Upland Bird Tactics for Alberta's Parkland and Prairie

The first ruffed grouse I ever shot flushed off a cutline, on an afternoon when I was supposed to be scouting for deer. That is the thing about upland birds in this part of Alberta: they are close, they do not require a draw, and the season is long enough that you can learn on them without burning your whole fall.

If you are new to hunting and wondering where to start, I would put upland birds ahead of almost anything else. Modest gear, forgiving seasons, land you can often get onto, and birds that will teach you more about reading cover in one October than a season of sitting in a blind.

Before anything else, though: every date, limit and Wildlife Management Unit boundary I mention below has to be checked against the current Alberta Guide to Hunting Regulations at albertaregulations.ca before you leave the house. The Guide changes, and the numbers here are for orientation only.

Know your birds, and know your WMU

Alberta's upland lineup is bigger than most new hunters realize. The game bird season table in the Guide lists ruffed grouse, spruce grouse, blue grouse, sharp-tailed grouse, ptarmigan, gray (Hungarian) partridge and pheasant, each with its own list of open WMUs.

A few points worth internalizing, all of them from the Guide's Game Bird Seasons table — confirm the current-year version yourself:

• Ruffed and spruce grouse are listed at 5 daily and 15 in possession, with a season running roughly September 1 to January 15 across a large block of WMUs, and a slightly later September 8 opener in a few others.
• Gray (Hungarian) partridge carries the same 5 daily / 15 possession limit over a broad WMU block with a September 1 to January 15 window.
• Sharp-tailed grouse is the trap. Same 5 / 15 limit, but the table shows an open season of only October 1 to October 31, and only in a specific listed set of WMUs. The Guide states plainly that it is prohibited to hunt sharp-tailed grouse in many WMUs within Alberta.
• Ptarmigan and blue grouse sit in mountain and foothills WMUs. They are a trip, not an after-work outing from the capital region.

That sharp-tail rule is where I see people get themselves in trouble. A bird that looks like a grouse, sitting in a stubble field in November, is not automatically a legal bird. Learn to tell a sharp-tail from a Hun and from a hen pheasant on the wing, and check whether your unit is on the list.

Two species are simply off the table. The Guide lists sage grouse as an endangered species in Alberta and protected, and says the same of whooping cranes. You are responsible for being certain of your target.

A 2015 regulation change extended the grouse season end date from November 30 to January 15, according to an Alberta Conservation Association species summary — which is why Alberta upland hunters get a window most newcomers assume does not exist. Snowy January grouse hunting is legal in much of the province, and it is some of the best walking of the year.

The licence stack and the legal gear

My Wild Alberta lists what an Alberta resident needs to hunt grouse, partridge, ptarmigan or pheasant: a WiN Card, a Wildlife Certificate, a Game Bird Licence, plus a Pheasant Licence if you are hunting pheasant. A Federal Migratory Game Bird Permit is for waterfowl, not upland birds, and a Merriam's turkey licence is draw-only. Fees change — pull the current numbers from the licence costs page in the Guide rather than trusting anything you read on a blog, including mine.

Aspira manages licence sales in Alberta, through private issuers or online at AlbertaRelm.com, and the Guide notes the cost is the same either way with no added service fees. The AlbertaRelm app will hold your licences and WiN card electronically.

A few gear rules from the Guide's bird regulations page that catch people out:

• A rifle is legal for upland birds. It is illegal to hunt migratory game birds with a single projectile, but a .22 rimfire or centrefire rifle is legal for upland game birds and wild turkey. Plenty of Alberta grouse have been taken with a .22.
• Bowhunters need a Bowhunting Permit in addition to their other licences when using a bow and arrow (other than a crossbow) for game birds.
• Weapon restrictions exist by unit. The Guide lists WMUs 212, 247 and 248 as bow, crossbow, shotgun or falconry bird only for game birds, and WMU 410 as bow or falconry bird only. Verify your unit.
• Legal light is one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset for hunting any wildlife or discharging a firearm.

There is also a falconry season — the Guide lists an upland season by means of falconry running from mid-August into the following March, with falconry permit holders needing the same licences as a firearm hunter. Worth knowing exists, even if you never go that route.

Tactics, by habitat

This part is mine, not the Guide's.

Ruffed grouse in the aspen

Ruffed grouse live on edges or in the bush, not open field. I walk old logging trails, cutlines, overgrown field approaches and the brushy lip where aspen gives way to willow. Early season, focus on young aspen with a thick understory and anywhere you find clover or berries. Later in the fall, birds shift toward mature aspen and will spend more time in the trees eating buds.

Walk slow and stop often. A grouse's nerve breaks when you stop moving — that pause is what makes them flush. If you walk at a steady pace you will step past dozens of birds that let you go by.

Hungarian partridge on the ag edges

Huns are a covey bird of grain stubble, shelterbelts, fencelines and weedy ditches. They are on gravel and stubble in the early morning, tucked into cover mid-day, and back out to feed before dark. Find a covey once and you can usually find them within a few hundred metres for weeks.

The first flush is wild and long; the covey usually breaks into singles and pairs that hold much better. Mark where they go down and work the singles.

Sharp-tails in the open

Where and when they are open, sharp-tails use open native grass and the brushy fringes of it, feeding in grain fields morning and evening. In October they will often be found in loose groups and can flush at a distance. Hunt the transition between grass and crop, use whatever terrain rise you have to get close, and be honest about your range.

Pheasants on the release sites

For most of us, pheasant is a road trip. ACA's Provincial Pheasant Release Program puts birds out each fall — the program description notes northern sites begin releases September 1 for nine weeks, while southern sites correspond with the later pheasant opening day beginning October 15. Confirm current site lists, dates and any time restrictions on ACA's release site search, or by phone at 1-877-969-9091.

Released birds hold tight in heavy cover and run rather than fly. Work slowly, push toward a hard edge, and give yourself time to look.

Something different: CFB Wainwright

The Guide's bird seasons page describes a structured opportunity at CFB Wainwright: all hunters using shotguns for game birds must use non-toxic shot, hunters are warned that unexploded military munitions may exist throughout the base, a range safety briefing of roughly 45 minutes is required, and the Hunter Check Station opens at 6:00 am for registration and indemnification waivers. About a three-hour drive east, and a genuinely different kind of day. Check the current Guide for the exact dates and WMUs.

Dogs, access and late-season courtesy

If you run a dog, read this twice. ACA warns that foxtail barley and other awned grasses occur naturally across Alberta, are found on many release sites, and are particularly dangerous for hunting dogs. Those seed heads work into ears, eyes, paws and airways. Check your dog over thoroughly after every outing.

ACA also asks hunters not to target practise or sight in firearms on pheasant release sites. Do your sighting-in somewhere appropriate.

The Guide notes that later bird season dates may overlap with active trapping in some areas and asks hunters to take the necessary precautions — one more reason to keep a dog close in December and January.

And the obvious one: get permission before you hunt private land, and get it early. In the parkland, access is the whole game.

Where to start if you are not licensed yet

If you do not have your PAL, that comes first. If you have never held an Alberta hunting licence, you need the 20-hour Alberta Conservation and Hunter Education certification before you can buy one — that is what our Hunter Education course covers. Within the Hunters' Academy we also run short workshops on land access and on reading the draws and regulations tables, which are honestly the two hardest parts of upland hunting around here.

Dates are on /calendar. If you would rather just ask a question first, call the office at (780) 245-2840 or email info@outdooracademy.ca and I will point you the right way.