In the Weeds: June 2008
"In the Weeds" takes a closer look at the projects, events and happenings of the over 700 PF/QF chapters and 127,000 PF/QF members across the country.
Pheasants Forever, DNR Partner on 477-Acre Addition to Wood Lake WMA
The Brown County Chapter of Pheasants Forever and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) recently worked in tandem to acquire a 477-acre addition to the Wood Lake Wildlife Management Area (WMA) in Brown County. The new addition is open to the public for outdoor recreational activities and hunting options that include upland game, deer and waterfowl.
The new portion of the Wood Lake WMA is located five miles east on CSAH 17 and a half-mile north on CSAH 8 from Comfrey, Minnesota. "The local Brown County PF chapter and the DNR really came through in their partnership to create this substantial WMA addition," said Scott Roemhildt, regional representative for PF in Southern Minnesota. "It is great to see some of the state's bonding funds for WMA acquisition come to the aid of pheasants and pheasant hunters. We applaud the legislature for making projects like this happen by bonding for WMA acquisition."
Long time PF supporter Gary Rathman originally owned 320 acres of the land, with the remaining acreage belonging to both he and his siblings. All of the 477 acres were previously enrolled within the federal Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) and were seen as being a true habitat haven by PF. "Since it was already set aside as CRP land, there are 477 acres of unbroken grassland. This is very rare for this part of the state," explained Jeremy Berg, secretary chair for the Brown County chapter, "It's a real gem, especially since it was already adjacent to a previously established WMA."
As part of the Wood Lake WMA, the DNR is continuing to manage the land to create the best wildlife habitat possible. "We have already completed controlled burns on the acquired acres this spring and we plan to begin wetland restoration projects as soon as possible," added Jeff Zajac, DNR area wildlife manager at Redwood Falls, "This land provides a core habitat base for wildlife in the area and will be managed so it will always be home to good numbers of pheasants and other farmland wildlife."
"We want to continue to build around this WMA by working closely with local landowners," explained Berg, "You'd be hard pressed to find a parcel of land this well suited for upland game. We have to continue to develop our land acquisition efforts as well as work with private landowners to enroll in Farm Bill conservation programs like the new SAFE practice."
For more information on this new habitat area, contact Zajac at (507)637-4076 or via email at jeff.zajac@dnr.state.mn.us. For additional information about the Brown County chapter of PF, contact chapter president Dan Braulick at (507)794-2315 or visit browncounty.pheasantsforever.org. For more information about PF in Minnesota log onto www.minnesotapf.org.
If you have story ideas, dog photos, pre-1980 hunting photos and requests for future On The Wing consideration, please send correspondence to ahauck@pheasantsforever.org.
Return to On the Wing: June 2008"On The Wing" Archive
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