South Dakota tundra swan?

redwoood · Jul 1, 2015

Anybody ever hunted tundra swans in South Dakota? Planning to apply and I was just curious if it's doable diy. Catch is I'm not a waterfowl hunter in the least but we had several on the lake last fall and that got the wheels turning.

Any advice or first hand experience would be much appreciated.
Thanks

Revharvey9576 · Jul 1, 2015

Come on over to NC ...we have hundred thousands in winter on our east coast. Have killed several...even a banded one in the snow!

cornfed · Jul 1, 2015

Hunting swans is more like big game hunting(spot and stalk or pass shooting) than it is like most waterfowl hunting IMO.

Flatrock · Jul 1, 2015

I haven't hunted them in SD but have shot a few in ND. Like cornfed said, pass shooting is as good a way as any to get them and is how I've shot all of mine.

Revharvey9576 · Jul 2, 2015

In NC they forage on the winter wheat fields so we decoy them. Sometimes we pass shoot

1_pointer · Jul 2, 2015

I killed a young one in UT, but am really wanting to get an adult to get mounted. Looks like NC is within driving distance...

Saw my first two ever in Indiana yesterday. Didn't realize they were here.

Flatrock · Jul 2, 2015

Here are 2 that a buddy of mine and I shot a few years ago. I know a spot where there just about always some birds and so we shot 2 in about 5 minutes. They make a really, really big splash.

Coyotes-R-Us · Jul 2, 2015

When you shoot at a swan...
DON'T try to blast them in the body, they have feathers from He!!.
Your not going to kill them The best you can do is brake a wing. You have to concentrate on the head, It is big as a mallard so you CAN hit it.
I use home loads, #1 X #bb 3 1/2" 1 1/2 oz. 1350 fps and an extra full choke.

That one is a trumpeter swan by the way, Don't know 'bout SD but we can shoot them too if they come by not just the tundra swan.

Revharvey9576 · Jul 2, 2015

1st one I killed was with T shot steel...he soaked up 2 shots at 30 yds.

Everyone since has been #2 Hevishot...lights out!! I've seen there head slap that there back in midair when shot with hevishot.

Definitely right about the head shot

Flatrock · Jul 2, 2015

This was the first one I ever shot. 20 gauge single shot with #4's. Hope my wife doesn't see this pic!

glass eye · Jul 2, 2015

After shooting Black Swans in NZ it didn't seem right that I had never hunted our Tundra Swan. So I made a trip to NV and got this guy pass shooting about 30 minutes into the hunt.

Head shots with BB and still it required several follow-up shots.

Nemont · Jul 2, 2015

Head shots are the only ethical shots on these giant birds. Where we hunt them you can spot and stalk them fairly easily or set out decoys and they will come to decoys usually.

This is one my son took last fall.

NoWiser · Jul 2, 2015

What do they taste like? I've never imagined they could be all that great, but I've been wrong before.

Nemont · Jul 2, 2015

Taste like swan. They are not great table fare IMO but you could at least say you ate swan.

Nemont

TimeOnTarget · Jul 2, 2015

redwoood said:
Anybody ever hunted tundra swans in South Dakota? Planning to apply and I was just curious if it's doable diy. Catch is I'm not a waterfowl hunter in the least but we had several on the lake last fall and that got the wheels turning.

Any advice or first hand experience would be much appreciated.
Thanks

While I wont say it will be an easy hunt for you, It certainly can be done. They are not here for very long, and certainly not great numbers of them so finding them can prove difficult. Timing your hunt to their migration will also prove difficult.

RUT JUNKEY · Jul 2, 2015

1_pointer said:
I killed a young one in UT, but am really wanting to get an adult to get mounted. Looks like NC is within driving distance...

Saw my first two ever in Indiana yesterday. Didn't realize they were here.

We saw 8 over in Vermillion county last Saturday while setting trail cams. First Ive seen in years.

mtmiller · Jul 2, 2015

I have killed 10 or 12 and decoying them is my favorite. That being said, this one was killed with #4 steel with my 20 ga while hunting pheasants. He was dumb enough to fly right over me.

glass eye · Jul 2, 2015

mtmiller said:
I have killed 10 or 12 and decoying them is my favorite. That being said, this one was killed with #4 steel with my 20 ga while hunting pheasants. He was dumb enough to fly right over me.

Ummm.....you dropped him with #4 steel but it didn't kill him. Congrats on dropping him !

mtmiller · Jul 2, 2015

glass eye said:
Ummm.....you dropped him with #4 steel but it didn't kill him. Congrats on dropping him !

He doesn't look dead in the pic, so yes, you are correct. Judge as you like.

glass eye · Jul 2, 2015

mtmiller said:
He doesn't look dead in the pic, so yes, you are correct. Judge as you like.

" Judge " ?????.....whatever, just pointing out as everyone else has that they don't die easily. Had you dropped that swan over water it probably would have swam away. This past May in NZ, I dropped a swan over water and after trying to chase it down in knee deep water and 1/2 box of shells later.....it swam faster than I could trudge through the water. I never could retrieve him.
Perhaps swans have thicker skin than you do.

South Dakota tundra swan?

Well-known member

New member

Active member

Well-known member

New member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Attachments

New member

New member

Well-known member

Attachments

Well-known member

Attachments

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Similar threads

Forum statistics

Share this page