CHUKAR FORECAST POINTS TO SUCCESSFUL 2011-2012 SEASON

Game biologists are often hard to understand. When trying to explain something to the everyday man, they forget to stop using all of their scientific terms and sometimes leave people more confused than ever.

When asked about the upcoming chukar hunting season, which begins Oct. 8, Nevada Department of Wildlife upland game biologist Shawn Espinosa wanted to avoid any confusion. "I think overall it's going to be a good to excellent season. Hunters are going to be very happy this year."

This year's Nevada Chukar Hunting Forecast, an annual report put out by NDOW that takes habitat conditions and statewide survey results to estimate chukar populations, was released last week and predicted good to excellent chukar hunting for much of Nevada.

NDOW biologists found that a very wet October last year provided upland game with an ample amount of forage, which led to improved overall body condition. This allowed most upland game populations to thrive during the winter months. NDOW also conducted surveys on 13 long-term study plots in late August and found the number of birds observed was higher than the long term average in 11 of the 13 plots. The survey found record numbers of birds in five of the plots and strong population recoveries in both Pershing and Lander Counties.

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