By Renee Tomala

You don’t have to look any further than the dashboards of passing vehicles adorned with blaze orange caps to see signs that fall hunting season is in full swing here in North Dakota. I’m one of those people who savor every single fall day, except for the ones touting temperatures anywhere around and above 65 degrees, those ones you can keep. I would give anything to slow down the turning of the pages on the calendar this time of year. That being said, I’m already looking ahead to spring. Contradictory, right? Hear me out.

You see we’re currently in, and heading towards more of, the best time of the year to truly see the difference that quality habitat on the landscape makes. As the “Habitat Organization,” it’s the perfect time for us at Pheasants Forever to take a good, long, hard look at our efforts. Whether you’re a conservationist, hunter, landowner, bird nerd, volunteer of organizations like ours, or a hodge podge of the above, for most of us this is the time of year that our boots spend the greatest amount of time traversing our uplands.

While in pursuit of our beloved game birds and their fellow critters, we’re as immersed in their habitat as we can be. Similarly, there’s no other time of the year when we’re putting on our (insert choice of pheasant, deer, grouse, partridge, elk, moose, or other species here) hat more than when we’re actively pursuing them. As hunters, we’re looking pretty darn critically at the quality of vegetation and escape cover, proximity of food sources, thermal cover as the snow drifts in and out, and various other aspects of their fall habits so that we are successful in our endeavors.

So then, what better time to analyze those habitat components, or more importantly, the lack of? We should all be of the mindset that we need to be creating more of the cover that we hope and expect will be holding birds. Now is the time for us to see firsthand whether our wildlife have what they need in the year ahead to withstand our weather, whether that be brutal winter months, bouts of drought, or hailstorms. As our fall growing season comes to an end and the last of our crops come off, will the landscape as it currently sits be good enough to sustain healthy populations?

We’re relegated to being a passive bystander as winter settles over North Dakota, beyond any possibility of taking action in giving our wildlife what they need to survive the brutal wind, snow drifts, and plummeting temperatures. I know as well as any North Dakotan that mother nature can be quite unforgiving over the winter months, leaving the landscape seemingly desolate. You’ll notice tree rows that weren’t planted with wildlife in mind have accumulated a deadly amount of snow, all but the stiff-stemmed vegetation has become void of any value, food is a bit harder to come by, and so on. It’s those winter months when quality habitat can really shine and be pivotal in a make-it-or-break-it situation for our birds.

It can be daunting to undertake habitat projects, so know that we’re here to help. Our ND Pheasants Forever team is comprised of biologists, bird enthusiasts, outdoor fiends, and pyros (for the sake of habitat enhancement). We have Precision Ag & Conservation Specialists that are ready and willing to work alongside you to achieve the conservation goals you have for your land. For operators and growers, they’re here to improve your bottom line and decrease your input by implementing conservation solutions through analyzing data and site visits. For all landowners, they’re here to create habitat guides, provide seeding recommendations and technical guidance. Did I mention that it’s all completely free and landowner-led?

If you haven’t already, we encourage you to join us in making those mental notes for the habitat work to be done in the spring when our grasses and wildflowers, along with ourselves, come out of dormancy. Cheers to always working towards a more bountiful, beautiful state to call home!

Renee Tomala is a Dakota Edge Outdoors contributing writer and a Senior Field Representative with North Dakota Pheasants Forever.

By Renee Tomala

You don’t have to look any further than the dashboards of passing vehicles adorned with blaze orange caps to see signs that fall hunting season is in full swing here in North Dakota. I’m one of those people who savor every single fall day, except for the ones touting temperatures anywhere around and above 65 degrees, those ones you can keep. I would give anything to slow down the turning of the pages on the calendar this time of year. That being said, I’m already looking ahead to spring. Contradictory, right? Hear me out.

You see we’re currently in, and heading towards more of, the best time of the year to truly see the difference that quality habitat on the landscape makes. As the “Habitat Organization,” it’s the perfect time for us at Pheasants Forever to take a good, long, hard look at our efforts. Whether you’re a conservationist, hunter, landowner, bird nerd, volunteer of organizations like ours, or a hodge podge of the above, for most of us this is the time of year that our boots spend the greatest amount of time traversing our uplands.

While in pursuit of our beloved game birds and their fellow critters, we’re as immersed in their habitat as we can be. Similarly, there’s no other time of the year when we’re putting on our (insert choice of pheasant, deer, grouse, partridge, elk, moose, or other species here) hat more than when we’re actively pursuing them. As hunters, we’re looking pretty darn critically at the quality of vegetation and escape cover, proximity of food sources, thermal cover as the snow drifts in and out, and various other aspects of their fall habits so that we are successful in our endeavors.

So then, what better time to analyze those habitat components, or more importantly, the lack of? We should all be of the mindset that we need to be creating more of the cover that we hope and expect will be holding birds. Now is the time for us to see firsthand whether our wildlife have what they need in the year ahead to withstand our weather, whether that be brutal winter months, bouts of drought, or hailstorms. As our fall growing season comes to an end and the last of our crops come off, will the landscape as it currently sits be good enough to sustain healthy populations?

We’re relegated to being a passive bystander as winter settles over North Dakota, beyond any possibility of taking action in giving our wildlife what they need to survive the brutal wind, snow drifts, and plummeting temperatures. I know as well as any North Dakotan that mother nature can be quite unforgiving over the winter months, leaving the landscape seemingly desolate. You’ll notice tree rows that weren’t planted with wildlife in mind have accumulated a deadly amount of snow, all but the stiff-stemmed vegetation has become void of any value, food is a bit harder to come by, and so on. It’s those winter months when quality habitat can really shine and be pivotal in a make-it-or-break-it situation for our birds.

It can be daunting to undertake habitat projects, so know that we’re here to help. Our ND Pheasants Forever team is comprised of biologists, bird enthusiasts, outdoor fiends, and pyros (for the sake of habitat enhancement). We have Precision Ag & Conservation Specialists that are ready and willing to work alongside you to achieve the conservation goals you have for your land. For operators and growers, they’re here to improve your bottom line and decrease your input by implementing conservation solutions through analyzing data and site visits. For all landowners, they’re here to create habitat guides, provide seeding recommendations and technical guidance. Did I mention that it’s all completely free and landowner-led?

If you haven’t already, we encourage you to join us in making those mental notes for the habitat work to be done in the spring when our grasses and wildflowers, along with ourselves, come out of dormancy. Cheers to always working towards a more bountiful, beautiful state to call home!

Renee Tomala is a Dakota Edge Outdoors contributing writer and a Senior Field Representative with North Dakota Pheasants Forever.

Featured Photo: As winter sets in, hunters and conservationists get an idea of how effective the habitat on the ground is in protecting wildlife and preventing seasonal mortality. Simonson Photo.