Theeck: Indeed I have been here at the intersection of the Blacktail Valley and the Beaverhead Valley of Montana for 23+ years now and have only seen maybe 10 Pheasants!
Alas just 28 miles north of my home (and 1,000' lower in elevation) the Pheasants are rather "thick"!
My wife and I were returning from dinner and the gunshop in Ennis, Montana, this spring and I took the back road from Laurin, Montana to Beaverhead Rock (14 miles north of my home) and we counted 105 (one hundred and five) "Rooster" Pheasants on that 18 - 20 mile drive!
Sadly Hunting rights in that area are tough to attain - I only have ONE "in" for Pheasants in that area and plan on putting it to use this fall. I would like to shoot one more "brace" of Rooster Pheasants before I cross the great divide.
The reason (I think) that there are very few Pheasants in my immediate area is the elevation (5,400'), the amazing number of predators and not as many cattail and swampy areas near me.
I have been seeing Chukars near my home over the last 5 years (mild winters?) though.
I have had as many as 14 (fourteen) Hungarian Partridge in my yard at one time.
Nothing is more fun to see (and amusing!) than a Hungarian Partridge kicking the ass "acrobatically" of a Magpie!
And as others have mentioned, I enjoy the "sounds" of the various birds around my home - I did NOT know what the term "angry birds" was until I retired and moved to Montana. Many types of birds get in a noisy snit accompanied by rather enthusiastic "fighting" with others birds of their own breed and of other breeds.
I also collect feathers that are shed in my yard - I have also sent along about 20 (twenty) Owl pellets to the local science teachers for the science/biology classes to study and dissect and observe the tiny bones therein.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy
That's really cool. I'm jealous.
