With pheasants like these, who needs a dog?
Of the 44 pheasants released last fall, about a dozen were released near the cabin and over the winter, I would often see them, sometimes in groups of 2 or 3, sometimes solo, and every so often in a cluster of 10 or more.
As warmer air has moved in, a group of 5 hens has formed a harem, led by a very well fed rooster who I’ve nicknamed “King Louie” – from the Jungle Book character. I refer to the hens in the harem, collectively, as “the girls”.
"Scout" in the tall grass along the north fenceline
Two other roosters are not attached to the harem, I gave the name “Scout” to one of them, as he was usually the first one out of the tall grass in the early morning, and the others would follow a few minutes later.
The other rooster, who I’ll call “Ace” will often fight or dance with Scout to establish pecking order, and the two will patrol the yard and borders of the tall grass all day, scratching for food.
The night before last, when I arrived home around sunset, Scout and Ace were on opposite sides of the highway, standing proud in the gravel. As I parked the car, and walked past the pen, King Louie and “the girls” were eating at the feeder and ran off to hide.
Ace pacing on the deck
Once I got inside the cabin, after a few minutes, I heard a Kaw ACK outside the cabin and when I looked out, Ace was standing and as I walked out, rather than run off, he led me to the barn and waited for me to throw out more corn on the ground. The next day, he repeated his performance, this time, walking on the deck and waiting for me.
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