Even I shot chukar in 2005. That was the year the production was so good, there were even young birds even down on the creosote flats. On the steep hillsides you had to wade through them. I know guys who counted well over 1,000 chukar in a pre-season scouting drive around a single desert mountain in 2005. The next two hunting seasons were progressively worse and bird numbers dropped precipitously. Last year's hunt was absolutely dismal. The reason? No spring production for both of those two springs. But this year looks to be a surprising reversal. Brood counts are up again and hunters can expect a fair to good bird year for both quail and chukar, with the general hunting season for these two species opening on Oct. 18 throughout the southern part of the state. Quail and chukar brood counts done in July by Andy Pauli, the Department of Fish and Game field biologist for the Mojave, were "better than I thought they were going to be." In the West Mojave, Pauli said he tabulated nearly 300 chukar and the brood size averaged about seven birds in the areas he tallies around Apple Valley. Pauli's quail counts in the East Mojave near Hole-In-The-Wall campground tallied about 225 birds and the average brood size was a hefty nine young per pair. Rocky Thompson, Pauli's counterpart in the Southern Sierra, said his chukar counts in the Rand and El Paso mountain ranges near Red Mountain this summer were very good. Broo ...
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