Sandhill Crane Harvest and Hunter Activity in the Central Flyway During the 2005-2006 Hunting Season

Authors

Elwood Martin, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Date of this Version

7-2006

Citation

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2006. Sandhill Crane Harvest and Hunter Activity in the Central Flyway During the 2005-2006 Hunting Season. U.S. Department of the Interior, Washington, D.C. U.S.A.

Abstract

A mail questionnaire survey was conducted in nine Central Flyway States to monitor the harvest of Sandhill Cranes (Grus canadensis) during the 2005-2006 hunting season. Permits were issued to 67,554 hunters (+1.0% from 2004) and an estimated 10,079 individuals (14.9%) actively hunted Sandhill Cranes, up 9.9% from last year. Active hunters bagged an estimated 18,263 birds (+25.6%) in 33,471 days (+4.9%). Reports indicated an additional 1,800 birds were downed but lost for a total kill estimate of 20,063, up 26.8% from the 2004 season and within about 100 birds of the 2003 level.