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CHUKAR HABITAT - COVER
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To
the
uninitiated, chukar country appears devoid of adequate
upland bird cover. I recently forwarded some chukar hunting
pictures to a Georgia quail hunter and was accused of staging
the
photos
as part of a vast conspiracy akin to snipe hunting. He could
not
believe any self-respecting upland bird would inhabit such a bleak
landscape. Check
your
traditional cover expectations at the door ... there are birds in those
barren
hills. Cover in chukar country is comprised of lava rocks, brush, rock slides, grass, rimrock, and just plain rock. At the end of a day in chukar country, you will long for level, rock-less terrain the way a seafarer covets dry ground.
Brush is also an important component of chukar cover. Sage and bitterbrush are common in the arid hills, providing excellent overhead cover from birds of prey. When following a flushed covey, a dense stand of shoulder-height sagebrush is a likely spot for the birds to seek cover. Unfortunately, dense stands of sage often have very little ground cover, tempting the skittish birds to run from pursuit. Grasses and other vegetation are also important habitat components. Chukars are frequently found in relatively barren areas, but once approached they will run quickly to the nearest spot of cover, often a patch of grass. In the high desert environment, grass is exponentially more prevalent on the north slopes. Southern slopes dry out much more quickly under direct sunlight and therefore feature sparse ground cover with occasional patches of grass and brush. It is counterintuitive, but I find that south facing slopes offer much better hunting despite the thinner cover. My theory is that chukars like to feel dirt (or rocks) under their feet. Since their best defense mechanisms are flight and the 1000 yard dash, they don't spend much time in cover that they can't easily run through. I use the 50/50 rule ... the best chukar country features ground that is 50% barren and 50% moderately covered. |
