DES MOINES, Iowa — Iowa’s 2024 pheasant harvest reached over 460,000 roosters, marking the second highest in nearly 20 years, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
This follows the record 2023 harvest of 590,000, making it the best consecutive years since 2007. The DNR says only South Dakota had a larger harvest last year.
Despite a 14 percent population decline due to spring flooding, Todd Bogenschutz, an upland wildlife biologist with the Iowa DNR, expressed optimism. “The roadside counts were confirmed in the small game harvest hunter survey, but overall we had a really good fall and are looking forward to this year’s August roadside survey to see where the bird numbers are ahead of the 2025 season,” Bogenschutz said…