outdoors

Minnesota's 100,000 pheasant hunters will find out Tuesday what the state's pheasant population looks like when the Department of Natural Resources releases its annual August roadside count.

Last winter's heavy snow, loss of habitat and this spring's less-than-ideal nesting weather all likely spell trouble for pheasants and pheasant hunters.

"We're expecting the counts to be down,'' said Kurt Haroldson, DNR pheasant biologist.

"It was really a hard winter last year, especially in south-central and southwest Minnesota, our best pheasant range,'' he said.

Officials were hoping for ideal spring nesting weather and didn't get it. March, April and May were nearly perfect, "then June was cooler and wetter, which was unfortunate, because that's the peak of our hatch,'' Haroldson said. Newly hatched birds can die if they get cold and wet.

Last year hunters bagged 400,000 roosters -- the lowest number in seven years. The season opens Oct. 16.

An estimated $86 million is available for fish and wildlife projects next year under the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment, and there is no shortage of suggestions on how to spend it. The Lessard-Sams Outdoor Heritage Council received 44 proposals totaling $202 million. It eliminated some and recently heard pitches for 31 projects totaling $183 million. The 12-member group will sort through those and make recommendations this fall.

One proposal that already has been eliminated: a $443,000 DNR proposal for moist-soil management projects. The agency announced last January it would explore the idea of manipulating water on large areas to try to boost waterfowl habitat. It's labor-intensive and expensive, involving pumps. The DNR proposed feasibility studies on at least eight projects, and construction of three.

But the Lessard-Sams council members weren't impressed.

"I thought it was just an expensive Band-Aid,'' said member Jim Cox. "We just felt it was a poor use of funds. The problem is we don't have ducks and we're not producing ducks. It's not the solution. We need wetland-grassland [habitat] complexes.''

DNR officials said the council's decision is a setback, but that the agency will continue to explore moist-soil management. The DNR could reallocate some existing funds and will continue with planning and feasibility work, "so that when additional construction funds materialize, we can hopefully get some projects on the ground quickly,'' said Dave Schad, fish and wildlife chief.

The DNR has sold about 1.153 million fishing licenses through August, nearly the same as this time last year. But this year's figure includes the sale of about 31,000 walleye stamps, 25,000 more than were sold all last year. That huge boost likely is because the DNR increased promotion of the voluntary $5 stamps, which pay for additional walleye stocking. Without the increased stamp sales, total fishing license sales would be down by about 25,000.

Nearly 300 rifles, shotguns and bows seized by conservation officers will be auctioned by the DNR Sept. 18 at the Hiller Auction Barn in Zimmerman. A list will be posted at www.hillerauction.com. Questions? Call 763-856-2453 or 1-800-889-3450 or go to khauction@sherbtel.net.

Citizens can tell the DNR what kinds of facilities and experiences they would like at the new Vermilion State Park through a questionnaire at www.mndnr.gov\vermilion. Answers will be used by DNR staff and the park's Citizens Advisory Committee to guide the master planning process.

Deer hunters who use a firearm or muzzleloader in a lottery area and want to harvest an antlerless deer must apply for an either-sex permit by Thursday. Nearly half of Minnesota's deer permit areas now are lottery areas. Without an antlerless permit, hunters in those areas can only harvest a buck.

• The possession limit for ducks and most geese in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta now is triple the daily bag limit. In Manitoba, that means hunters can take eight ducks daily and a total of 24 in possession. The possession limit used to be twice the daily bag. Ontario also has boosted its possession limits. If you're heading north for waterfowl, check regulations.