How many birds each season?

Goosemaster said:
Yeah, I'm calling total bullshit. Shooting 100 wild birds a year is very difficult.
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Just about a month into the Iowa season and have 133 wild roosters shot over my dogs. 72 of those are birds that I shot individually, the rest are buddies/relatives that tag along on the weekends. I have surpassed 100 roosters myself the last 2 seasons. It is very difficult yes, but very doable. I have hunted 25 days (a lot of half days or couple hours before/after work) and walked hundreds of miles and put over 4,000 miles on my truck. 1/3 of my roosters are on public land, the remainder on private. If you have access to private ground to hunt on the weekends and are willing to drive and walk during the week, it is not that crazy. I am also blessed with a very flexible work schedule that allows me to get a majority of my work done early in the morning or at night when I am not in the field.
 
cyclonenation10 said:
Just about a month into the Iowa season and have 133 wild roosters shot over my dogs. 72 of those are birds that I shot individually, the rest are buddies/relatives that tag along on the weekends. I have surpassed 100 roosters myself the last 2 seasons. It is very difficult yes, but very doable. I have hunted 25 days (a lot of half days or couple hours before/after work) and walked hundreds of miles and put over 4,000 miles on my truck. 1/3 of my roosters are on public land, the remainder on private. If you have access to private ground to hunt on the weekends and are willing to drive and walk during the week, it is not that crazy. I am also blessed with a very flexible work schedule that allows me to get a majority of my work done early in the morning or at night when I am not in the field.
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You are a legend in your own mind.
 
The real question should involve miles walked, hours afield, etc…no, surpassing 100 wild birds isn’t that tough if you have the ability to hunt a lot. Season to date I’m at 38 days in the Dakotas/Montana, 14 of which were sharpie/hun only…I’m at 24 days that include pheasants in those 3 states; I own a 1/4 that is enrolled in a perpetual conservation easement, and have access to lots of private land…29th season in same area, many friends are local farmers. We did do well on a few WPA’s outside of our normal area this year as well. I have 3 more planned trips, hope to hit 50 days of bird hunting…can’t go after 1/3/22, wife is getting a hip replaced on 1/5. Should end up around 34-36 days of pheasant hunting in ND/SD…haven’t been skunked yet, a few 1 bird days due to rain or heat or only had an hour to hunt…not many 2 bird days, either, but some. My biggest goal is for my buddies to get the shooting, they travel a fair distance to get to my camp. Seeing them elated with the hunt, and also, stellar dog work from my 3 labs is what really puts a smile on my face! Keep in mind the dog work isn’t always stellar!!!!🥳
 
benelli-banger said:
If this is a competition, and if brevity is valued, then you could certainly assert that. I enjoy chatting with fellow bird hunters, comparing notes/experiences, etc. That’s all.
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Agreed. It is certainly not a competition with anyone. I know there are ALOT of guys on here who are much better pheasant hunters than I, probably with better dogs, better shooting, etc. Many of those same guys will likely only shoot a handful of birds this year, either due to health, work, family, location, age, land access, etc.

Certainly, birds killed is not indicative of how good of hunter you are. I track my hours hunted, counties, miles, etc. more or less for my own enjoyment and to compare year to year. The only competition here is with myself - every year I try and shoot more public land roosters than the year before, and try to hunt more counties than the years prior.
 
cyclonenation10 said:
Agreed. It is certainly not a competition with anyone. I know there are ALOT of guys on here who are much better pheasant hunters than I, probably with better dogs, better shooting, etc. Many of those same guys will likely only shoot a handful of birds this year, either due to health, work, family, location, age, land access, etc.

Certainly, birds killed is not indicative of how good of hunter you are. I track my hours hunted, counties, miles, etc. more or less for my own enjoyment and to compare year to year. The only competition here is with myself - every year I try and shoot more public land roosters than the year before, and try to hunt more counties than the years prior.
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Public land pheasants are work! I have to count those as 1.5 birds.My family is very competitive, so putting a butt whipping on family, or close friends, is held in high regard.
 
cyclonenation10 said:
Many of those same guys will likely only shoot a handful of birds this year, either due to health, work, family, location, age, land access, etc.
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Some states allow a more liberal bag limit and possession limit than others too. I hunt in Minnesota where the bag limit is only 2 roosters until December, so quite often my hunt is over after an hour or two of hunting. Plus I can’t stock pile my freezer with birds either. I can make some of that ground up starting on Wednesday though.
 
My biggest challenge to shooting more birds is that I'm a Try And Do Everything kind of guy. I pheasant hunt, I grouse hunt, I deer hunt, I prairie bird hunt. Include that with a daily work schedule, having a house to maintain myself plus a cabin to maintain and the short fall season ends far too quickly. Then when I add in that I'm only a public land hunter who lives a bare minimum of 1.5 hours to marginal pheasant country, 2 to 3 hours from better to prime pheasant country, it's certainly not without it's challenges.

I can't wait until I'm married and have kids too 😂😂
 
Munster927 said:
I can't wait until I'm married and have kids too 😂😂
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Raising a family takes some time, but the window is so very small and well worth it, that you won't miss too much hunting in those early years of the kids life. Then they get older and you can get some of your freedom back. Best advice - encourage your wife to get out of the house while you are home with the kids. It makes getting the green light for hunting much easier.
 
Golden Hour said:
Raising a family takes some time, but the window is so very small and well worth it, that you won't miss too much hunting in those early years of the kids life. Then they get older and you can get some of your freedom back. Best advice - encourage your wife to get out of the house while you are home with the kids. It makes getting the green light for hunting much easier.
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I know why you named your dog Sage, cuz you are a wise advisor... haha.

Yeah getting out and hunting is the biggest hurdle for me to bag more birds now. I envy the guys that say they hunt 40 days in a season.... I am lucky if I can spend 12 days in the field. But my kids got me running like a wild rooster right now and that is fine with me too.
 
Flushedup said:
I know why you named your dog Sage, cuz you are a wise advisor... haha.

Yeah getting out and hunting is the biggest hurdle for me to bag more birds now. I envy the guys that say they hunt 40 days in a season.... I am lucky if I can spend 12 days in the field. But my kids got me running like a wild rooster right now and that is fine with me too.
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Enjoy your time with the kids…goes by too fast!!!! ☹️
 
Well said Munster927. In my opinion its fun for an upland hunter of all around species of birds and always a challenge It takes some travel time (hence time off from work and home obligations). Also for me has not been the bird count of any species. Heck I often pass up shots for instance with bobs if the population is down. My upland takes me from ND to OK chasing those wild birds. Friends, adventures, dog work, and a shot or two of good bourbon, and I am in upland heaven.
 
cyclonenation10 said:
Just about a month into the Iowa season and have 133 wild roosters shot over my dogs. 72 of those are birds that I shot individually, the rest are buddies/relatives that tag along on the weekends. I have surpassed 100 roosters myself the last 2 seasons. It is very difficult yes, but very doable. I have hunted 25 days (a lot of half days or couple hours before/after work) and walked hundreds of miles and put over 4,000 miles on my truck. 1/3 of my roosters are on public land, the remainder on private. If you have access to private ground to hunt on the weekends and are willing to drive and walk during the week, it is not that crazy. I am also blessed with a very flexible work schedule that allows me to get a majority of my work done early in the morning or at night when I am not in the field.
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What is the possession limit where you are? To chime off about killing all these birds is pure arrogance in my opinion. You are violating possession limits and killing birds other hunters should have access to. If your such a stud turn yourself in for all the violations you have obviously done.
 
Golden Hour said:
Raising a family takes some time, but the window is so very small and well worth it, that you won't miss too much hunting in those early years of the kids life. Then they get older and you can get some of your freedom back. Best advice - encourage your wife to get out of the house while you are home with the kids. It makes getting the green light for hunting much easier.
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I'd add discourage your kids from participating in any activities that have the slightest chance of preventing you from hunting. Concerts, games, recitals, banquets, etc. They don't need to be well-rounded individuals. :ROFLMAO: Take them pheasant hunting instead.
 
I’ve hunted pheasants 24 days between ND/SD and have probably shot an unacceptably high # of birds in the eyes of some. Most have been taken on private land that I own or have virtual exclusivity to hunt; I’ve taken about 8-10 on public land. Currently I have 9 birds in my freezer, have come home from a few trips with 4-8 additional birds that have been cooked or gifted within a day or so. I’ve made fairly major life decisions to allow for the amount of hunting that I do…mostly to do with work, but also, financial obligations. I was accused on this board of being a poacher a few months ago, think the accuser was making some egregiously incorrect assumptions about me because I stated that the thought of a warden coming to check my freezers in my own home didn’t concern me…never has, never will, I have nothing to hide. I’ve been passionate about this sport since I was a young kid, and the passion is as high now as ever! Heading out tomorrow for a day trip in MN just to get me and the dogs out…have 3 more SD trips planned for Dec…hope to hit 50 days in MT/ND/SD by the end of those 3 trips…cutting season short as my wife has hip surgery 1/5/22. Like I said, I’ve positioned myself to do this, it’s all I think about. My life revolves around it. 40% love for walking the lands I hunt…40% love of my dogs and the work they do…20% love for the doubleguns I carry around, mostly S x S’s. And, of course, good friends that appreciate the same, including lots of farmers/ranchers that have become great friends. My passion for hunting produces birds, because it creates and preserves habitat. When I croak I will have done at least one good thing—I put 160 acres into a perpetual conservation easement…can never be farmed, developed, etc. Everyone’s entitled to their opinions…hope all of you who are interested in hunting can get out and enjoy what you love doing! 👍
 
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By the way, I’m OK letting each state manage their wildlife as their experts see fit; if they deem it appropriate to cap my harvest at a certain #, they can issue tags in order to accomplish that. Otherwise, the message sent is very simple…abide by daily bag limits/possession limits. I’m a believer in the fact that harvesting roosters, even lots of them, is good for the population, knowing that they outcompete for food and cover over the hens. FWIW, I’ve seen very few hunters on public land this fall, especially after day 3 in SD… I’ve had some great hunting on WPA’s within 5 miles of a decent sized SD town…a town with thousands of residents. Nobody even came by us road hunting….hunted these areas around 4 times….lots of decent public ground out there…Tue-Thur is a great timeframe…🥳 I hunt a fair amount for sharpies and Huns, and I do pay close attention to harvest #’s and keep the hunting grounds spread out to not over -harvest in any one area, not that I’m a threat of that…but hunting the same pasture or CRP too much bothers me, whether it’s a real issue or not I’m not sure…🧐
 
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