2009 Upland Bird Forecast for parts of Iowa Kansas & Missouri For Pheasant and Quail

The 2009 - 2010 upland bird forecast begins where the 2008 - 2009 upland bird hunting season left off. That last season checkpoint as well as the current upland bird forecast as of June 2009 is posted below in the timeline as well as subsequent explanatory paragraphs.

This forecast time line is very similar to the previous two years.

Where we left off at the end of the 2008 - 2009 upland bird season.

The color green indicates huntable populations and red less huntable populations. 'P' for pheasant and 'Q' for quail.

This assessment being at the end of the upland bird hunting seasons for Kansas, Iowa and Missouri reflects carry over birds available for spring nesting and brooding.

From the end of 2008 - 2009 upland bird season through the spring May - June prime nesting and brood months we track winter weather events as a means to gauge carry over survival for breeding.

That assessment is posted using the same red, yellow, green relativity system

The trend of Kansas having more favorable conditions is held while Iowa and Missouri having more adverse winter weather believing to cause a decline in bird numbers.

May - June rainfall shows once again for the third consecutive spring that Kansas has had the best spring nesting and brood weather with Most of Missouri having the worst. South east Kansas, once one of the best Kansas Bobwhite Quail regions, continues its long time trend of having poor spring conditions.

South central Iowa while appearing very promising for a strong rebound this year is tempered by the previous two springs being poor weather for spring nest and brood survival and overall quail and pheasant numbers have been depressed. South central Iowa also shows that dispersed weather reporting stations may not always reflect actual weather conditions. South central Iowa did receive rainfall during the month of June however the recording station did not record any rainfall. The posted 4.9 inches was what was recorded in May. This is a condition we have had before that spotty rains leaving better hunting than anticipated as was demonstrated by Nemaha County, Kansas last year having a very good huntable quail population and poor pheasant. This was caused by an early in the nesting period poor weather with later and through summer good to great nesting/brooding conditions allowing the more prolific to breed quail the chance to increase their numbers. It appears Southern Iowa and northern Missouri may be such a case. This would be an area for a stop over and hunt to shorten the drive for anyone traveling from the north or east. Those that do hunt this region would best be served hunting past hot spots and gauging after that first day whether to continue in that area or move on to what appears will be better hunting for both pheasant and quail in Kansas.

July Through October 2009
This time period was largely uneventful. The weather's notable characteristic was frequent short duration and measure rainfalls. No adverse affect on ground birds detected. The cover habitat benefited the most and is universally as thick as it has ever been.

Past years adverse weather during this period has been drought as experienced in western kansas six seasons ago when cover was spare and predation very effective. For 2009 no such adverse weather condition occurred.

The bottom line is that for most of Kansas the Bobwhite Quail and pheasant populations are as good as they will get having enjoyed three consecutive light winters and dry springs. Missouri suffered the most with three consecutive wet springs and not recommended for upland bird hunts. Iowa is showing promise having a good spring hatch for 2009 on top of the previous two years being wet, or low survival springs. Iowa quail reproduction was encouraging and pheasants to a lessor degree. Should this winter be light and spring 2010 good for nesting and brood survival the Association southern Iowa land should be a good hunt.