Cicumstances are very different in other parts of N.America. Alberta used to be the South Dakota for pheasants. We had a very active government program to raise and release birds into the wild. That started to peter-off in the 1990's as less birds were released. There was a healthy wild population but they had to be replenished each year because of our colder climate. Sometime in early 2000 the gov't greatly reduced the released birds. It had a dramatic effect on the economy of small towns. Small town restaurants and hotels closed up, Hunters from the US stopped coming to Alberta. Year after year the number of released birds dropped until this year I believe there will be almost no gov't released birds. There are very few and far between wild pheasants left and those are hunted hard.
That goes for all our upland birds. Intensified farming, pesticides, reduced cover have dramatically affected the numbers. Also Alberta population is increasing. Over a million new people in the last 20 years. In a province with about 3 million people that is a big change. All that is left is to buy and release your own or join a club. Clubs are expensive and the birds cost around $25 each.
I have joined a club and find it is good sport in January and February when there is nothing else to hunt. We use labs to flush the birds and depending on the climate of the day they may fly hard or require a kick with your boot. For wild pheasants I now have to travel to the US. I don't expect the health of the upland wild bird population increasing for a very long time.
