Another hunting season opens this weekend across the state.

Iowa Department of Natural Resources Conservation Officer Dustin Emighy says pheasant hunting season is October 28th through January 10, 2024. He is anticipating a huge opening weekend.

“So I think there’s a lot of pheasant hunters that are excited this year. We are getting the crops out very quickly, with the weather that we’ve had. And of course with that weekend weather forecast it’s really setting up for an excellent opening weekend for the Iowa Pheasant Opener, which opens on Saturday.”  

Emighy says the August Roadside Survey, where the DNR conducts the pheasant count along the same routes over the first two weeks of August, shows a lot of promise. He says the statewide average saw an increase of 15-percent in the pheasant population compared to last year and in Central Iowa, there was a 17-percent increase. 

“It’s a great sport to introduce youngsters into it. We just last weekend had our youth pheasant opener and heard some success going on there. So I know the officers are excited themselves to get out and see them people harvesting those roosters.”

Emighy reminds all hunters that during pheasant season you must wear at least one article of clothing that is at least 50-percent blaze orange, which includes a hat, cap, vest, coat or jacket, sweatshirt or coveralls.