Pheasant-raising opportunity

Posted 8/21/12

LIBERTY, NY — Youth interested in participating in the annual Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC)’s Day-Old Pheasant Raise & Release program have the unique opportunity to experience …

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Pheasant-raising opportunity

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LIBERTY, NY — Youth interested in participating in the annual Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC)’s Day-Old Pheasant Raise & Release program have the unique opportunity to experience rearing pheasants and releasing them into the wild. Orders can be placed until Wednesday, March 11 through the 4-H Youth Development Program at Cornell Cooperative Extension Sullivan County (CCESC), located at the Gerald J. Skoda Extension Education Center on 64 Ferndale-Loomis Rd.

Daily care is necessary to monitor the health of young pheasants and to ensure that there is adequate feed and water for the rapidly growing chicks. The rearing and release of pheasants requires a great deal of responsibility by youth and a substantial time commitment.

When the program started in the early 1900s, pheasant eggs and chicks were distributed to farmers and rural youth. Today, day-old chicks are available at no cost to participants who are able to provide a brooding facility, a covered outdoor rearing pen and an adequate release site. According to the DEC, wild populations of this introduced species have reached all-time lows. Without propagation and release programs by DEC and private entities, pheasant hunting opportunities would not exist in New York State. The pheasants may be released beginning when they are eight weeks old and no later than December 1.

The program is funded through the state Conservation Fund from license fees paid by hunters, trappers and anglers.

For more information on the program or to register for chicks, email mml249@cornell.edu.

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