Flush Difference?

C

CowboyBirdDogs

New member
Well, the truck is in the process of being loaded and we're headed out Sunday at 11:30am for KS. If by Tuesday afternoon we aren't gettin into enough birds, we'll head to Pierre, SD and hunt the rest of the week. It's myself and my usual upland hunting partner and my other buddy who has never been upland hunting in his life but is really excited about the trip. Now I've hunted KS 3 years and only seen 1 group flush of PC's (that I know of) and it was about 100 birds in mid-January. Me and my buddy thought they were hen pheasant and didn't fire a shot (they were out of range anyway), come to find out they were PCs. So with us going to SoDak and having not seen huns/sharptails/ and sage grouse flush, what is the quickest an easiest way to determine what bird it is on the flush? How do you tell the difference between a hen pheasant, huns, sharptails, sage grouse, and prairie chickens? Not talking about whether they're flushing in a covey or what type of habitat you found them in, I mean solely the flush of the bird. Noise difference? Sight? Thanks for any input!
 
If you hunt north of Pierre you will definitely see more grouse (sharptails) this year. We hunted a week there and between 5 of us shot 7. I look at avery bird that jumps up and look for the length of tail and color (sharptails are grayer). Grouse will also do more gliding in flight, so if you see it stop flapping while still in range it is probably a grouse. And grouse will make little growling-squeeking noises when they flush and fly. Grouse often hang out at the edge of cut fields or in the middle of large CRP fields in areas that are grazed or reduced cover.

Good luck--it is not easy to pick them out unless you have had a fair amount of experience. Hunting a lot in KS, NE, WY, or MT can school you a little more than hunting them in SD where there are not as many.
 
Huns are a lot smaller then the rest. The would be the easiest to tell apart. They are the size of a chuckar.
 
you wont have ant trouble telling a hun apart from any other game bird they are way small compaired to prairie grouse... if you see a bird you may think is a bob white quail its a hun or quail & shoot it!!!

if you have never harvested a prairie grouse or never even hunted prairie grouse on purpose then id be a little cautious on pulling the trigger on any brown hen pheasant sized game bird in & around pierre SD & the MO river breaks area...???

for a novice prairie grouse hunter who could be trigger happy prairie grouse are to similar looking to hen pheasants to just start shooting brown color birds...

HUNs similar to a bob white but bigger in size & samller then a chuckar... gray in color bird that flushes in coverys like bob white EZ to identify... SHRAPTAIL GROUSE looks most like a hen pheasant but much shorter pointed tail will have a much more white under belly & wings then a hen pheasant will chuckle when flushed & will be in large groups now, PRAIRIE CHICKEN much darker underbelly then a sharptail grouse has a much more brown & white striped belly most times wont chuckle when flushed & will look like it has no tail when flying love sunflowers will also be in huge flocks this time of yr!!! chickens hang on the more flat prairie grass with slite rolling hills near crops sharptails hang in much more hilly county with scrub trees & buffalo berrys near by... they also hit crop fields early & late in day like chickens...

if the cover is higher then your knee on a short guy & higher then your shines on a tall guy you will most likely not even see a prairie grouse in that habitat... they dont live in the same tougher habitat that pheasants do & they dont run run run like pheasants they fly fly fly like miles away once flushed & shot at by hunters so be prepaired...

saying that a hen pheasant is much louder when they flush you really can hear the pheasants wings good when they flush prairie grouse will make the chuckle sound sometimes when they flush sharptails & huns chuckle much more then prairie chickens but chickens do chuckle sometimes also... but a prairie grouse wings hardly makes a sound when they flush they are just all of a sudden flushing up ahead of you & jumping up like popcorn plus they do not flush anything like a rooster pheasants do strait up then go with the wind prairie grouse just jump into the air & start going way more tricky to hit then most people think...

they also coast/glide way more when they fly very much like landing waterfowl they are most active at sunrise & sun set you can watch huge flocks land into food source or roosting cover if your in good prairie grouse habitat...

happy & safe hunting to you & yours hope that info helps you... please post your results & or PM the results of your SD hunt if you make it???
 
Last edited:
I can relate....

The first sharptail I ever flushed was about 100 yards away before I figured out what it was. I didn't shoot because I thought it was a hen pheasant.

Sharptails are rounder than hen pheasants. They look to me like footballs with wings. On the flush, sharptails cluck like a chicken. Hen pheasants cackle.

Tails are also a good identifier. Huns have red tails, sharptails have a short, thick, and sharp triangle shaped tail. Hen pheasants tail is longer, more streamlined, and comes to a more gradual point than a sharptails.

Check out the post-hunt pictures on this site of birds; it will give you a good idea of the coloring. Hope this helps. Good luck!
 
Haven't shot huns or prairie chickens and not many sharptails but the first time I saw sharptails I knew they weren't hen pheasants right away.

Different flight,different profile,a lot of white,and they make a chuckle type noise. I was worried if I came across one I would mistake them for a hen pheasant but if you've seen a lot of hen pheasants you'll be just fine as I was.
 
i have never ever herd a hen pheasant cackle??? am i the only guy that has never herd a hen pheasant cackle??? i thought the roosters did this???

i have herd that cherping type noise B4 a bunch of pheasants flushed under my feet...

& herd hens make that cherp B4 but not a cackle??? not being sarcastic just want to know because if hens cackle im missing it...

like most folks who stumble onto prairie grouse while pheasant hunting its OK to let the first flock of grouse go if your not sure what they are it will help you on the next prairie grouse flush to tell the diiference
 
I have never heard a hen pheasant cackle either. Sharptails will frequently laugh at you when they flush. Most of the time I don't recognize them until it is too late unless they do. They seem to hang out in small coveys in thinner cover than pheasants. If you flush one, be ready for more. They will usually fly a long long ways when you do flush them.

Jerry
 
Yeah Sharptails are a shorter rounder bird then a hen pheasant. Color is different too hens are brown, sharptails more gray and lighter in color. Almost all the time there is the "chuckle" as they take off. Hen pheasants have a louder wing beat.

Once you get used to it it's like riding a bike.:thumbsup:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top