sitsinhedges Posted August 17, 2015 Report Share Posted August 17, 2015 Is it just me but this year seems to be a spectacular disappointment. Pigeons seem thin on the ground generally, but even when I find some it's usually just a clump of a few dozen birds with no real flightlines and they just clear off never to be seen again when they are disturbed. Had the same again yesterday but with maybe a 1000 or so over several fields, and again no real flightlines they were just there in several mobs but once disturbed they just vanished and I never even got a shot. Even those reliable spots that always produce seem to have dried up this year and the birds that do come for a look are very wary. It just seems hopeless. Anyone else finding the same? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDog Posted August 17, 2015 Report Share Posted August 17, 2015 Mightymariner and I are experiencing something very similar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fenboy Posted August 17, 2015 Report Share Posted August 17, 2015 Yes it has certainly been poor on my own small patch , I have not had one worthwhile bag , sooner Sept 1st gets here the better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ditchman Posted August 17, 2015 Report Share Posted August 17, 2015 we have more birds around here than we have had in many a year...............i always shoot a little bag quite regular now..........although we have quite a few birds about they are not playing ball as they should do...............at the moment !..............but i am looking forward to a busy autumn........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sitsinhedges Posted August 17, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 17, 2015 I have access to 4 good farms and a lot of bits and pieces on top but all I seem to be doing is endless driving followed by setting up in very marginal circumstances just to try and get a shot. The only positive thing is the new quad I have bought which is proving to be awesome for getting around, I can see it making life much more easy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mightymariner Posted August 17, 2015 Report Share Posted August 17, 2015 Sounds a familiar story. As I posted in earlier, hard work, lots of miles for very little reward. I'm going on holiday this week to Norfolk, hopefully things will have improved when I get back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cranfield Posted August 17, 2015 Report Share Posted August 17, 2015 The rape and barley stubbles in my area are not getting much pigeon attention, but the "fodder" peas are attracting the birds in good numbers. The peas have all been sprayed in the last week, so will be harvested (weather permitting) in the next week. Hopefully , the wheat harvest will be more attractive to the pigeons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malkiserow Posted August 17, 2015 Report Share Posted August 17, 2015 Generally, as above with two exceptions when there were a very good number on some rape but as couple of shots and I could see they moved 1/2 mile ( onto land I cannot shoot on) and that was that for that afternoon other than a few now and again. As for the one day when they seemed fixated with the layout I had and decoyed perfectly well I had to stop very quickly >>> Linky to previous thread <<< Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest stevo Posted August 17, 2015 Report Share Posted August 17, 2015 (edited) keep your eye on OSR stubble for volunteer rape poking through, especially if it was sprayed off as opposed to swaffing ( if you still have stubbles ) pigeons will graze on them all day , I have a few small patches that have just come through , and birds are starting to take a bit of notice . Edited August 17, 2015 by stevo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marsh man Posted August 17, 2015 Report Share Posted August 17, 2015 If it wasn't for one area that is giving some reasonable shooting things would be quiet , I have got the shooting both sides of the river where they both grow Rape , Barley and Wheat and on one side I shot well over 100 last week ( with the help from Lakeside1000 one day ) and on the other side I haven't took my gun out of the case this year. Today I just took the dogs down there to look at some fresh wheat stubbles and there were pigeons flying about , enough to pass the time away but it is getting less likely to get a decent bag. In one small area there was a combine cutting wheat being fed by two tractors and trailers , two tractors working on two rape stubble fields , one tractor sub soiling on a wheat stubble field, and if that wasn't enough there was a digger on tracks cutting the reeds from the dykes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motty Posted August 17, 2015 Report Share Posted August 17, 2015 It has been a pretty good start to the harvest for me, with bags totalling around 500 this month. I have high hopes for the next month or two. keep your eye on OSR stubble for volunteer rape poking through, especially if it was sprayed off as opposed to swaffing ( if you still have stubbles ) pigeons will graze on them all day , I have a few small patches that have just come through , and birds are starting to take a bit of notice . I have never shot any pigeons from those situations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aga man Posted August 17, 2015 Report Share Posted August 17, 2015 The wheat harvest has yet to begin here to early to say it's a good or bad harvest. I agree with motty about high hopes for the next couple of months, theres potential for some big bags in parts of yorkshire. Lots of young birds about and pigeons still at it like rabbits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yickdaz Posted August 17, 2015 Report Share Posted August 17, 2015 its been a decent harvest up to now around here ,bags of 111, 103, 50, 20 but the 20 bag was on very decoy shy birds wrong side of the field, still a lot of spring barley and winter wheat to be cut yet so just see how it goes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kitchrat Posted August 18, 2015 Report Share Posted August 18, 2015 Is it just me but this year seems to be a spectacular disappointment. Pigeons seem thin on the ground generally, but even when I find some it's usually just a clump of a few dozen birds with no real flightlines and they just clear off never to be seen again when they are disturbed. Had the same again yesterday but with maybe a 1000 or so over several fields, and again no real flightlines they were just there in several mobs but once disturbed they just vanished and I never even got a shot. Even those reliable spots that always produce seem to have dried up this year and the birds that do come for a look are very wary. It just seems hopeless. Anyone else finding the same? It's been like that here for several years. All the PW members thought I was just being a miserable old moaning *** but now more and more of you are suffering too. Add to that the overshooting near London and it's no wonder we struggle - the birds soon become decoy aware etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shotguneddy Posted August 18, 2015 Report Share Posted August 18, 2015 Same here over harvest, getting 5-10 for as many hours most times. Really poor. Went out Sunday on some rape that's been plouged in for 2 weeks a lot of birds about but nothing really decoyed. Finished up on 21. But definetly more getting about now the days are getting shorter and a bit cooler bring on autum/winter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kyska Posted August 18, 2015 Report Share Posted August 18, 2015 It's the same here, lots of birds about, just not deeking. Maybe there is some learned behaviour starting to happen.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motty Posted August 18, 2015 Report Share Posted August 18, 2015 Same here over harvest, getting 5-10 for as many hours most times. Really poor. Went out Sunday on some rape that's been plouged in for 2 weeks a lot of birds about but nothing really decoyed. Finished up on 21. But definetly more getting about now the days are getting shorter and a bit cooler bring on autum/winter Not sure I follow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDog Posted August 18, 2015 Report Share Posted August 18, 2015 I have never shot pigeons over freshly germinated rape whether volunteer or drilled and I have often wondered why as the shoots should be pretty tender. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fielddweller Posted August 18, 2015 Report Share Posted August 18, 2015 I have never shot pigeons over freshly germinated rape whether volunteer or drilled and I have often wondered why as the shoots should be pretty tender.May be down to locationAll our osr is in but for a small amount of spring drilled ,most barley is in only wheat left. Today pigeons where feeding on germinating rape, not in huge numbers but 100 ish per field Fielddweller Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitebridges Posted August 18, 2015 Report Share Posted August 18, 2015 They do eat it at this stage, this is a fact. When i've been "doing" some birds the crops have been full of it. Next time i'll take a few pictures. Maybe it's normal for Norfolk and nowhere else? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kennett Posted August 18, 2015 Report Share Posted August 18, 2015 Had a good 76 on early barley stubble, bettered by a friend 2 days later with 105, 100 on a wet day on rape stubble and that's all ive had time to do this year!! Usually shoot every weekend :-( There is a field I can't get on near work and I have never seen pigeons flight like it, I'm working next to it at the moment and it is constant, the potential bag is scary! If any one travels the A14 it is just before Newmarket, after the 2 BP garages, but I can shoot the peas next to it so fingers crossed for some dry weather. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grandalf Posted August 18, 2015 Report Share Posted August 18, 2015 Farms now have to grow at least three different crops. Result of this is that in East Anglia there are masses of bean fields waiting for the combine. Pigeons seem to have got there before the farmer. This source of food for the pigs has not been there on this scale before. Has that changed things? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redditch Posted August 23, 2015 Report Share Posted August 23, 2015 (edited) Been **** here,most of my permissions haven't even started harvesting their first crops yet (with the exception of one who started yesterday, but the combine keeps breaking down) Weather has been rain rain rain, and this week more rain forecast all week too. Only thing harvested so far has been silage, so all my shooting get has been over standing crops :( Best bag this year was 83 birds fora morning, but most mornings are between 10 and 50 odd birds. As stated by others, they seem to ****** off quick and then it's hope odd ones decoy in, so I put corvid decoys pattern to one side, and with about a 35-50 metre gap, a pigeon decoy set up the other side. That way I get a chance at both The days of 800+ seem to be well and truly over :( Edited August 23, 2015 by Redditch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mossy835 Posted August 23, 2015 Report Share Posted August 23, 2015 (edited) i went out yesterday nothing about on 3 farms, went out today to get a load of logs i cut buy the pond, and there were 150 plus feeding on wheat stubble, makes you sick, Edited August 23, 2015 by mossy835 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mel b3 Posted August 23, 2015 Report Share Posted August 23, 2015 i had a few decent days earlier in the month , on one field i had a few 50/60 bird days and 111 , 123 , 150 , by last sunday they were very wary and i had a very hard won 32. it was all on a field of winter barley that was ready just a little bit earlier than anything else in the area , the first few days were shot while it was still standing but the better days were had on the stubble , i should have had many more birds really , but , my shooting has been a bit off since i had a neck injury earlier in the year, their is still a few birds in the area and strangely i had a few land in the middle of my crow decoys on friday morning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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