The Gamebirds
Hunting ducks, geese and perdiz in Argentina is enhanced by good dog work.
Ducks pouring into a Pampas lake.Ducks
Argentina hunting offers many species of wild ducks, none of which are found in the Northern Hemisphere. Predominately, they are Chilean pintail, Brazilian pintail, Argentine widgeon, Brazilian, silver, white-fronted and ring-necked teal and two species of tree ducks. A very sporty and abundant duck is the rosy-billed pochard, very similar to our canvasback, which responds well to calls and come confidently into decoys.
Eared Doves & Pigeons
Argentina's most sought-after quarry is the eared dove, similar in size and flight to our mourning dove. Shooting is always exceptional in La Pampa, Salta, Buenos Aires, Entre Rios and Cordoba Provinces, where the birds do not migrate and populations prosper into literally the millions. Two species of Argentina wild pigeon can be found in Buenos Aires, La Pampa and Salta Provinces - the picazuro and spot-winged. Both appear to float along in flight, but their slow wingbeat is deceiving. They are fast and hard to bring down and are particularly fun to hunt in grain fields over decoys.
Hundreds of thousands of doves come to this La Pampa Province water hole.
Argentine eared dove feeding frenzy.
Argentine wild spotted pigeons.
Magellan and ashey-headed goose parade.Magellan Geese
Most prevalent is the big Magellan goose, named after the explorer Ferdinand Magellan. The male is snowy white with black tipped wings, and the average weight is around nine pounds, similar to our Canadas. The second type is the wary ashey-headed goose, with rust breast, gray head and black and white wings. These birds nest in the far south and move into Buenos Aires Province in early May and stay throughout August.
Wild Spotted Tinamou or Perdiz
By far the most common of Argentina's upland birds is the wild spotted tinamou, called perdiz by the natives and resembling a small partridge. They fly well when flushed and they are superb table fare. Hunters enjoy careful dog work from well-trained pointers, Brittanys and shorthairs, and the average point comes every four-five minutes! Like their North American cousins the bobwhite quail, Argentina's perdiz are a grassland species that feeds mainly on seeds and green shoots, and consequently, they prefer an environment of short grass pastures or fallow land, with no thorns or cactus.
The Destinations
La Pampeana
Long known as a land of gauchos and wide open spaces, eastern La Pampa Province has been discovered to be absolutely loaded with doves, ducks, pigeons and perdiz of two different species. River Plate Wingshooting's program here offers a true grand slam of bird gunning.
Our headquarters is the 100-year-old La Pampeana — not only a classic Argentine estancia, but with owner/hosts that are European-trained master chefs. Dining each day and night provides a true gastronomic celebration.
Duck shooting is equal to the best found anywhere in Argentina and may include shooting over small or large ponds and irrigation canals, which provide for incredible decoying. Also, decoying well are the popular wild pigeons. Expect hundreds of birds coming in to decoy from all directions. This is truly a great shooting experience that rivals the pigeon shooting in England and Paraguay. Skilled use of European-style carousels provides a decoying experience one might call "dry land duck hunting".
An Argentine favorite — perdiz hunting with our stylish bird dogs.The Elegant Crested Tinamou (or giant perdiz) is rarely seen in Argentina, but abounds in the La Pampa brush and Calden forest which covers about 2 million acres. The giant perdiz is about the size of a hen pheasant with similar plumage minus the long tail. This area resembles South Texas with scrubby trees and brush interspersed with thick grass. Expect 5-6 flushes over dogs every half hour of easy walking in the short grass and scrub. Every flush is a heart-stopping explosion of wings, making the giant perdiz one of the premier sporting birds of the world. The area also supports good numbers of the smaller spotted tinamou.
What is unique about the dove shooting here is that it can be enjoyed at any time of day, any time of the year. Eastern La Pampa is an arid place and there is much grain production, but not many lakes, rivers and places for birds to drink. This fact concentrates the birds as they come in to water, and the gunners, strategically placed near the water, experience shooting that can exceed the volume and intensity of Cordoba or any other South American location.
Cerro de la Cruz / El Retiro
Southern Buenos Aires Province is the only region of Argentina with plentiful populations of all of Argentina's game bird species — geese, ducks, doves, pigeons and perdiz. This is also the most beautiful region found anywhere in Argentina for bird hunting. Many of our guests say the surroundings resemble the American West, so when a bird dog goes on point or a flock of geese comes into the decoys here, the backdrop really adds to the experience.
This unique program offers superb hunting for all of these species, all accessed from the same lodge. You may opt to hunt geese in the morning and doves in the afternoon one day and another day go for ducks in the morning and perdiz that afternoon. Or you might choose to hunt doves all day and enjoy a lavish asado picnic in the field. Well-known outfitter, Floro Lavalle, allows such flexibility and has so many quality options that individual guests can concentrate on their favorite species. All of the gamebirds are found here in abundance, but the specialty of the house is pit blind shooting for Magellan and ashey-headed geese.
Lavalle hosts hunters in one of his two historic estancias, Cerro de la Cruz, or El Retiro. The estancias sit on huge private ranches that have been passed down from generation to generation from European ancestors.
El Rincon / Santa Rosa
At one time the Estancia El Rincon — which extended to over three million acres — was one of the largest in the country. River Plate refurbished and upgraded the original home, which was built in 1890, to restore it to the glory of its early days. Our guests can now revel in all the amenities of a modern lodge while living amid the ambience of rich historical associations. Action-filled days, impeccable organization, and highly competent guides place El Rincon and its sister estancia, Santa Rosa, a notch above all other regional lodges.
These estancias offer ducks, doves and perdiz 30-45 minutes away. The secret for this huge population of ducks and the day-to-day high-volume consistency of our shoots is River Plate's supplemental feeding program. The shoots are centered in a vast marsh between two great rivers. Together these three bodies of water constitute perhaps the most important waterfowl area in the world.
Entre Rios is a province that is rich in cereal grains. Vast cultivation of corn, wheat, and sorghum has caused a veritable explosion of dove populations, which must certainly number in the tens of millions. You will be astounded at the clouds of doves coming into the roost at all angles.
Hunters can expect to shoot a limit of 15 perdiz each in 1-2 hours, within a 30-minute drive from the estancia. River Plate's well-mannered dogs and the beautiful countryside will ease you into surroundings reminiscent of days gone by. As you walk across the gentle landscape, frequent and explosive flushes will get your heart pumping with excitement.
