Prairie Chickens - Needle in a Haystack?

[mobirdhunter]

Now that’s a bucket list hunt for sure. Good shooting! Those Reggie Bishop guns are special.

[Scott Smith]

Thank you Dean for putting this most exciting and memorable hunt together. It was truly special!

[Double Lab]

Prairie chickens have always been on my list but was always hesitant to take my dogs there because of the rattlers. Nice pics but who is who? I'll be in Hitchcock, SD for the opening of pheasants at our usual haunt. I'll wave going through Sioux Falls.

How are they for table fare?

[Dean Weber]

Originally Posted by Daryl Corona

Prairie chickens have always been on my list but was always hesitant to take my dogs there because of the rattlers. Nice pics but who is who? I'll be in Hitchcock, SD for the opening of pheasants at our usual haunt. I'll wave going through Sioux Falls.

How are they for table fare?

Daryl,
As a way to identify, I am shooting a GH16, Scott Smith is shooting a black diamond Model 12, and my buddy John Lowry is shooting a Citori. We all chose our guns which provided enough choke for the longer shots.

As for taste....well they do not taste like chicken. However, we coated them with olive oil after tenderizing and seasoned with Tone's garlic and pepper blend. Cooked rare-ish, they tasted more like a red meat. To be honest, I was floored how delicious they were. All commented the same.

[Larry the Gun Guy]

Originally Posted by Dean Weber

Daryl,

As for taste....well they do not taste like chicken. However, we coated them with olive oil after tenderizing and seasoned with Tone's garlic and pepper blend. Cooked rare-ish, they tasted more like a red meat. To be honest, I was floored how delicious they were. All commented the same.

What a great hunt! I think now we can all understand why the market hunters took so many birds for the big city restaurants back in the day. They are great eating birds. I have only shot a few and I did have one mounted. Are any of these birds going to be mounted Dean?

[Dean Weber]

Originally Posted by Larry Stauch

What a great hunt! I think now we can all understand why the market hunters took so many birds for the big city restaurants back in the day. They are great eating birds. I have only shot a few and I did have one mounted. Are any of these birds going to be mounted Dean?

Larry,
These early male birds don’t have their “horn” feathers grown out. The big boomers with long horn feathers are taken late in the season. So, none to mount for me. However, something to shoot for….maybe a late pheasant/chicken combo while in search of chicken horns!

[Mark Kircher]

Dean

Great hunt! Happy for You and your crew. Brought back memories of my only prairie chicken hunt maybe 25 years ago. We hunted with Bob Tinker out of Pierre and chased them with dogs on horseback.

Big fun and we were on target all 3 days. The 3rd day we hunted the ranch where much of the film Dances with wolves was made. I almost had a 3 day 9 bird limit but doubled on a covey for my last 2 birds and the second was a sharpie. Great memory! Hunting with the Tatanka! You live in a very special area.

Glad it all went your way.

I found some pictures (pre-digital) so these are pics of those pics.

The gun was a 20 bore single trigger Zoli with 28" tubes if I remember correctly.
Stolen from me soon after. ��

[J. Scott Hanes]

Originally Posted by Dean Weber

Daryl,
As a way to identify, I am shooting a GH16, Scott Smith is shooting a black diamond Model 12, and my buddy John Lowry is shooting a Citori. We all chose our guns which provided enough choke for the longer shots.

As for taste....well they do not taste like chicken. However, we coated them with olive oil after tenderizing and seasoned with Tone's garlic and pepper blend. Cooked rare-ish, they tasted more like a red meat. To be honest, I was floored how delicious they were. All commented the same.

So their meat is dark? Like a duck? I have never seen nor hunted them. Sounds like a great time!

[Dean Weber]

Originally Posted by J. Scott Hanes

So their meat is dark? Like a duck? I have never seen nor hunted them. Sounds like a great time!

Yes, the meat is dark. When you cook it rare to med-rare it leaves some blood for moisture and tastes like red meat.