What's your favorite cover, weather, time of day etc?

S

sas

New member
At dawns early light I will see some groups hitting the grass and others hitting the grain. Who is right? All of us can use some tips and I think it would be beneficial to expand on how we hunt as to time of day, weather, cover, time of season etc. Sharing will only make us all better, enjoy it more and be better hunters/conservationists. 33 days and counting.
 
Great question. I'm interested to hear other's opinions. Personally, I think it depends on the conditions. Early in the year, if it has stayed mild, I think some birds will roost in the grain if there is enough cover. Normally, though, I will save my grain spots for late morning to mid-day and hit the denser cover early and late.
 
I always hunt CRP fields as my 1st hunt of the day. After that, it's anythings goes. Most of WIHA I hunt is CRP, very little in milo. Hunting CRP that adjoins a grain field is ideal when can get it.

I once gridded out every shot I took at a bird over the course of several seasons, and was surprised to learn that I shot at more birds in the late morning than in the early AM.

lefty
 
What's your favorite cover,

I posed this question in an attempt to learn more about what makes a pheasant tick. I have been hunting them 60 yrs but I think I know less than when I started, sometimes. Personally I believe they are like all the rest of us creatures of habit. I think early in the season they go about their usual feeding and roosting just like we do. Eat where the food is good and sleep where we are safe and comfortable. Take the roads we usually travel and stay alert. But it is the rest of the year that puzzles me.
Early in the morning if I see a bird moving it is usually going from grass to grain. But how about late in the evening when I see them flying to wheat stubble. Are they going home to roost or feed until after dark and go back to grass?? Does a full moon make a difference? What about an approaching storm? I have seen icy and snowy days when I didn't see a bird along the road or edge of field. Are they sitting tight and not eating that day? I never do much good during rain. My fault or theirs? We get some pretty good wind some days should we change our location significantly to more protected areas? When the temp really drops they move out into the heavy cover to roost. Do they still get up early to feed or do they wait until the mid day?
We all have our favorite spots where we seem to always find birds. What happens the day they are gone? Somebody beat us there or do we walk over them? Are the roosters really that much smarter than the hens that we may get up 10 to 1 and then all the sudden find 5 roosters together?
This could go on and on and there may not be any mortal who knows the answers. But in an effort to be more conservative with my steps(which are getting more limited each year) I would love to know some of the answers.
Thanks to all with any input. If you like PM me.
 
This conversation has infinite potential. One thing I know for sure is that the weather does play a role. The birds will stay in the feed a long time the day before a good cold front comes in and stay in the cover on the day the front arrives. When it is warm and or dry, the birds seem to hit the winter wheat early in the morning. The farmers tell me it is because they are drinking the dew off of the wheat. I too traditionally start in the CRP, but similar to Lefty, don't have much luck initially in the CRP. I've witnessed guys kicking birds out of milo like crazy right at sunrise, while I was in the CRP field next to them only seeing a few. I still go back to the CRP in the morning by force of habit. To answer sas' question, yes, there are times the birds don't even go to feed. The same goes for chickens and quail. I've sat in a great chicken field that is usually loaded with chickens, but the day of a front moving in, they're nowhere to be found. The evening before the front arrives, I can usually shoot at them and wait for them to return, which they normally won't do after being shot at. As soon as the extreme cold breaks, they're back in the feed (I learned this lesson last year on a 3-day trip).

Late season I've noticed they tend to "flock" to homestead areas w/ heavy weed cover.

I agree with Lefty in that finding adjoining cover and feed is ALWAYS the best option. The birds love the edges of whatever they choose to sit in.

I love hearing everyones' responses to questions like these. This thread will have several pages before it is all said and done.
 
Oh yeah, when it is raining I've had luck finding them in the grass all day. I'll stay on the same 1/4 section all day when it is raining consistently all day. Besides, hunting feed fields can be tough when it is wet. Has anyone else noticed that the birds don't spend much time on the road when it is raining?
 
The thing that makes this conversation interesting to me are the exceptions. I agree with what KB has said in general regarding fronts and rain, but I've experienced exceptions on a couple of occasions. One day in particular was a rainy, sleety mess. We hunted heavy cover for several hours with nothing more to show for it than a couple of cotton tails. We decided to go against conventional wisdom and hit a cut milo field. Three of us shot 5 roosters in less than an hour off that 40 acre patch of milo. I'm always happy to find a those honey holes that have both feed and cover together. That helps take the guess work out of it.:cool:
 
Last edited:
Favorite Conditions

Field: Weedy wheat stubble (rare today; second best is milo stalks)

Time: All day; the pheasants will live in it

Weather: Four inches of fresh snow, 25 degrees, slight breeze
 
I rarely hunt CRP, I personally don't like to tromp through it all day. I usually hunt milo stubble, wheat stubble, pasture draws or tree rows with not really an exception to the time of day. If it's real windy I generally don't hunt but if I do hunt I like to work tree rows or pasture draws. With alot of snow I like to hunt grain fields and tree rows. If it's real cold and snowy/wet I look for the birds huddled up along tree rows or on the sun side of thickets. One of my favorite fields to hunt has it all, a pasture with thick draws and thickets, two tree rows, one big grass/CRP draw and an uncut, no-till milo field that my farmer buddy leaves uncut so he can use it for feed later. We shoot many a rooster and quail out of this quarter section.
 
kiotehntr said:
I rarely hunt CRP, I personally don't like to tromp through it all day. I usually hunt milo stubble, wheat stubble, pasture draws or tree rows with not really an exception to the time of day. If it's real windy I generally don't hunt but if I do hunt I like to work tree rows or pasture draws. With alot of snow I like to hunt grain fields and tree rows. If it's real cold and snowy/wet I look for the birds huddled up along tree rows or on the sun side of thickets. One of my favorite fields to hunt has it all, a pasture with thick draws and thickets, two tree rows, one big grass/CRP draw and an uncut, no-till milo field that my farmer buddy leaves uncut so he can use it for feed later. We shoot many a rooster and quail out of this quarter section.
Click to expand...

It's the stuff my day-dreams are made of.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top