After 30 years of chasing roosters across South Dakota's sloughs and prairies, I've learned one hard truth: today's pheasants aren't your grandpa's birds. Here are my three favorite tactics for outsmarting pressured birds.

These resources are game-changers when it comes to hunting public land in South Dakota.

Gun dogs bred for performing in the field should be considered professional athletes — and then treated that way.

Where to find birds and how to hunt them when all the crops and cover are still standing.

While pheasant reigns king in South Dakota, don't forget about the 'other' upland game — prairie grouse.

The only time you should think about your boots is when you put them on and take them off. If you’re thinking about your feet during the hunt, that means your feet are wet, sore or tired — or all three — and it’s time to find a new pair of boots. Check out why I love my Wingshooters ...

Pheasant hunters planning a South Dakota hunt this year have good reason to be excited. After a mild winter with extremely low bird mortality, the rains returned to the plains this spring and the landscape has come alive, setting the stage for a banner year of bird production.

Solid bird numbers and favorable weather conditions combined to make the 2023 pheasant season one for the books. Plus, the table is being set for a banner year of bird production in spring 2024.

Here are the dates for South Dakota’s 2024 pheasant season.

Here’s a quick breakdown of where to use nontoxic shot on public lands in South Dakota.

Pheasant season closes in South Dakota on Jan. 31, but the state’s pheasant population now faces a more formidable foe than hunters, as it must endure a few more months of a prairie winter.

For those willing to head out in the cold and snow, a late-season pheasant hunt is more than worth the effort. Try these three tips to put more birds in the bag this winter.

In addition to being their preferred food source in the Dakotas, corn doubles as loafing cover for pheasants. As more and more corn is harvested, it reduces the amount of places pheasants can hide during daylight hours and can make the hunting even better.

Hole hopping from spot to spot can can quickly turn your day around.

I love hunting the three-day resident-only pheasant season in South Dakota. Habitat = birds = good times.

While there are not as many pheasants as there are along the Missouri River or throughout most of eastern South Dakota, “West River” birds are often concentrated in slivers of cover adjacent to where crops are found. They might be few and far between, but chasing birds in the big, wide open is an attractive option for many hunters.

Pheasant hunting up and down the Missouri River is full of sweeping landscapes and big country.

CREP is a popular public land pheasant hunting option in the James River Valley.

Pheasant hunting heats up when the weather cools down, especially in areas loaded with cattails that offer thermal cover for birds.

Pheasant hunting should be more about the process than results, as making memories in the field should outnumber how many birds you shoot.