The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1928-03-20
INSECT PESTS
ARE DEV0URED
BY new BIRDS
Crops of 400 Birds Opened By
Warden Revealed Only One
Quart Of Farm Products
BIRDS LIKE POTATO BUGS
Some Farmers Will rot Take
So For pheasants in Their
Alfalfa Fields

UNIFORMED farmers and business
Aen Of Burleigh county are raising
objection from time TO time over
the release of phcasants in different
parts Of the county, according 10
members of the Izaak Walton league
chapter of Bismarck which spon-
sored the propagation Of a game bird
not native to North Dakota.
Following is a statement OF one
man who was interested enough IN
pheasants to study their habits.
In a report to the Game and Fish
department on his observations 81
the ringnecked pheasant. Paul Far
rell, warden in the Excelsior terri
tory, Minnesota writes:
II have lived in the Mlnnetonka
game refuge region for some 10
years, and having worked in the
field as a game warden during q
considerable part Of that time. |
believe l have had as good an op-
portunity to observe the ringnecked
pheasant as anyone.
Has Studied Bird
81 have given particular study to
the bird during the past few years
and have made careful investigation
of the complaints lodged against It.
"There is no question but that the
pheasant causes some damage, as do
all birds and auimals which gather
their living in the fields. but it is
my honest opinion that this bird, IN
most cases, is worth its weight IN
gold to any farm or place it inhabits.
II have seen places where pleas
ants would work on certain crops,
such as corn and garden crops, in
some cases scratching out potatoes
and picking holes, much as a do
nestle hen would, but these cases
are very rare.
Opened 400 Birds
During the open season in 1926.
it was my privilege to check many
hunters, and whenever it was agree
able to them / would use my knife
to discover what the birds were feed
ing upon, at the same time asking
the location where the bird was killed
and what food was available in that
particular case. | can truthfully say
that Of the 400 odd birds l opened,
/ do not believe that there was one
quart Of farm products in the crops
of the entire lot; at least, there was
not to exceed 5 per cent Of grain
or farm products.
"Thcir principal food seemed to be
small brown seed found mostly
along the marshes. Many of them
had Toasted on bugs and worms, and
the majority of them had eaten
acorns, as many as 20 being found
in one bird.
Zone sometimes hears it CUES
toned why the spCrtsmen bring such
birds as the pheasant and Hungarian
partridge into the country. 1t is
my opinion that i the Hungarian
partridge is worth half as much as
the ringneck from a sporting stand
point or as an asset in the dcstruc-
ton of insect pests, b. all means
bring him on.
"Pick on Pheasant
when the pheasant walks out
into the open or appears in Il field,
he stands like monument and is
blamed for many offenses that he
has not committed In many cases.
he is picked on because he is so
good to eat, and is held more to be
desired on the table than in the
field.
Getting down to brass taelss, the
sportsmen had more real hunting
during the open season Of 1926 in
my locality than they had had for )
wears, and they are all looking for
ward to the next open season.
1.-THE pheasant is worthy Of great
deal from a sporting standpoint as
well as for its food value, and l am
sure it is worth every cent it has
cost Us to introduce It, and many
times more.
Zone bird was killed in a potato
patch, and upon opening it, the
remains Of "a potato bugs were
found. Two others were killed in an
alfalfa field BY mower, and these
contained the remains Of more than
SO grasshoppcrs. Those three birds
were not doing much damage. Some
farmers tell me they would not take
$25 each for the phcasants in their
alfalfa fields.
Il say, more support to the prop |
agation of this bird, and more
power to hint
-As