(WJET/WFXP)-- Pennsylvania pheasant hunters may want to hold off on packing their gear up for the season, the Pennsylvania Game Commission (PAGC) has announced they'll be releasing over 8,000 birds around the Commonwealth for hunting.
The PAGC announced Thursday they plan on releasing about 8,400 pheasants, mostly hens, on hunting grounds across Pennsylvania on February 12 and 13 barring any last-minute issues for the final two weeks of the season.
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Wildlife Operations Division Chief Ian Gregg said the Game Commission bought these birds several months ago and they were raised on the organization's farms for just this occasion with extra birds being ordered this year in case of any potential bird flu outbreaks.
He also said the increase in birds should also be considered experimental and may not be repeated depending on this year's results, risk of disease and the agency's budget.
“During the 2024 production season, we requested our supplier to raise additional pheasants to be held through the fall and early winter as an ‘insurance policy’ against any disease issues that might arise in the supplier’s primary breeder flocks. Although highly pathogenic avian influenza is known to be present on the Pennsylvania landscape, and it is impossible to completely eliminate the risk of a future disease outbreak that could impact 2025 production, the primary breeder flocks have remained healthy to date and it is not feasible for the ‘backup’ birds to also be held into the upcoming breeding season. Therefore, these surplus pheasants will be released a few weeks before the end of the pheasant season to provide late-winter hunting opportunities," Gregg said.
The Game Commission’s regular pheasant stocking schedule extends from early October to early January, with over 240,000 pheasants released during that period in 2024-25 and similar numbers planned for 2025-26. Pheasant season comes to a close in the Commonwealth on February 28.
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The full list of release locations is as follows:
Northwest Region
SGL 95 (Butler Co.)
SGL 330 (Clarion Co.)
Buzzard Swamp area, Allegheny National Forest (Forest Co.)
Shenango Lake (Mercer Co.)
Southwest Region
SGL 203 (Allegheny Co.)
SGL 285 (Beaver Co.)
Conemaugh Lake (Indiana Co.)
SGLs 117, 232, 245, and 297; Cross Creek Park; Hillman State Park (Washington Co.)
Loyalhanna Lake (Westmoreland Co.)
Northcentral Region
SGL 333 (Centre Co.)
SGL 87 (Clearfield Co.)
SGLs 252 and 317 (Union Co.)
Southcentral Region
SGL 249 (Adams Co.)
SGLs 48 and 97 (Bedford Co.)
SGL 169 (Cumberland Co.)
SGL 124 (Franklin Co.)
SGL 251; Raystown Lake (Huntingdon Co.)
SGLs 258, 281, and 290 (Perry Co.)
SGLs 188, 194, and 212 (Snyder Co.)
SGLs 242 and 243 (York Co.)
Northeast Region
SGL 40 and Beltzville area (Carbon Co.)
SGLs 58, 226, and 329 (Columbia Co.)
SGLs 119 and 187; Butler Enterprises Hunter Access property; Frances Slocum and Nescopeck State Parks (Luzerne Co.)
SGLs 84 and 165 (Northumberland Co.)
Southeast Region
SGL 280/Blue Marsh (Berks Co.)
