Do you take a poke at the long range birds ?

I've been blessed to have the opportunity to do habitat development and it is a special experience to see birds flush from a shelterbelt you planted or have your dog dig out a bird from a tree you put into the ground with your hands several years earlier. But in no way, shape or form does conservation work lend itself to a greater appreciation for a pheasant. On the contrary, grinding out an hour and a half on a Waterfowl Production Area to only find a few hens or one rooster that flushes out of range teaches a much different respect than stepping onto a piece of cherry ground that you know ahead of time is going have scores of pheasants hanging out.
 
remy3424 said:
McFarmer is someone like myself that creates the cover that produces pheasants. I know what he is feeling. You put a ton of your time, energy and money into making a place from the birds to thrive and prosper....you kind of feel attached to them and have a certain respect for them. This is likely an unknown feeling and hard to understand for guys that just go out to public ground and shoot birds that are just seen to them as "an abundant natural resource that is free for the taking". 2 different worlds we have.
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I find this is insulting, condescending, and foolishly inaccurate. Remy you paint with a pretty wide brush.
 
I strongly disagree. When you put your resources (time and financial) into this, it is a bond that you aren't going to have with just doing a 10 mile match through the prairie, it is different.
 
You would think everyone here on a site like this would not fit into that, but reading posts and the often shared disdain for PF, I think it is more prevalent than expected. The Ultimate Pheasant Hunting site, should be full of pheasant fanatics. Maybe I did over-state things, but it is different.
 
I’m personally not a farmer, and don’t do the actual fieldwork, but I bought a 1/4 of land 25 years ago and got it enrolled in a perpetual conservation easement (WRP) about 20 years ago. It’ll be the way it is forever, can never be farmed, developed, etc. I love that. Long after I’m gone, it’ll be in its natural state, hopefully home to lots of wildlife. I’m fond of the habitat…the grasses, the cedars, the food plots, the meandering lowlands…the critters are a symptom of the habitat, it makes me happy. I’ve walked out of fields, mine included, during conditions when birds are burrowed in the snow, cattails, a mixture of the two, etc, as dogs were pulling hens and many were dying…I recall calling off a hunt that included 6-7 guys, and they all agreed. That land is special to me, lots of great memories, and much pride knowing the land has been set aside forever, and the critters benefit from that. That’s about it…I love habitat no matter who owns it, public or private…I think of certain spots all the time, visualizing them…reliving hunts I’ve had…I respect the land, the critters, the people that work the land, etc. Maybe other people love and respect all this stuff more than me, better than me, or differently than me…dunno…don’t care…I’m good with what I do, and don’t do. As I’ve said before, if our efforts serve to retain or increase habitat, and, encourage youth to partake in our sport, that’s pretty good. Don’t know much, or much else…heading back out 12/2…👍👍
 
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I’m sure I would feel the same about the resource land owner or not. That point to me is irrelevant.

My only point is not wasting the resource and the ethics of making a clean kill. I’m cheap and I hate waste of any kind.

No person can tell me putting a couple #4s in the back end of a rooster from 11.82 rods away isn’t wasting the resource or is an ethical shot.

On public land that rooster isn’t going to be available for the next person the next weekend, it’s going to be laying dead out there, or at the least infected to the point it won’t be a harvestable bird.

As outdoor enthusiasts we have an obligation to the resource to harvest it cleanly, without waste.
 
I got to go with McFarmer and Remy on this one, fellows...I financed a lot of farmers who really loved wildlife and tried their best, despite intense financial pressures to produce from fencerow to fencerow, to provide what cover they could for the birds, the deer and other wildlife. These people work in all kinds of weather, the cold and the dark, with potentially dangerous equipment and livestock, and they have to negotiate with EVERYBODY, from the government to the equipment dealer to the Co-op to the local County Government yokels to the non-residents who cuss them when they get behind farm equipment in spring and fall and want to become residents but also want to make their new rural home like the place they left....
It is true that the strong ties to the land are understandable if you put the sweat equity into life that farmers do. I hunted once with a guy who used to own farm land but retired and moved to a medium-size Indiana town. He begged me to take him pheasant hunting, and I did. He didn't respect himself enough to stay in shape, and though I was trying to put him in front of a bird, he didn't want to keep up. When he finally scratched down a runner, I tried to get him to help the dog and I look for it...he just said "it's a casualty of war"...you bet that's the last time that SOB EVER went hunting with me. Sorry but you either get it or you don't, and I don't hang around with the clueless any more--the birds are too few and far between for that.
 
McFarmer said:
I’m sure I would feel the same about the resource land owner or not. That point to me is irrelevant.

My only point is not wasting the resource and the ethics of making a clean kill. I’m cheap and I hate waste of any kind.

No person can tell me putting a couple #4s in the back end of a rooster from 11.82 rods away isn’t wasting the resource or is an ethical shot.

On public land that rooster isn’t going to be available for the next person the next weekend, it’s going to be laying dead out there, or at the least infected to the point it won’t be a harvestable bird.

As outdoor enthusiasts we have an obligation to the resource to harvest it cleanly, without waste.
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When I read your opening post on this thread you created, it was pretty clear where you were heading…just come right out and state your position…I don’t disagree with you, but I’ve been around these forums long enough to know it’s pretty difficult changing other people’s ways or beliefs. And invariably, these discussions will debate the ethics of hunting roost cover in the winter after a certain time of day, or like we already argued about recently, what # of birds harvested per fall are within ethical boundaries, and at what point can someone here declare that the ethical limit has been breached? Or, should we declare hunting without dogs, or good dogs, is an ethical breach? Or guys that don’t practice shooting and aren’t good shots? We don’t really know who we’re chatting/arguing with in many cases, it’s often a pissing match not worth getting into in the first place. If there’s education that can be shared, i.e., an article about research, etc, probably not a bad approach. But I agree with what has been said, maybe by Remy, if everyone here can’t agree on supporting PF, it’s hard to imagine getting a consensus on much. I hate wounding/losing birds…it bums me out. That keeps me taking the proper shots the majority of the time, but not always. Wish I could say I ALWAYS do the right thing in that regard,…I don’t. Again, if we individually can feel good about doing something that helps retain or increase habitat, and, encourage youth getting into the sport, that’s pretty good.
 
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Wow did this thread take a turn ...

Bob's comments are valid.

Rarely see mention of PF on this site ... pro or con ... not sure what Remy is referencing ...

Those "farming for wildlife" respect the pheasant or is it more about the cash it generates ?

Fence row - to fence row ... chemicals and more chemicals ... drain tile ... USDA subsidies to even make it viable ... Just look at the amount of money SD farmers get to "subsist" and then look how low the percentage of money is in conservation dollars .... boom...

Public land hunting is good because of the damn dirt desert created by the farmers surrounding them.

Side note: My farming and ranching relatives had significant pockets of cover and enjoyed the wildlife from their front windows. None of them ever made a dollar from their conservation efforts.
 
remy3424 said:
McFarmer is someone like myself that creates the cover that produces pheasants. I know what he is feeling. You put a ton of your time, energy and money into making a place from the birds to thrive and prosper....you kind of feel attached to them and have a certain respect for them. This is likely an unknown feeling and hard to understand for guys that just go out to public ground and shoot birds that are just seen to them as "an abundant natural resource that is free for the taking". 2 different worlds we have.
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You could not be more wrong in your broad-brush approach ...
 
BRITTMAN said:
Wow did this thread take a turn ...

Bob's comments are valid.

Rarely see mention of PF on this site ... pro or con ... not sure what Remy is referencing ...

Those "farming for wildlife" respect the pheasant or is it more about the cash it generates ?

Fence row - to fence row ... chemicals and more chemicals ... drain tile ... USDA subsidies to even make it viable ... Just look at the amount of money SD farmers get to "subsist" and then look how low the percentage of money is in conservation dollars .... boom...

Public land hunting is good because of the damn dirt desert created by the farmers surrounding them.

Side note: My farming and ranching relatives had significant pockets of cover and enjoyed the wildlife from their front windows. None of them ever made a dollar from their conservation efforts.
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PF has come up, and invariably it gets bashed by a healthy % of those chiming in…I’ve got the paperwork on my counter now, hard to imagine it not being a decent “value” with the goodies they throw in…knife? Cooler? Etc…hard to imagine you’re doing harm by supporting them…but some do feel that way…or, they’re at least adamantly opposed to supporting them…
 
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Answering the original post, I avoid shots over 40 yards whenever I can. If I rock a bird or pull feathers within 40 yards and the follow up shot / shots is 40 yards or beyond I'm sending it. I'd like to take the question a step further and ask how many here count a downed rooster as part of their limit? I do.

Oh and I've hunted with both McFarmer and Remy at their farms and can attest they are both great guys and better shots than either will admit.
 
I don’t count lost birds as part of my limit….many years, most?, we always comment at the rooster #’s and that hens are better off with fewer roosters around…if bird #’s were down, and it was helpful to conserve roosters, I’d consider counting lost birds as part of my limit. Hasn’t been the case…
 
benelli-banger said:
I don’t count lost birds as part of my limit….many years, most?, we always comment at the rooster #’s and that hens are better off with fewer roosters around…if bird #’s were down, and it was helpful to conserve roosters, I’d consider counting lost birds as part of my limit. Hasn’t been the case…
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"many years, most?" Sorry I don't understand this part of your answer.
 
Kevin W said:
"many years, most?" Sorry I don't understand this part of your answer.
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Most years, maybe every year, in the 33 I’ve hunted where I do, the rooster #’s are strong come winter time, and it’s commonly discussed that it would be wise to harvest more of them for the hens’ benefit. My empirical data, and what I’ve read, suggests that harvesting roosters isn’t a detriment to the population of pheasants…as always, could be wrong…
 
Most people are shooting birds closer than they realize. They might think it is 50 yds, but most of the time not. Think about it. 50 yds would be standing on the goal line and shooting one at the 50 yd line. Half a football field is a long way. I shot one last year that I stepped off at 52 paces. Now we don't know how far it sailed and if every step I took was a yard. But it was a long one.
 
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