... but I think some may be interested!
Last weekend I was out checking on our red legged partridge and hare populations and it seems that this is going to be a very good year for both species!
Saw a lot of family flocks, ranging from 6 up 20 or more partridges, and hares were everywhere. Can hardly wait for the hunting season to start (5th, October). These are going to be three very long months!

If any AR member happens to come this way during hunting season and care to join me in a drive hunt for partridge and hare, just let me know in advance!

This is what is to be expected from a good morning of drive hunts for wild partridge and hare (around 30 hunters):





B.Martins

Very good Result !

Waidmannsheil

Not big game but big hunting! I saw some red partridge last April in the Gredos, they shot away like thunder, really fast birds.

I hope we can have a glass of wine together towards the end of August, we'll be just S. of your area.

Very impressive. At least I'm impressed.

I'm also v v impressed.

What gun/loads do you use?

Which are the most popular gundog breeds in Portugal? Anything regional?

quote:

Originally posted by DUK:
Not big game but big hunting! I saw some red partridge last April in the Gredos, they shot away like thunder, really fast birds.

I hope we can have a glass of wine together towards the end of August, we'll be just S. of your area.

You are right! It is undoubtedly the fastest hunting bird we can hunt.
The hunting season for pigeon and dove starts mid August, so bring your shotgun if you want to come along!



Among the Portuguese hunters the most common shotguns for partridge hunting are the12 ga (semi-auto, O/U or S/S, in this order).
The hunt is always done with the help of dogs (English, German and French pointers are used) and one of the most popular ones is the “Perdigueiro Português†(literally: “The Portuguese Partridge Dogâ€) also known as “The Portuguese Pointerâ€.
It is a hard working and gentle dog, a terrific hunter and a marvellous pet, which is becoming very popular in many foreign countries (Spain, France, USA,…).

You can look at these sites to see some photos:

http://orlandoneto1.tripod.com/id1.html

http://www.perdigueiroportugues.com/

http://www.theportuguesepointer.com/

B.Martins

Mr Martins, was this bag of game shot at a driven shoot or over the pointers?

It is a great bag for a driven shoot, but if it was over the pointers, then it is out of this world.

Partridges over pointers is the absolute cream of sport.

I have a gorgeous little spanish sidelock shotgun would be perfect for this.

B.M

We have the same birds, (Chukars), in Cyprus and the same hare. I would swap any driven day in the UK, for a days walking the hills over my pointers for a brace and a half of partridges and a hare if the gods were smiling!!

Driven, these birds are beyond fast!! I've been in a valley before now where birds are coming down from rocky outcrops a half mile away and you just hear them whiz past.

The first time I went out (with my own gun)I was about 15 years old. the birds started being flushed oof of the tops in the half light and I quickly missed four or five by a bus length behind. Dad was letting me shoot. when it became apparent I wasn't going to bring home the bacon he killed a nice left and right behind me oput of a covey I missed. I went to pick the birds and by the time I had the second ne he had added another four. I put the gun down and watched as he added another 3 birds. 9 birds for as many shots, and the most memorable morning shooting I've probably ever had.

Thanks for posting your photo's it brings back many happy memories of my early shooting days.

Hopefully one day I'd love to come and watch one of your shoots as unfortunately the days of the partridge are gone in Cyprus due to too many poachers.

Best regards,
FB

Brian & FB,

Those photos were taken at the end of a normal, average, hunting day at one of the small game hunting areas I hunt.
Last year on that hunting area (36 members) we harvested about 1,200 red partridges and 800 hares total. All game taken was 100% wild game (no “put and takeâ€!). We could have harvested 50% more, but because we want to make sure that the remaining wild game population will be enough to cope with any bad breeding season that might come along (and in order not to be forced to repopulate) we always make sure that at the hunting season’s end there is plenty of birds and hares!
Between 5th October and mid December we hunt for partridge and hare for 7 or 8 days (Sundays). Usually there are between 30 and 36 hunters that are then split into two groups. The hunters of one group are then placed on strategic spots and the ones on the second group will start beating from afar (while hunting with the pointers).
On a normal day (morning) there will be 3 or 4 drives and groups will be changing roles. If a hunter is in bad shape (do to age or whatever) we arrange for him to swap with someone else so we doesn’t have to do is “beater†part.
An individual bag limit is given (5 partridges /4 hares?) and around noon we will be finished, after bagging a total of around 130/150 red partridges and 80/100 hares.

I have another area to hunt that is not as good as this one for partridge and hare, but is great for wild boar. As I can’t hunt the two simultaneously I usually swap hunting rights with hunting friends in either area in order to hunt each area every other week and inviting a friend to come along and hunt with me.

So, as I said, if any AR member happens to be coming this way and wants to join me …..


B.Martins

That's it. I am sitting here in Ireland. It is chucking down rain. There is no salmon fishing.

I am selling up and moving to Portugal.

Wild partridge over pointers, plenty of boar. Reliable sunshine. What's not to like?

quote:

Wild partridge over pointers, plenty of boar. Reliable sunshine. What's not to like?

Have to leave office within one hour; 40ºC outside; rush hour; no hunting during the weekend; ;;;
You can always find plenty to complain about!

B.Martins

B.M. the hunting area that produces this surplus 1200 redlegs is how large hectareage?
What kind of management is carried out to ensure next years surplus- do you have "gamekeepers?" Is the ground cultivated or all scrubland?
In UK we have had a very wet summer which will offer very poor prospects for wild bird shoots and grouse moors. However 90% of uk game is "put and take" so largely immune to the increasing vagaries of climate.

B.M. in Northern England this F**king wet and cold weather is seriously knocking all prospects of a surplus of red grouse to shoot, sounds like you are not getting the effects of "global warming!"

The only things that seem to be surviving this poor weather is vermin!!!

Just read your responce Trans Pond, your observation on the wild birds are correct, here in the peak district I am preparing grouse butts, for the season but am not optomistic, is it ever going to stop raining???

quote:

Originally posted by trans-pond:
B.M. the hunting area that produces this surplus 1200 redlegs is how large hectareage?
What kind of management is carried out to ensure next years surplus- do you have "gamekeepers?" Is the ground cultivated or all scrubland?
In UK we have had a very wet summer which will offer very poor prospects for wild bird shoots and grouse moors. However 90% of uk game is "put and take" so largely immune to the increasing vagaries of climate.

The area where we hunt the red partridge is about 1,200 hectares, with a lot of landowners. The hunting ground is mainly rolling hills, very patchy with many small parcels. Some parcels are cultivated and others are just scrub or small bush areas. The climate is very dry (two years ago we had a serious drought and most of the eggs didn’t hatch, but even so we hunted about 800 birds, mostly old birds from the previous year. We have one gamekeeper on this area.
Should we decide for a “put and take†and we could hunt 3 or 4 times as much as we do. But most of the hunters don’t fancy that sort of management. We put quality before quantity: you simple can’t compare the flight of a wild partridge with that of a farm raised one. It’s like comparing an F16 with a Jumbo!
The wild boar area is much larger (almost 3,000 hectares) also with a lot of landowners. For this area we have a 12+12 years lease, so we have big plans for it! No gamekeeper, for now.

B.Martins

The final hunting calendar has been established and this year we will hunt for red partridge and hares every Sunday from the 7th October until the 25th November, every hunter being allowed to shoot 6 partridges and 5 hares per hunting day.
If any of our AR members is interested in giving it a try just let me know in advance. I make but one demand: it has to be someone that had never hunted for red partridge!
The only costs involved will be: hunting licence and insurance.

B.Martins