Pheasants, quail, cottontail rabbits, and squirrels are Iowa's most popular upland game species. The Upland Wildlife Research Unit monitors yearly harvest and populations, as well as providing information to landowners and hunters.
Small Game Licenses can be obtained from license agents throughout the state or purchased online. There is a convenience fee applied to all online purchases.
Trends in Iowa Wildlife Populations and Harvest/Bowhunter Observation Survey: The Populations and Harvest Trends (Logbook) is compiled annually by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Bureau. Publication for the preceding calendar year usually occurs in September.
Iowa requires upland game bird hunters to wear at least one of the following articles of visible, external apparel, of which at least 50% of the surface area is solid blaze orange in color: hat, cap, vest, coat, jacket, sweatshirt, sweater, shirt or coveralls.
Individuals cannot transport a pheasant within the state without a foot or fully feathered wing, or fully feathered head attached to the carcass.
Non-toxic shot is required to hunt all game animals (except deer and turkey) on selected public hunting areas in north-central and northwest Iowa. See the current hunting regulations booklet for a list of areas where non-toxic shot is required.
No, hunters are not required to have a plug to hunt small game.
Iowa Code 481A.47 prohibits the release of fish and game into the wild, however, an exception is made for pen-reared pheasant.
Iowa code allows landowners/tenants to release pen-reared pheasants on their own land. Iowa Code 481A.6A Pen-reared pheasants release by landowners and tenants.
As used in this section, “pen-reared pheasant” means a Chinese ring-necked pheasant (Phasianus colchicus torquatus) and its subspecies which originates from a captive population and which has been propagated and held by a hatchery. For the purposes of this section “pen-reared pheasant” does not include a Reeves (Syrmaticus reevesii) or Lady Amherst (Chrysolophus amherstiae) pheasant, a subspecies of the Chinese ring-necked pheasant classified as a Japanese (Phasianus versicolor) or a Black-necked (P. colchicus colchicus) pheasant, or a melanistic mutant (black, white, or other color mix) of the Chinese ring-necked pheasant.
Notwithstanding section 481A.60, an owner or tenant of land may obtain pen-reared pheasants from a hatchery approved by the department, and raise or release the pen-reared pheasants on the owner's or tenant's land. A person shall not relocate a pen-reared pheasant to any other land.
A person taking a pen-reared pheasant shall comply with all requirements provided in this chapter and chapter 483A. 484B.15 Pen-reared pheasants -- exception. This chapter does not apply to an owner or tenant of land raising or releasing pen-reared pheasants on the owner's or tenant's land as provided in section 481A.6A, provided that a person taking a pen-reared pheasant complies with all requirements provided in chapters 481A and 483A.
Dog training has deep roots in hunting and conservation culture. In order to develop dogs that can reliably hunt and recover game, it is vital to train with a variety of game under varying conditions. It is important that dog trainers and clubs know the rules concerning use of game during training to both support wildlife conservation and stay out of trouble with the law. Many state and federal laws and regulations apply to the importation, possession, use and disposal of game used in training and field events. These rules serve two general purposes: to protect the health and welfare of native wildlife populations in Iowa, and to ensure that hunting regulations are enforceable.
Dog training refers to any teaching or exercising activity involving sporting dogs in which the primary purpose is to enhance performance. Sporting dogs are utilized for hunting game birds and game mammals and include breeds as pointers, setters, retrievers, and hounds.
Regulations governing the training of sporting dogs vary according to what species the dogs are being trained with and where the training takes place.
The DNR does not regulate guides in Iowa. To locate guides in Iowa contact the local conservation officer or chamber of commerce in the county you intend to hunt.
Obtain a copy of Iowa’s Licensed Shooting Preserves online or emailing webmaster@dnr.iowa.gov, by writing the Iowa DNR, 6200 Park Ave., Des Moines, 50312, or by calling 515-725-8200.
View our online information under Places to Hunt & Shoot or contact the Iowa DNR by calling 515-725-8200.
No individual may hunt CRP fields without the permission of the landowner. The DNR does not maintain a list of CRP contracts in Iowa. The CRP is administered by the US Dept. of Agriculture, Farm Services Agency.
If the band number starts with the letters FT, you can keep the band. Birds carrying a leg band starting with the letters FT are pen raised birds that were released at a dog field trial event.
If the band number does not start with the letters FT, please contact the Iowa DNR, Wallace State Office Building, Des Moines, IA 50319-0034 or call 515-725-8200.
Doves are a migratory bird and can be found statewide with highest populations in the Loess Hills and southern three tiers of Iowa counties. They prefer open habitats such as farmland, prairies, grasslands and lightly wooded areas.
Each year the Iowa Department of Natural Resources uses a roadside survey to assess its upland game populations. The August Roadside Survey, as it is called, is conducted on sunny calm, mornings, with a heavy dew on the grass, between August 1st-15th of each year with results posted in September. Most upland wildlife, particularly pheasants, hate to be wet. On mornings with a heavy dew, hen pheasants bring their broods to the roadsides to dry off before they begin feeding. This natural tendency allows the birds to be counted and reproduction can be evaluated by counting the number of broods seen and their size.
Survey routes are 30 miles long and are entirely on gravel roads. When conditions are favorable, Iowa DNR biologists and conservation officers drive their assigned routes, at 10-15 mph, and count all the pheasants, quail, partridge, rabbits, and jackrabbits seen. In all, there are 210-30 mile routes driven (6,300 miles) every August to assess Iowa’s upland game populations. Most counties have 2 routes, and the information from all of these routes is condensed to produce the following:
2024 August Roadside Survey Map. Shows the current information on ring-necked pheasants, along with comparisons to the previous year's survey.
2024 August Roadside Survey Report. The full report is also provided online for individuals who would like to see more detailed and long-term trend information.
They Gotta' Have Cover Three Iowa farmers rap about the pheasant habitat they’ve created to shelter and feed pheasant throughout the year.
It’s a quick tutorial: Grass 10 to 12 inches high is needed for nesting cover; flowering native plants attract insects which provide the protein hatchlings need for growth; and food plots that provide seed and cover during the winter months.
