Corn and Sorghum as a Winter Food Source for Ring-Necked Pheasants

Abstract

In many localities, winter food plots planted to corn and/or sorghum grains are used to enhance overwinter survival of ring-necked pheasants (Phasianus colchicus). We used organ size and carcass composition to evaluate this strategy with 110 pen-reared, female ring-necked pheasants fed ad libitum or restricted (65, 85, and 100% of a 173 kcal.bird -1 day -1 maintenance ratio [MR]) corn, sorghum, or corn/sorghum (mixed) diets in South Dakota during winters 1990-92. We also evaluated 97 wild females collected from areas with corn, sorghum, corn/sorghum (mixed), and areas without (control) food plots in east-central South Dakota. Except for ceca length (P = 0.059), intestinal masses and lengths did not differ (P > 0.10) among pen-reared females fed restricted or ad libitum diets. Females fed 100% MR corn diets were heavier (P ≤ 0.10) and fatter (P ≤ 0.10) than females fed the 100% MR sorghum or mixed diet. Females fed 85% MR sorghum diets were fatter than females fed corn (P = 0.020) or mixed (P = 0.056) diets. Pen-reared females fed 65% MR sorghum diets were heavier than females fed corn (P = 0.017) but not mixed diets (P = 0.133). Wild females collected from control plots had longer (P ≤ 0.10) and heavier (P ≤ 0.10) small intestine and ceca than did females collected from food plots. Females collected from sorghum and control plots contained less (P ≤ 0.10) fat than did females collected from corn or mixed plots. Diets of females from corn and mixed plots were mostly food plot grains, whereas wild foods, soybeans, and corn composed most of the diet of pheasants on sorghum and control plots. Comparisons of the 3 grain diets (corn/sorghum/mixed), with pen-reared females, did not suggest any 1 diet was nutritionally better than another. We postulate wild females feeding within food plots had larger lipid reserves than did females not feeding in food plots because of higher quality diets.