How to shoot pheasants: 8 pheasant shooting tips

Whether you’re experienced or new to pheasant shooting, there are several ways you can improve your technique and have a more productive pheasant shooting season. If this will be your first pheasant shooting season, it runs from 1st October to 1st February for England, Wales and Scotland or from 1st October to 31st January for Northern Ireland. These pheasant shooting tips will prepare you for the field on your next shoot.

8 tips on pheasant shooting technique

1. Understand the different breeds

If you know what breed of pheasant you’re shooting, you’ve already got a head start.

Different breeds exhibit different behaviours, flight patterns, speeds, and act differently in certain weather conditions. Knowing this can give you a better idea of the bird’s flight on the day, helping you accurately hit the target.

2. Work out where the wind is

When you get to your peg, the first thing to do is check which way the wind’s blowing.

A backwind or crosswind can drastically change your shot and the bird’s flight. For example, the popular Polish Bazanty pheasant is tough to hit when there are crosswinds because it’s a strong flier that effortlessly shifts and slides. If you can adjust for the breeze, you’ll land more shots. Taking a powder with you is a quick and accurate way of checking the wind direction.

3. Get your footwork right

Good footwork improves your balance and control, creating a more accurate shot.

Where you move your feet should depend on the bird’s movements. Always watch the bird, shift your feet according to its flight, and then mount the gun. However, you should never mount the gun whilst moving, as this will affect the precision of your shot. While making the shot, ensure your weight is shifted onto your back foot to ensure optimum balance.

4. Mount the gun correctly

Hitting your target is about moving swiftly, smoothly, and accurately, so you need to mount the gun properly, in the same place, every time. Some birds will give you more time to mount than others, but you need to be prepared for the ones that don’t.

Start by choosing your pheasant carefully. Then, move your weight onto your front foot and push the gun towards the chosen bird. Next, bring the butt into your shoulder pocket and the comb underneath your cheekbone. Finally, make the shot. Remember to follow the bird throughout the process, too. This is crucial for a slick, clean gun mount.

5. Know which shots to take

It’s important to know what you can kill cleanly. Nothing is worse than thinking you can hit a bird easily and completely missing or maiming it, which can be very messy. Therefore, it’s vital to establish the distance and height you can shoot from.
A distance of around 45 yards is a good limit for most people. Any further and it gets a bit tricky.

In terms of height, you shouldn’t hit a bird that’s too low, as this could end up wounding or smashing it. As a general rule of thumb, you shouldn’t be shooting pheasants below around 20-25 metres. After all, it’s not target practice – you’re shooting to kill.

6. Take the pheasant early

With some birds, you want to take them as they pass you. With the pheasant, though, you want to hit them early in front unless they're extremely high.
You should aim to hit the pheasant at the 45-70-degree mark. This way, you're more likely to hit it (in the head and neck, too), and if you don't, you’ll still have time for a controlled second shot before it passes.

7. Use the right cartridges

Pheasants are more difficult to hit cleanly as the season goes on. Increasing the shot size is useful later in the season when the birds are older and stronger.
You might want to start at a 30gm 6-shot up to Christmas, then increase it to a heavier 32gm 5-shot afterwards. As well as the right cartridges, it's important to wrap up warm in the cold winter months with the right shooting clothing.

8. Practice makes perfect

Well, maybe not perfect, but it'll definitely help you improve. Practising under pheasant towers is a great way to hone your shooting skills, as pheasants are released from the tower onto the hunting area, replicating scenarios in the field.

It's good to vary your approach to shooting towers, such as from 25 yards and 40 yards, so you can get the hang of different ranges. A web search of 'pheasant tower shoot near me' will pull up the closest places for you to give this a go. Then, once you feel ready, you’ll be ready to go on a pheasant shoot at one of the many top pheasant shooting locations in the UK.

Pheasant shooting tips FAQs

Where should I aim when shooting pheasant?

The best place to aim when shooting a pheasant is at its beak, head, or neck ring to ensure you get the most accurate and clean shot.

How much lead is needed for a high pheasant?

The amount of lead you should give a pheasant depends on how far away the bird is and how fast it's travelling. Generally, as their speed and distance are increased, so should your lead. A good rule of thumb to follow is:

• Pheasant at 30 yards: 6 feet of lead
• Pheasant at 40 yards: 8 feet of lead
• Pheasant at 50 yards: 11 feet of lead

What time of day is best for pheasant shooting?

The best time of day to shoot pheasants is often early in the morning or early in the evening, when they are most active due to their feeding times.

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