Click on the image above or here to visit the DNR’s Pheasant Hunting page.
The 2024 range-wide pheasant index (52.1 birds/100 mi) was similar to 2023 (51.2 birds/100 mi).
Despite a mild winter with little snow, which should have been conducive to the overwinter survival of
hens, excessively wetter conditions in spring and summer adversely affected nesting and brood-rearing
in 2024. Pheasants increased in the West Central (6%), Central (34%), East Central (70%), and South
Central (8%) regions but declined in the Southwest (29%) and Southeast (9%) regions compared to 2023.
However, the pheasant index in the Southwest region (81.8 birds/100 mi) was still above the statewide
average (52.1 birds/100 mi). Indices of other species exhibited variability in trends among regions. The
statewide gray partridge index (1.8 birds/100 mi) was less than 2023 (4.3 birds/100 mi) and the 10-year
average (2.7 birds/100 mi), but it increased in the West Central (200%) and Southwest (50%) regions.
The mourning dove decreased range-wide and across all regions. The 2024 white-tailed deer range-wide
index increased by 25% compared to 2023, was 16% above the 10-year average and increased by 1% to
50% across all regions except the South Central and Southeast regions, which decreased by 9% and 7%,
respectively.
