UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- A changing ecological balance and an increasing number of hunting enthusiasts mean representatives of Pennsylvania's game bird industry have strong economic opportunities to discuss at the Pennsylvania Game Breeders and Hunting Preserves Annual Meeting, Feb. 23-25 at the Days Inn Penn State in State College.

Conference coordinator Michael Hulet, associate professor of poultry science in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences, explains that the pheasants and other game birds that used to be plentiful in the wild now are raised in captivity and released by the game commission or by private producers.

"Most people remember that 20 or 30 years ago, we had a lot of wild pheasants around Pennsylvania," he says. "If we look around now, we don't see many. As a result, we've seen the establishment of a lot of private shooting preserves, where people are invited in for a fee to hunt pheasants and exotic gamebirds: bobwhite, quail, chucker partridge, Hungarian partridge and other types that are commonly used on preserves.

"Because of that, we've seen an increase in gamebird production. Although there is some production for the up-scale gourmet restaurant market, most of our production is for the hunting preserve market."

Hulet says the conference is for anyone interested in game birds or the operation of a hunting preserve, or people who produce game birds for the restaurant trade -- from beginning preserve managers to experienced game bird producers.

Conference registration begins at 7 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 23, along with a reception featuring popular game bird recipes. Sessions begin at 8 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 24, with "Basics of Brooding and Rearing Pheasants."

Monday's sessions also will include ingredients for a successful sporting clay course; better cover crops for shooting preserves; essentials of feed and nutrition for game birds; diagnosis and treatment of major game bird diseases; biodiversity and game bird well-being issues; and reaching out to women and youth in shooting sports.

Tuesday will feature sessions on feed prices; dog training tips; common mistakes in rearing game birds; a hands-on game bird disease diagnostics; and estate planning for game bird operations.

The registration fee of $95 includes all costs of instruction, materials and beverage breaks. For more information on the program, contact Michael Hulet by phone at 814-863-8934 or by e-mail at mrh4@psu.edu. For registration information, contact Penn State Conferences and Short Courses by phone at 814-865-8301 or via e-mail at conferences.cas.psu.edu.

###

EDITORS: Contact Michael Hulet at 814-863-8934 or by e-mail at mrh4@psu.edu.

Contact: Gary Abdullah gxa2@psu.edu 814-863-2708 814-863-9877 fax #110