Evaluation of the Surrogator® system to increase pheasant and quail abundance

Abstract

Captive-rearing and release programs have been used to augment populations of ring-necked pheasant (Phasianus colchicus), northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus), and other gamebirds to provide additional hunting opportunities. However, many question the efficacy of the rear-and-release technique to increase huntable gamebird populations. The Surrogator® (hereafter, surrogator) is a captive-rearing system purported to establish huntable gamebird populations within a property. Little research has been conducted to inform land managers and sportsmen and sportswomen about the effectiveness of this system. We evaluated the use of the surrogator for ring-necked pheasants and northern bobwhites from May to October 2009 and 2010 in Kiowa County, Kansas, USA. The 4-week in-surrogator survival rates for pheasant chicks were 85% ± 5% (SE) in 2009 (n = 840) and 79% ± 8% in 2010 (n = 420). The 5-week in-surrogator survival of bobwhite chicks was 78% ± 12% (n = 765) in 2009 and 79% ± 3% in 2010 (n = 783). Released pheasant chicks had an overall survival rate of 8% ± 6% (n = 58) over 12 weeks. Eight-week postrelease survival for bobwhites was 35% ± 5% (n = 59). Postrelease survival of pheasants or bobwhites was not appreciably greater than conventional rear-and-release programs, suggesting that population establishment with surrogator birds may be difficult. Although 1,150 pheasants and 1,105 bobwhites were released, only 5.5% and 7.2% of bands were returned from harvested pheasants and bobwhites, respectively. The surrogator may not be effective for establishing or re-establishing pheasant and bobwhite populations, but it may be an effective tool to supplement existing gamebird populations to enhance hunting opportunities. © 2016 The Wildlife Society.