Are you ready for upland season?

The beginning of November brings the start of upland hunting season in Ohio.

Upland season — ringedneck pheasants, bobwhite quail, ruffed grouse and chukar — and rabbit season used to be a big deal back in the day. Dad took off work and kids were taken out of school to enjoy the first day of the season. Today, if you are under 50 you may never have enjoyed an upland hunt, the point of a bird dog, the flush of a pheasant, quail or grouse or the sound of a beagle on the rail of a rabbit. Those were the sounds and scenes around Ohio during upland seasons of years gone by.

Today, hunting in the state is driven by deer and turkey. Take away those two and it’s been said Ohio would lose 85% of hunting license sales. For me, I still look forward to opening day of the upland season with as much excitement and anticipation that I always have.

Let’s break down what the upland opportunities are this season with our state experts.

Ruffed Grouse

Mark Wiley, the O hio Departme n t of Nat u r al Resources Division of Wild- life game bird biologist, said the population level and flush rates remain low. On average, Ohio hunters flushed one grouse per four hours afield during the 2020- 21 season, he said. Similar flush rates are expected this season. Wiley said hunter surveys suggest grouse can be found within localized pockets of young forest

habitat.

Turkey

Wiley said the wild turkey reproductive index (poults per hen) was above average in 2021 following several consecutive years of below average numbers. Ohio’s fall turkey harvest trend typically mirrors the trend of the poult index, suggesting the 2021 season will have slightly higher success rates and total harvest than observed in recent years.

Pheasant and quail

Joseph Lautenbach, a wildlife biologist for ODNR, said wildlife production areas (WPAS) offer some excellent opportunities. Most of these areas are located in central and southwest Ohio, Many provide excellent grass cover used by pheasants. Lautenbach said recent surveys suggest the majority of these properties have pheasants. Many WPAS also support wild quail, but quail can no longer be harvested on public lands in Ohio. Most WPAS are quite small (100 acres) and a few can be visited the same day. To find

a list of the WPAS, visit wildohio.gov.

Deer Creek, Big Island and Lake La Su An Wildlife areas also support populations of wild pheasant. Many private lands in central and northwest Ohio do as well.

For a number of years, Ohio has released pheasant for hunting opportunities. Rush Run Wildlife Area is one of those place. Bryan Dorsey, the manager at Rush Run, said 100 birds were released Saturday and 100 more will be released on Thanksgiving Day.

Consult your current hunting regulations for seasons and bag limits.

Until next time, enjoy the outdoors.