16ga.com ~ View topic

Joined: 16 Jul 2015 Posts: 2125 Location: Hudson,Wy

Over the years I've heard some debate whether Scaled quail will go down pack rat holes to escape. It's well established that crippled birds will indeed do so and I've had it happen many times over the years. But healthy, un-shot birds? That's where there has been much conjecture in the quail hunting community.

Well folks, I'm here to put in my 2 cents and hopefully settle it once an for all. Much to my surprise, a perfectly healthy bird will dart right down a hole, ignoring risks of rattlesnakes and other small but potentially harmful critters!

On my first trip south this winter, Rusty and I got into a big swarm of scailies which lead to another group. Soon we were chasing both groups back and forth in a small delta of sand washes. At one point a pair flushed a tad far and took divergent paths. I watched as one flew a short distance and lit by a single Sotol. I figured a quick refresh would be easy enough and as we arrived, Rusty hit scent and went trailing. He trailed the bird right into a pack rat hole. I could even see four loose feathers where the mesquite thorns nicked him on his way down the entrance. Hmmm.

I stomped around, caving in every entrance to the mound with no escape attempt from the offending quail. The pickup was only about 600 yards away and I carry a shovel...

I set forth to digging in the soft sandy soil, determined to find an answer. After all, the bird couldn't escape while I was gone since I had basically buried it alive while stomping around. On my 12th scoop with the shovel, there was a blue gray blotch in the brown sand and it launched like a bat out of hell! I dropped my shovel and grabbed the Cosgwell 16. The bird may have gotten the jump on me since I had to bend down for the gun, but it had a long way to buzz through the air to get out of range too. I back triggered the 16 and folded this bird at about 35 yards, taking the most unique flush of my career. This one even tops the hun that flushed from my own game bag so many years ago.

[[URL=https://www.jpgbox.com/page/70689_1000x645/]

[/URL]][/img]

Joined: 07 Mar 2010 Posts: 483 Location: South Eastern PA

Wow!

That is something!

Kind of brings new meaning to the phrase “Prospecting for birds”. Next time I lose a grouse after a flush I’ll have a new excuse.

Garhart,
Another nice day of hunting, with a new experience, ya go too love it!

all the best,

Pine Creek/Dave
L.C. Smith Man

Joined: 07 Mar 2010 Posts: 483 Location: South Eastern PA

I have shot a few grouse over the years that I would have never been able to find if not for a good dog. Most were wedged tight under logs. If there would have been a hole in the ground handy, I bet they would have used it.

ROMAC,
No doubt about it Grouse will escape into all kinds of different holes and under big rocks where other animals lived at one time. My SM male dog was a master at digging them out, especially along the over hanging creek banks. Garhart is absolutely correct,
and the better dog you have the more birds you will recover from all these different kind of hiding places.

all the best,

Pine Creek/Dave
L.C. Smith Man

Joined: 19 Jun 2004 Posts: 1480 Location: Mpls, MN.

I never wanted a bird that bad.

Best,
Ted

Joined: 16 Jul 2015 Posts: 2125 Location: Hudson,Wy

Ted, you have no sense of adventure. Laughing

Joined: 07 Jun 2020 Posts: 224

I have seen a covey of bob white run into a pile of brush and burrow into the center so that short of tearing the 12ft circular pile apart you could not get them out

Joined: 30 Sep 2020 Posts: 185 Location: ont canada

I guess I am not unique I have had wing tipped Grouse climb into old stump holes and the like several times . Luckly I had a Brittany that was smarter than me and wouldn't give up till the birds were retrieved. Dogs are generally more intelligent than their masters in my case anyways.

Joined: 24 Jul 2016 Posts: 548 Location: Ohio

Got a chuckle out of the Hun in the game bag comment. As a youngun of about 14 I had a fox squirrel come back to life in an old canvas hunting coat with the inside game bag. Pretty exciting for a bit.

As a teen in the 60s in northwest AR I placed a #1 Victor in every den hole around the homeplace hoping to catch a possum--worth 6 bits when the furbuyer came around. Bobwhite quail were very abundant then, and on several occasions they were waiting for me when I checked the traps. Had the covey been busted with the singles looking for a hiding place in the den holes?

In the 70s a spike in cattle prices caused most farmers to see a dramatic rise in profits. Rather than pay taxes on profits, most chose to "clean up" a lot of high-graded woodlands or scrub lands with the intent of creating additional pastureland. Most woody vegetation was piled in draws or on the edges of bluffs by bulldozers. If not burned, these piles grew up in briers, sumac, persimmon sprouts, pokeweek, etc, and turned into good loafing areas for quail coveys. If crippled, most quail sought refuge under root wads, stumps and in the numerous groundhog holes present. At the time, we had a German pointer who relished digging cripples out of these places. He did not like failure and usually got his bird!

So, I'm not surprised about the original post of digging a bird out of the ground.

Better not let the wildliife authorities see this post--they may think of some new wildlife regulation to put an end to this heinous practice!

Joined: 19 Jun 2004 Posts: 1480 Location: Mpls, MN.

I’ve had Setters that would dig birds out of the stumps or holes they hid in.

But, I never brought a shovel bird hunting.

Best,
Ted

Joined: 16 Jul 2015 Posts: 2125 Location: Hudson,Wy

When I say I carry a shovel...it means I carry one in the truck. When traveling long distances through snowy country it can save my bacon, or some stranded motorist. Ditto for the tow strap. I've rescued a few folks in my travels to and from the southwest this year. At any rate, and maybe it's just my inner child playing the dominant role, it was fun to dig that little sucker up. Actually bagging him with the gun was just a bonus.

Joined: 12 Sep 2010 Posts: 1973 Location: Maine

One of the places we stock pheasants has good old-fashioned Maine rock walls. More than a couple times the dogs have gone on point only to find that the bird had gone in there head-first and couldn't figure out how to get out.

Those, we pulled out by hand and let fly. Can't cull out the dumb ones lest we have no chance at all.