Pheasant hunters in New Jersey have enjoyed hunting homegrown birds since the ’20s The Rockport Pheasant Farm is owned by the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife. It has provided these birds but in varying numbers. The facility is now closing for financial reasons. The NJDFW has decided that importing pheasants, rather than breeding and raising them, is by far the cheaper option. Thousands of pheasants over the last 2 years have been purchased from Pennsylvania and stocked in the southern part of the state. These birds were well received by locals and they tended to be slightly larger in size. NJDFW officials said the out of state facilities can provide consistent numbers of birds at less of a cost.
The Rockport Pheasant Farm will remain under state ownership and be used by the NJDFW for future projects or will be leased out for another source of revenue for state conservation purposes. This new change will result in more birds at less of a cost, and subsequently more hunting opportunities statewide. Although it seems like a long time tradition is coming to an end, New Jersey hunters and conservation experts are enthusiastic about what this could mean for the population of the birds.
Anyone up for a pheasant hunt in New Jersey? Looks like there should be a bunch of birds in the upcoming years to follow.
