Upland Game Birds 



This type of game in Montana falls roughly into two types. The 

 introduced species such as the ring-necked pheasant, chukar partridge 

 and the Hungarian partridge; and the various native grouse species. 

 The native species appear to fit into a population pattern that 

 fluctuates in cycles seemingly quite independent of hunting pressure. 



This point has been recently demonstrated by a study conducted 

 in the Bitterroot Mountains where the East Fork has been open to 

 grouse hunting during the past four years while the West Fork, a 

 comparable area, has remained closed. No measurable difference can 

 be observed in the population of grouse between the hunted or 

 unhunted area. 



Sage Grouse 



A method of accurately aging sage grouse developed by a de- 

 partment biologist based on the comparative development of the 

 wing feathers has added an important technique to the management 

 of this species of prairie grouse. 



Ring-necked Pheasant 



The management of the ring-necked pheasant, the yearly abund- 

 ance of which appears closely dependent upon food and weather con- 

 ditions, has been based upon annual census and distribution informa- 

 tion. Because of this, an important aspect of the game bird program 

 has been the determination of numbers based upon spring crowing 

 counts, roadside censuses, brood counts, and sex ratio counts made 

 before and following the hunting season. All this information is of 

 vital importance in determining hunting season regulations. 



Hungarian Partridges 



The Hungarian partridge, although reasonably well established 

 in the State, does not as yet represent an extremely important game 

 bird species. This is due for the most part to its general lack of 

 abundance. 



Sage grouse studies during the biennium included live-trapping (left) and 

 neck-banding (right) to determine daily and seasonal movements, longevity, popu- 

 lation trends and other data necessary in the management oi the species. 



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