Favorite bird to hunt

[Bobbyboe]

I love hunting upland birds, but my favorite is spring Turkey. Not even close.

 

[Amos Keeto]

Bird?
Well, the turkey gets my vote!
Coming at you gobbling and strutting gives me an adrenaline rush like no other!
........
But I just love shotgunning!

 

[ceejay]

Hunting ruffed grouse in Oct/Nov is what I love the most. I think I would really enjoy Chukar hunting but I live on the wrong side of the country to make it something I will ever do while I am young enough to give it a shot.

 

[White Falcon]

Turkey. Three birds at one sit. Best ever!

 

[MunsterMash16]

Ruffed Grouse for me on the highly pressured Michigan lower peninsula state land areas that I hunt with my dog and my dad. No smarter and more elusive game bird out there.

Close second would be woodcock. Its a mesmerizing spectacle to see the dog work in the tight stuff, going from full blown sprint to slamming on the brakes into a tightly coiled and contorted spring at the scent of the woodcock 2ft in front of his nose. Then watching the aerial display unfold as a woodcock erupts into flight twisting and turning like a fighter jet through the cover.

 

[ElPollo]

Scaled quail and prairie-chickens. I like the big open country.

 

[Irish Miner]

The turkey, no doubt. Wish I would have started hunting them sooner than I did.

Then sharptails, love their vocals and looks.

Chukar

Huns

 

[SIontheHunt]

As a young man all I wanted to hunt were ducks dark to dark for a few seconds of shooting
As a middle aged man I gravitated towards upland hunting, sunny fall days,crisp air good exercise and shoot a few birds
As an old man I dove hunt, lots of challenging shooting, several month long season, still upland hunting but the dove hunting sharpens my shooting skills better than any other bird.

Have to agree. I am a younger man but nothing better for kids or hanging with buddies. Just need a shotgun and a bucket.

 

[Dukhtr3]

Dakota green heads in a field is so much fun. The only bad thing is now that I am 40 I lack the spare time to scout for days like I used to before kids. One good thing is my boy gets in driver's license next year and he has the bug like me.

Sent from my Pixel 7 Pro using Tapatalk

 

[dgreco]

Gamble’s quail in Arizona.

 

[huntsman22]

 

[OMF]

Wow @huntsman22, a yellow bellied sapsucker! Now that's some good eatin.

 

[txiong124]

Bandtail pigeons and doves are the best for me. Provide more challenges and also, more time to hang out with a buddy or two.

 

[el_jefe_pescado]

Waterfowl for me--rocky mountain river mallards specifically. But the upland itch has been creeping in as of late. I like really good dog work and the camaraderie of friends more than anything. It's such a great reprieve from the more intensive big game hunts.

 

[S.Clancy]

Chukar or Mtn Grouse. For the same reason, lots of hiking and pretty much no people.

 

[limpet]

Snipe for upland birds (hold the gunny sack and stick jokes) with a 28 gauge for extra challenge. Hard to hit and dang good eats.
Waterfowl is anything I can point my scull boat at but canvasbacks or black Brant if I had a choice.

 

[huntineveryday]

It depends on the week! Any bird my dog is currently working well on is my favorite.

Early September sharptails- solitude and views of wide open sandhills, with the excitement of hunting season finally here!

Early teal mid September- bluewing rockets that decoy easy and taste great, with nice mild temps

Late September Prairie Chickens- closer to home, open pastures where the dog can range out and work

Early October- duck opener in the marshes, covered up in brown ducks with wigeon and pintails

Late October- pheasant opener with roosters cackling on the flush, the comradery of opening weekend hunts, quail covers surprising you from field to field

Mid-November- peak mallard migration, a strap full of greenheads and a smoker full of duck ham to share with friends and family

December- warm water slough ducks with the bonus greenwing or pintail surprises

January- the phonecall to assemble the group for a good feed field setup for Canada geese, corned goose going into the freezer

Late January- nothing like a salty dog successfully working a late season, high pressured public land rooster!


There's a reason to be excited to get in the field for 5 months straight!

 

[Beaches To Backroads]

I grew up in Oregon and left before I became a bird hunter. Growing up hearing and seeing Pheasant has made them my little trophy bird. A nice rooster is a beautiful thing. Meat is ok, but the beautiful feathers, size and the flush style hunt around ponds, fields and oaks, make them so much fun.

 

[Beaches To Backroads]

It depends on the week! Any bird my dog is currently working well on is my favorite.

Early September sharptails- solitude and views of wide open sandhills, with the excitement of hunting season finally here!

Early teal mid September- bluewing rockets that decoy easy and taste great, with nice mild temps

Late September Prairie Chickens- closer to home, open pastures where the dog can range out and work

Early October- duck opener in the marshes, covered up in brown ducks with wigeon and pintails

Late October- pheasant opener with roosters cackling on the flush, the comradery of opening weekend hunts, quail covers surprising you from field to field

Mid-November- peak mallard migration, a strap full of greenheads and a smoker full of duck ham to share with friends and family

December- warm water slough ducks with the bonus greenwing or pintail surprises

January- the phonecall to assemble the group for a good feed field setup for Canada geese, corned goose going into the freezer

Late January- nothing like a salty dog successfully working a late season, high pressured public land rooster!


There's a reason to be excited to get in the field for 5 months straight!

Where are you located, that sounds amazing.

 

[huntineveryday]

Where are you located, that sounds amazing.

Central Nebraska! There are downsides as well, like not as much public land as other states, and our pheasants don't compete with South Dakota, ducks don't compete with North Dakota, etc. But if you're willing to drive 3-4 hours and have a versatile hunting dog, there are a lot of great bird hunting opportunities out there. I used to dream of out of state big game hunting, but I shifted to trying to maximize the opportunities I here.