Cool article about pigeons

[SurfNHuntSD]

Wanted to share a great piece that Hank Shaw wrote about band-tailed pigeon hunting: https://honest-food.net/in-defense-of-the-pigeon/

Not overlooking our upcoming deer, quail and waterfowl seasons, but this gets me excited for that 10 day season in December. As he writes, it's something about the short season, 2 bird limit, and difficulty of hunting them that gets us pumped.

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[msailor]

Never hunted them but your right a cool article. When I was a kid I would shot a few of the rock dove on the farm for my aunt and take them to her on our yearly family get together and she loved them.


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[Bowman]

The season so short it would pass by before I had a chance to hunt them.
When I was like 12 years old. My cousins and I would hunt, dove, pigeon, quail. And duck. , Fun times.
And we would clean it and cook it out doors. Yummy.

 

[ilovesprig]

I've seen the limit go from 7 to 4 to 2.....The season from a month long to 9 days.....And you know what?.....I still love hunting them as much as almost any upland bird.

ps....Jason.....Thanks for sharing that piece.

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[DanSanDiego]

I’ll always remember 2014. That year the band tails were so thick they scared me nearly to death pre dawn when walking in to my spot during D16 rifle. It seemed like the entire tree above me broke loose and started to lift off. And it happened more than once on that long, dark walk-in.
Came back to the same spot for Band Tail season and had a good two weekends.

This past weekend I saw a football shaped bird fly by on the mountain. Could have been a single, large band tail or else some type of grouse/ptarmigan? It was very light tan or even white. Gotta love those chance encounters with birds you’d love to eventually have on the dinner plate. If someone says it was a snipe, then I’ll forget that I mentioned it.

 

[ilovesprig]

Dan,

No grouse in SD Co....Could have been a Euro and there's are a lot of local band tails.

 

[utahduckhunter]

Awesome article

 

[Bowman]

I’ll always remember 2014. That year the band tails were so thick they scared me nearly to death pre dawn when walking in to my spot during D16 rifle. It seemed like the entire tree above me broke loose and started to lift off. And it happened more than once on that long, dark walk-in.
Came back to the same spot for Band Tail season and had a good two weekends.

This past weekend I saw a football shaped bird fly by on the mountain. Could have been a single, large band tail or else some type of grouse/ptarmigan? It was very light tan or even white. Gotta love those chance encounters with birds you’d love to eventually have on the dinner plate. If someone says it was a snipe, then I’ll forget that I mentioned it.

Hi Dan
I had these band tails scare the c__p
Out of me. They make a racket in the big pines. Also dang turkeys because they are huge. The startle me more than they are when deer stalking the one flys out of no where.
Beautiful birds for sure.
I do miss the grey squirrels.
They would entertain me. Watching them eat acorns.
Best
Longbow

 

[steveo007]

and talk about a tough bird 1st time I hunted them with 7 1/2 shot " no bueno" lots of feathers and they keep going. Next time out was with 6 shot much better.

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[Bowman]

and talk about a tough bird 1st time I hunted them with 7 1/2 shot " no bueno" lots of feathers and they keep going. Next time out was with 6 shot much better.

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#6 steel shot it is.
It gets a little higher too.