If you release chuckars do they hang around

[oldguy]

I turn loose pheasants and rarely see them after a week or two. I turn loose bobwhites and after 2 or 3 days they vanish. What about chuckars will they hang around for the most part or be goners right away?

Thanks
oldguy

 

[oldguy]

Hmmmmmm - nobody,

Well, if you are interested i can tell you next Spring. I have a nice crop of them hatched off and about a month old.

 

[Cason]

I'd also like to know an answer to this, but I THINK they (or any raised fowl) cannot survive .. doesn't have the instinct/training. I imagine the predators catch them the first few nights.

 

[ranit]

I'm sure the habitat and number of predators in your area do play a big part. We turned some ringneck pheasants loose last year after having them in a flight pen for awhile to develop their ability to fly. At the beginning of spring we still had two hens and a cock that would come into the yard every evening. We no longer see the hens - am assuming something probably got them while they were setting - but still see the male every evening. I also recently had a neighbor over a mile from me say they have a male in their yard most evenings. As we don't naturally have pheasants in our area, I'm sure it's one we turned loose, so they have also spread out.

 

[fwschrom]

I have never raised chuckars but I have hunted them a fair amount in several western states. Their prefered habitat is very hilly steep inclines, I always remember big rocks also. The typically run not fly from danger, the rocks must give them dodge exits I guess.
I would think unless your habitat close by is not suitable they would either be goners or would find habitat to their liking.

And when I mean steep I am talking a 30-40 degree incline, I have never seen one on anything close to level ground.

Don't know how many you have but you might try letting a few out of the pens and keeping the rest locked up. That would be strong incentive for the free ones to stick around, if they disappear, you have your answer.

 

[BlackBart]

My Neighbors Chuckers escaped. He feeds them to his Hawks and Falcons.
The Chuckers would sit in my driveway, out in the open. they were not afraid of animals but were deathly afraid of people. They disappeared after a week or so. I think the survival instinct had been bred out of them. Too bad they are pretty.

 

[MakNugget]

I just caught one this evening that was hanging outside my chicken run for two hours. It want going away and was far to docile to be a wild bird so after consulting here I have it penned up by itself. We have a lot of stray cats Ipin our neighborhood, and just yesterday I heard a big ruckus after a cat took down a bird. I would not be surprised if it was a bird the same size since at first I fought it was another cat.

For now I'm doing what I can to keep it safe... Not sure if I'll hold on to it or give it away.

 

[kodiman1]

I have had a lot of quail escape (darn squirrels eating the netting). They have hung around and moved to different pastures and even a couple have been spotted at my neighbors dock. I have really good habitat around the pastures for them, that might be why they stayed. I have seen a few babies around but not sure how they are faring with the neighbors cat (who actually might be endangered if he keeps hanging around my flight pens). I think habitat will be the biggest factor for them hanging around.

 

[Tony K T]

If you keep 1 bobwhite penned up,he will call all the other back to the pen.Chukars will fly away,lucky if you see them again.They will not call like the bobwhites.The call back cage is designed like a lobster trap witha wire funnel pointed upwards,so they can't get back out.You do need permits to release birds into the wild,so be careful.
In N.H.,Tony.

 

[oldguy]

Quote:
Cool - i never knew that.

Thanks for speaking up.