When dealing with land-use planning and particularly impacts on watersheds and wetlands, the term "upland" is used in contrast to the term "wetland". A wetland is defined by being inundated for a certain number of days in a year (the exact number I forget now) or by being a certain distance from a body of flowing or standing water.
So, an upland can be properly thought of as being somewhat higher and drier than the wetland. And the game which lives and is hunted in the one ordinarily does not do so in the other. To be sure, we've all kicked pheasants and grouse out of soggy bottoms if not hummocks projecting above inundations, and seen geese in cornfields. But, the normal habitat defines the quarry.
IMHO, anyway.
The perfect upland gun? One you can carry all day and use to hit what you shoot at.
