -- 13,000 to 16,000 from the Downar Bird Farm and 12,000 fro...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inWyoming tribune-eagle
Main Author Glover, Paula
Format Newspaper Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Cheyenne, Wyo Wyoming Tribune-Eagle 14.06.2001
Subjects
Harju, Harry
Schafer, Steve
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Summary:For a multitude of reasons, a program started in the 1930s to reintroduce pheasants to Wyoming hasn't been overwhelmingly successful. But it was such a hit with hunters that each year around 25,000 pheasants are released into the wild -- 13,000 to 16,000 from the Downar Bird Farm and 12,000 from the original bird farm near Sheridan. [Steve Schafer]'s life is dominated by the birds. He works Game and Fish as the superintendent at Downar. Throughout the year he and full- time bird farm biologist Bruce Lebsack are either collecting eggs in the spring, incubating more than 25,000 eggs or monitoring the growth and release of the pheasants in the fall and winter. Efforts to raise and release pheasants are less than successful because the wild birds aren't adept at raising their chicks, [Harry Harju] said. It seems that the birds need the example of being raised by wild parents to figure out how to do it once they are released in the wild.
ISSN:1075-783X