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Birdshot Podcast

#334 | How to Find Sharp-tailed Grouse Using the Right Grass Height and Wind with Tom Carpenter

Birdshot Podcast

Nick Larson

Leisure, Science, Sports, Nature, Hobbies, Wilderness

4.8 • 971 Ratings

🗓️ 3 October 2025

⏱️ 78 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In this episode of The Birdshot Podcast, Nick Larson welcomes Tom Carpenter, aka Carp, back to the show for a discussion on prairie grouse hunting and sharp-tail grouse hunting. Fresh off a couple of hunting trips, Tom shares his expertise and experiences in the Great Plains, hunting sharp-tails, prairie chickens, as well as the unique challenges of these beautiful birds. Carp also reflects on the joy of hunting with dogs and the importance of understanding grassland habitat for both the hunter and the bird. Tom Carpenter, affectionately known as Carp, is a seasoned bird hunter, author, and long-time advocate for prairie grouse. With decades of experience, Tom is passionate about hunting sharp-tails, prairie chickens, and other upland game birds across the Great Plains. He’s spent countless days hunting with his bird dogs and has become a prominent voice in the upland hunting community, especially when it comes to prairie grouse. Expect to Learn Tom's experiences hunting prairie chickens in Minnesota and sharp-tails across the Midwest The best hunting strategies and terrain for finding prairie grouse Insights into managing a bird dog for prairie grouse hunting Tips on dog training during sharptail hunts and what makes prairie grouse hunting unique The importance of native grasses and proper grazing for the sharp-tailed habitatEpisode Breakdown with Timestamps: [00:00:00] - Introduction [00:06:18] - Success of hunting prairie chickens [00:10:01] - How prairie chickens differ from other upland birds  [00:14:09] - Difference between ankle-high grass, calf-high grass, and knee-high grass [00:22:15] - Have you ever put a snowberry in your mouth? [00:30:56] - How to train a bird dog [00:39:51] - Popcorn flushing  [00:42:49] - Breakdown of hills and wind direction [00:53:09] - Hunting in thick cover vs thinner hills [01:05:49] - Favorite sharp-tail recipe [01:16:42] -The pheasants forever journal [01:17:40] - Wrapping up the episode Follow the Guest Tom:  Tom as an Editor of Pheasants Forever: https://pheasantsforever.org/Newsroom/2018-April/Changing-of-the-Guard-Pheasants-Forever-Promotes-T.aspx  Company’s Website: https://www.pheasantsforever.org  Company’s Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pheasantsforever  Company’s Email: contact@pheasantsforever.org  Pheasant Hunting (book): https://amzn.to/46JZptD  Follow Host Nick: Instagram: @birdshot.podcast Website: www.birdshotpodcast.com Listening Links: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/17EVUDJPwR2iJggzhLYil7 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/birdshot-podcast/id1288308609 YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/@birdshot.podcast SUPPORT | http://www.patreon.com/birdshotUse Promo Code | BSP20 to save 20% on https://www.onxmaps.com/hunt/app Use Promo Code | BS10 to save 10% on https://trulockchokes.com/ The Birdshot Podcast is Presented By: https://www.onxmaps.com/

Transcript

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0:00.0

Some sharp tail hunters are perhaps meeting with. I was liking sharp tail hunting to Goldilocks syndrome. And that is, huck how dang it, there's not enough grass here or, oh, crap, there's too much grass. Oh, this is just right. If it's knee high, it's probably too tall. If it's knee high and real thin, it might be okay. But I'd say calf high. You'll hear a lot of people talk and say, if you're in pheasant cover, you're not in sharp tail cover, right? You're going to end up in shorter, thinner cover than you would be pheasant hunting hunting sharp tails. But would you say, do prairie chickens fall somewhere in between then? Prairie chickens will go even more open country. They're adaptable, but not as adaptable as sharp tails. If you're walking through grass and you think, man, funny, we don't see a rooster

0:39.4

in here. You shouldn't be hunting it for sharp tails. Anybody who's ever hunted sharp tails knows that they don't sprint like a rooster, they move. And if you hunt with a flushing dog, you can have a pretty long, merry chase to get them to fly. Whenever you shoot a sharp tail, stop, secure the bird, and look around

0:56.1

and see, why was this bird here? And I've noticed a lot of patterns through the years, but one of the

1:00.9

patterns is... Come here, Amy.

1:14.6

Good girl, sweetie.

1:28.8

That's a big bird.

1:34.9

Wow.

1:37.8

Hey, everyone.

1:38.7

Nick Larson here, host of the Birdshot podcast, the show that brings you conversations,

1:43.3

stories, and traditions from all across the uplands.

1:46.3

The Birdshot podcast is presented by Onyx Hunt and supported by folks just like you via our Patreon and community.

1:52.5

If you want to stay up to date and not miss any of our upcoming episodes, be sure to subscribe and follow the show in your podcast player or on YouTube wherever you're listening or watching today.

2:00.7

Tap that button for me. Thank you for doing so. And with that said, let's get into today's

2:04.8

conversation on the Birdshot podcast. It is my pleasure today to welcome Tom Carp, aka Carp, to the Birdshot podcast. It is my pleasure today to welcome Tom Carpher, aka Carp, to the Birdshot podcast.

2:39.0

Back to the podcast.

2:40.5

Didn't check when you were on last, but it's been a couple of years.

2:42.5

I think we were talking primarily turkey hunting and hunting with kids on that last episode.

2:47.1

That probably sounds right.

2:48.4

It's been a little while since we've talked upland topics, which is probably a couple years too long, but it sounds just like me to be talking turkeys too.

2:56.4

Definitely been leaning into that and I always appreciate some of your insights. Obviously, we're from similar parts of the world, Minnesota, and we kind of, we probably have some overlap in some of our bird

3:08.3

covers and maybe even turkey covers, who knows?

3:10.5

I'm a Wisconsin night originally, but I'm a Minnesota now.

...

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