Pheasant & Quail
G&F: Will the state be stocking the same numbers of pheasants and quail in the 2008 season?

Chanda: For the 50,000 small-game hunters in the state, the state will be stocking 60,000 pheasants and 11,000 quail, the same as last year.

One problem the Division has been having with the raising and stocking of the birds is staffing. Because there is a hiring freeze on in the state, the Division has not been able to hire personnel lost by retirements or people who have left for other jobs. This is causing a loss of federal money, because some of those salaries were partially funded by federal grants.

Turkeys
G&F: What's the status of the state's wild turkey population?

Chanda: Current estimates show about 24,000 birds in the state. Populations have been good in the lower part of New Jersey, but numbers are down in the northern part of the state.

Biologists believe the main reason for the decline in the northern part of the state was a decline in reproduction due to three years of rain. This rainfall produced poor breeding conditions, causing a drop in the hunter-success rate from 17 to 14 percent.

Black Bear
G&F: Is there a bear hunt in the state's future?

Chanda: The legislature approved an $850,000 appropriation for non-lethal means of controlling the state's exploding bear populations.

Basically, the money is being used for educating people on how to deal with their garbage and bird feeders in areas where there are bears.

DELAWARE
For our assessment on the Delaware's wildlife, I spoke with Pat Emory, the director of Delaware's Division of Fish and Wildlife.

Director Emory has been leading the Division for several years now. He said that in that time, the Division and many of its programs have seen a lot of changes.

White-Tailed Deer
G&F: What's the current size of the state's deer herd?

Emory: The 2007 estimate of the herd showed about 48,000 to 50,000 deer. There have been no problems with CWD.

The state manages deer by zones, just as most other states do; however, the deer management plan underwent a complete overhaul in the last four years. One of the first things was to hold a series of meetings to get input from the public on the state's deer problems. After that, a Deer Management Task Force was put together to work out a more diverse and effective management plan.