Ted, these observations seem particularly relevant because of your widespread wildlife management areas---lands set aside exclusively for propagation of grouse etc.
King,
Looking at a map of the state, with those areas highlighed, would certainly get you to think it is a hunters Shangra La, here. And, it can be. But, there are political realities that go into the state's acquisition of WMA lands, and for a long time they were simply lands that were useless for just about anything, and simply ended up in the state's ownership to get them out of county tax forfeiture status. There are many that are simply balsam swamps, that will always be balsam swamps, and are unmanagable from a hunting perspective. They are of course, open to hunting, but, to a large degree are biological deserts, devoid of game animals. There have been a few attempts to provide long term consistant funding to the MN DNR, and these have always been shot down by political operatives, from both sides, in St Paul-the lottery was supposed to be a vehicle to fund the DNR, until weasels from both parties undid that at the last minute. Any timbering, or other profitable use of DNR lands always has the money going into the general fund, to be doled out as the legislature sees fit.
Relatively few of the WMAs are actively managed with an eye toward hunting, and those that are get hit pretty hard for that use.
I have argued myself blue in the face with management staff from the DNR, that insist on regenerating native prarie plants on southern WMAs, when the primary target for hunters on these lands is an invasive species, that is highly dependant on agricuture for survival across winter-Chinese ringneck pheasants. One could make the argument that white tailed deer are actually an invasive to native prarie ecosystems as well, I imagine. They insist on planting bluestem and red dogwood in areas that once had DNR subsidised planting of small grains, left for wildlife use on these areas. I have been told that "casual users" of these areas, hikers, birdwatchers, bicyclists, anyone who in fact does not purchase a hunting license, or tax stamps that actually funds the purchase of these areas, "prefer" to see native plants on them, and the DNR has to provide opportunities for all of them. The fact is that once the native plantings are in place, nobody from the DNR ever inspects it again. They plant it and forget about it.
It is maddening.
Blue stem and red dogwood are completely useless to a pheasant, in January.
Best,
Ted
