Comment on FR Doc # E9-17812

To whom it may concern, I have spent 40 years upland bird hunting in Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Wisconsin, Michigan, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Arizona and Montana. There is one common denominator in all these states which determines whether the bird population is thriving or declining and that is CRP land. For instance in Indiana in the 60's we could expect to see perhaps 6-15 pheasant per day (both sex). By the 80's it was half and when I introduced my kids to hunting in the 90's it was 2 -4. And today in the 2000's its usually none or at best 1-2. You know the story. It's not predators but corporate or 'absentee owner' managed farms tilling to the edge of ditches and roads and taking out fence row after fence row until their are no more corridors left for young birds to travel let alone dense cover to hide and protect the eggs. I have witnessed first hand (with my young boys) how hunting CRP land in Indiana has transformed bird hunting. Through our Pheasant Forever chapter 3 years ago we hunted opening day on CRP property (afternoon only) and counted 42 pheasant (both sex). The next year we did the same and counted 48. Last year we "only" counted 26. These are wild birds; no pen raised birds. CRP is truly a 'build it and they will come' scenario. I realize I am only one voice but in my lifetime I have witnessed the decimation above not by reading magazines or looking at statistics but by walking the fields. I can tell you there is nothing more depressing then looking at a young boy at the end of a long day of walking without seeing a single pheasant and telling him there simply isn't any bird hunting anymore. The only reason to return is because of CRP. I hope you will share my extraordinary experience with CRP habitat and vote to keep the CRP land we have across the nation and then take the next step by offering incentives to make it grow further. Sincerely, Philip Meyer Indianapolis