Wing Shooting
We have great wing shooting to offer due to the wide variety of bird species. What makes bird hunting so attractive in South Africa is the fact that the birds are totally wild and indigenous. Dogs often accompany hunters on their wing shooting adventures with the most popular breeds utilized for bird hunting in South Africa being Pointers, German Short-haired Pointers, and Weimaraner.
A wing shooting trip can also be combined with a Trophy Safari and Photographic Safari.
Walk-Up shoots
Season: May 1st – August 31st
Species: Grey-wing Partridge, orange River Partridge, Swainson’s Spurfowl, Guinea Fowl, Common Quail.
Spurfowl, partridges, and quail are hunted over well-trained German Shorthaired Pointers. The birds hold well to the point, allowing the guns to get up in time for the flush and when flushed they offer challenging passing and overhead shots. Spurfowl and partridge coveys consist of between 2 to 15 birds while Guinea fowl are found in flocks, sometimes more than 100 birds. Guinea fowl are walked-up in dense cover where the dogs normally flush them in one’s and two’s. Shoots continue until late morning and resume in the late afternoon. Shoots take place in open grassveld plains, along riverbanks and cornfields. The bag limit per hunter is 10 Upland birds per day. On average, you can expect to shoot up to 50 shots per person per day.
Waterfowl Shoots
Season: May 1st – August 31st
Species: Cape Shoveler, Yellow-billed Duck, Red-billed Teal, White Face Duck, Spur-winged Goose, Egyptian Goose
Geese are hunted over decoys on harvested peanut or cornfields from pit blinds. Teal and duck hunting are mainly restricted to lakes and small ponds where they are hunted over decoys from blinds and while flying in and out from feeding schemes. Some birds will be high, coming over in flights and singles, others low and in groups of varying size, whistling in past you.
These waterfowl shoots are restricted to early morning and late afternoon. The bag limit per hunter per day is 10 birds per gun per day. On average you can expect to shoot up to 100 shots per person per day depending on the circumstances and the shooting abilities of the hunter.
Dove & Pigeon Shoots
Season: April – November
Species: Rock Pigeon, Feral Pigeon, Red-eyed Dove, Cape Turtle Dove, Laughing Dove
Pigeon and dove hunting is mainly done over sunflower/corn fields where they congregate in huge numbers, thereby allowing hunters volume shooting the whole day. The sight of approaching rock pigeon flocks, often in excess of 200 birds, raises the excitement of even the most avid bird hunter. This, together with the fact that Rock Pigeon is regarded as the fastest flying Gamebird, often flying high, makes them one of the most sought-after Game birds in South Africa. Doves and pigeons tend to fly the whole day, from just after dawn to dusk. The hides are placed so that the guns shoot the incoming and outgoing birds. Each hide has its own bird boy who will pick up all the fallen birds and all the empty hulls. There is no bag limit when hunting pigeons or doves. One can expect to shoot 250-1000 shots per day.
In South Africa, the wing shooter can find more than 20 different species of game birds. The best wing shooting opportunities are present during June, July, and August. Although not often seen some other dog breeds used when wing shooting are German Wirehaired Pointers, Labrador Retrievers, Golden Retrievers as well as Beagles. In all cases, the dogs are well trained and a delight to be in the field with.
