Make the Most of This Pheasant Season

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Given suitable habitat, when you hunt pheasants can be almost as important as where you hunt them. Pheasants spend relatively short periods in feeding areas, usually early and late in the day, then move to places where they can loaf and hide. It doesn’t take them long to fill their crops, so these moments are a bit fleeting.

While you can still bag birds throughout the day, these key movement windows can be very productive, and upland hunters should take advantage when possible. To do so, one must know how to identify the roosting and loafing cover where birds spend much of their time, the food sources they visit and how the weather can affect these patterns.

PLAN OPPORTUNE AMBUSHES

My hunting companions and I once hunted a walk-in property in South Dakota that overlooked the Missouri River. The parcel was a mix of corn and milo. Every day, hunters would line up to head into the field at noon, when they could legally start hunting. The problem was that there weren’t any birds in the field then. Instead, they were in an adjacent switchgrass field on private ground. Return an hour before dark, though, and you could pass shoot a variety of upland birds flying from the roost field to the feed.

One time, when the sun was a half-hour from the horizon, and no other hunters were around, we pushed the field. I shot two roosters, a sharpie and a hun from the same field. Those birds hadn’t been there at noon.

There were lots of pheasants in North Dakota last year. The harvest was early, though. Birds were concentrated in remaining cover, and any suitable Private Land Open to Sportsmen (PLOTS) ground received heavy hunting pressure each day, sometimes multiple times per day. We reasoned that there were only a few prime places where the pheasants could roost, so we planned to arrive early. We positioned ourselves in the field before dawn and lay down to await shooting hours.

The plan was to try and pass-shoot some roosters as they left to feed, but if that didn’t work, we’d be in the field first and catch the birds on the roost. The sun was just peeking over the horizon when we saw a caravan of headlights headed toward the field. Imagine their surprise when they lined up to head into the field, and we stood up! We wound up killing several long-tailed roosters before they escaped the roosting cover. We succeeded because we got there early, caught them in the roost, and they didn’t see or hear us until it was too late.

We reversed the tactic that evening. We lined up along the PLOTS field where it abutted a cut cornfield, hoping to pass shoot birds headed out to feed. Like clockwork, flights of sharptails streamed overhead just as the sun was dipping below the horizon, resulting in some exciting, end-of-day action.

IDENTIFY COVER

Pheasants follow a predictable routine most days. They spend the night in thick roosting cover—ideally expansive grass fields where they can spread out—to avoid predators. So dispersed in the field, the birds make it harder for predators to trap them against the edges.

Typically, game birds fly or walk from their roosts to feed in the morning and return to feed in the afternoon after loafing midday. Once at the feed, they quickly fill their crop. Gamebirds will migrate to the field edge at first light and then dart out into the field, grab a quick bite, and then retreat. Savvy hunters intervene. A similar process occurs in early evening from loafing cover to feed.

Roosting cover can differ from loafing cover. While thick grass is preferred for roosting, loafing areas can be more open, such as a plum thicket or hedgerow, where birds can bask in the sun and see approaching danger from a distance. Typically, birds use loafing cover from mid-morning to early afternoon. Getting into shooting range can be difficult with the birds holding all the cards. If you have an idea of where birds might go when flushed, a stealthy, controlled drive may put them in front of the gun.

WATCH THE WEATHER

Changes in weather can throw a wrench in this daily routine. An approaching storm front causes game birds to stock up for what might be a prolonged event and then refrain from feeding for several days. Knowing this, wise hunters work the edges of loafing and roosting cover where it meets feed fields—regardless of the time of day—just before a front arrives. Birds will feed frantically and hunker down when an approaching snowstorm is imminent and then remain hidden. Then, you must step on them to get them to fly. Immobile, solitary birds emit very little scent, making it difficult for dogs to find them.

Extremely cold temperatures can do the same thing or prompt birds to feed during the warmest part of the day. Some friends and I were planning on pheasant hunting one winter morning. The temperature had dropped into the single digits overnight, and there was some debate about when we should go. They were eager to hit the field and wanted to go at sunrise. I reasoned that the birds would not be out then and elected to go at mid-morning, starting with a favorite irrigation pivot.

Irrigation pivots are great places to search for gamebirds. They water crops in the fields in a circular fashion. The corners of these fields are not planted with crops because the tractor makes a wide swing when planting and doesn’t reach those extreme edges. With ample water from the pivots, weeds and thick grasses grow in the corners. Birds have food and cover in one place, and these pivot corners are a magnet for gamebirds.

It had snowed during the week, and I could tell that someone had hunted one of my favorite pivots a few days prior based on the fresh snow that filled their tracks. I reasoned that enough time had elapsed that the area had likely been replenished with birds.

The sun shone brightly, and the temperatures had inched into double digits as I entered the field at mid-morning. I could see pheasant tracks with long drag marks between them, where foraging roosters had darted from the pivot corners out into the field, fed and returned to cover. The tracks led from the field edge to a monstrous pile of tumbleweeds, and my aging Lab, Rebel, stuck his nose into the pile. A rooster exploded from the opposite side, and I dumped him in the corn stubble. Rebel ambled out to retrieve the cock bird.

Two other pivot corners also produced roosters, and I happily headed back to the truck. I called my buds to see how they were doing, and they bemoaned the fact that they hadn’t seen or shot a bird since daylight. Sometimes, the early bird doesn’t get the worm—or the bird.

BE STEALTHY

Stealth is essential when hunting educated gamebirds. On oft-hunted public lands, if hunters typically park in one location, strive to approach from a different direction, especially if everyone arrives at a predetermined time, like first light. Pheasants rely on their eyesight and hearing to avoid danger. Avoid yelling at dogs, talking and using beeper collars. Instead, communicate with hand signals and muted whistles. And discuss your game plan with fellow hunters well before reaching the area.

Blaze orange is mandatory in most states and when hunting in larger groups. Some states, though, don’t require it for upland hunting. If I’m hunting by myself or with a trusted hunting buddy—and it’s legal—I may not wear blaze orange to facilitate a stealthy approach at just the right time. Stay quiet, and be smart in your approach. Whatever you can do to keep birds unaware of your presence, do it. You’ll be surprised how much it can pay off in the field.

UPLAND IMPLEMENTS

• Tools to aid your pheasant-hunting endeavors.

Unlike some hunting pursuits, chasing pheasants isn’t all that gear intensive. However, you at least want a dependable shotgun, a hard-hitting load, a comfortable game vest and a means to find and—safely and legally—hunt public or private lands.

On the shotgun front, Franchi’s newly redesigned Affinity 3 ($949-$1,199) is a great inertia-driven gun that looks better than ever and feels awesome in hand due to ergonomic improvements. It also contains several functional upgrades, including a two-piece shell latch and adjustable recoil pad. Stack barrel fans should consider Browning’s new Citori 825 Field ($3,320), which has a beautiful engraved, low-profile receiver to optimize swing and pointability, and keep recoil in line with the shoulder, and features Browning’s dependable Fire Lite 2 Mechanical Trigger. For side-by-side enthusiasts, there’s Weatherby’s Orion SXS ($999), which has a straight English stock, mechanical double triggers and 28-inch barrels.

Federal Premium’s Prairie Storm FS Lead loads ($37-$53/25 shells) are time-proven performers. The mixed payload of standard copper-plated lead and uniquely shaped FliteStopper lead pellets, combined with the FliteControl Flex wad, has dropped loads of roosters over the years. On properties where you must use non-toxic shot, give HEVI-Shot’s HEVI-Bismuth Upland loads ($62-$77/25 shells) a look. The 9.6 g/cc HEVI-Bismuth pellets are 22 percent denser than steel, and loads work safely in modern and classic shotguns, including those with fixed chokes.

Browning’s Bird’n Lite Strap Vest 2.0 ($158) is a no-nonsense lightweight game vest that makes it easy to tote all your gear and any birds you might bag. It has wide nylon shoulder straps, fully adjustable load-bearing straps and a padded adjustable waist belt. It has both pockets for water bottles and an integrated sleeve and hose guide for a water pack.

Lastly, the onX Hunt app ($15/month or $100/year for the Elite Membership) makes it easy to find and hunt public or private lands. Within the app, layers help you identify boundaries between public and private lands, including e-posted private lands in North Dakota. Scout ahead of your hunt with the desktop version, and then use the mobile app in the field. It’ll save you significant time and hassle. -Drew Warden

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• This article was featured in the October 2025 issue of Game & Fish magazine. Click to subscribe.

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