Sorry for the quick hijack here but it’s related; BK, what does the drought mean for the pheasant chicks? For example insects such as grasshoppers necessary for the chicks as they go into fall? Or, the lack of grasses?
I believe that early on, the chicks get much of their moisture from dew on grass. When there's no dew and little grass it's tough on them.
I can't remember exactly what year, 2013-2015 sometime ND had a bad drought with nearly 0 bugs and the western part of the state still hasn't recovered pheasant numbers.