Pretty cool couple of hours...

[silentshot1 206]

Just had a really amazing couple of hours.

 

'She who rules' needed picking up from work for an afternoon appointment, meaning that I could escape the office to work from home. 'Her Majesty' then had a driving lesson for two hours which meant I could sneak over to the farm to have another pop at the pigeons! Awesome start already!

 

Got on to the rape and set up a decoy pattern about 15 meters down wind of a sitty tree in the hedge line, then retreated to a favourite hide to wait. There were literally hundreds of sky rats in great flocks, belting down the tree line and over the patten but for some reason not landing on the pattern or in the trees. Don't know why but that's some times the way it goes.

 

After about 30 mins of this and little else I got bored and started plinking at a tree about 35 meters away. I was delighted to see when I went to check, that I got two groups of five then four shots clover leafed, one group above the other and exactly on the knots I was aiming at. Things were on the turn......

 

As I admired my handy work, checked time and re filled the S410's mag, a pigeon landed in a tree about 20 meters away, bingo! I aimed low, waited for the wind to part enough space for a clear trajectory, squeezed gently and sent 16 grains of FX pellet straight in to woody's head, hardly a twitch, just fell out the tree.

 

About 5 minutes later, a pigeon finally landed in the pattern about 30 meters from me (I use upright decoys to mark distance and feeding ones to surround them), I watched him for a minute whilst very gently getting the cross hairs on him and ping, gave him an FX hicky right in his neck. Two down!

 

I went to find the first but it had disappeared, then went to pick up the second and realised what had happened to the first! We have a pair of buzzards on the farm and if you are out at the same time they are, they will help themselves to your quarry if you don't pick them up quick enough! Sure enough, Buzzard two was sitting on top of pigeon two and after a couple of angry wing flaps in my direction, headed back to a branch less than 30 yds away where Buzzard one was sitting on pigeon one! It's happened once before, but just shows how fearless these amazing birds are. Buzzard two really thought twice about giving up the pigeon, whether or not he thought he'd caught it fair and square!

 

Pigeon 3 was simply unlucky. As I was heading back to the barn where I left the car, he was on top of the roof and I had a chamber that needed clearing. I dropped to one knee, shouldered the gun, squeezed the trigger and phut, a casserole for the 'in laws'!

 

All in all, a bit of a mid week bonus!

[JackReid 35]

Wicked read mate, loads of buzzards my way also, not that cheeky however but I remember their presence definatley kept the rabbits down on one end of the permission. Reminds me of seeing this huge bird of prey (not sure what it was) when I was traveling in New Zealand flying alongside my car in a field and taking a rabbit back up into the sky! Ever seen a buzzard take a live rabbit? Do you thin kthey would have the confidence for a full grown one? They sure as hell have the tools to do it!

 

Good shooting

Jack

[silentshot1 206]

Hi Mate

 

I wouldn't put it past them, they're pretty damn hard! I see them around quite a lot over the warrens, but I haven't seen one make off with a rabbit yet.n =

 

I'm going to try using a WW2 Pill box (The farm is littered with them) as a hide for a bit more pigeon bashing this weekend. My In laws have given two guys with shoty's and a pigeon magnet an open permission to have a crack at the pigeons. Need to get my numbers up! That said, last Saturday they scored two, having reckoned on 50 - 100! I got 8 having promised to do nothing more than scare them!

 

I'll let you know how I go!

[Sweeney-Todd 208]

Hi Silentshot.

 

Nice post mate, and congrats on the Pigeons.

 

Good luck next time out.

 

 

 

Bill.

[festa 206]

good write up there buddy i enjoyed the read good luck with the pill box let us know how you got on

 

atb gary

[stealthy1 3,964]

Well don Silentshot, there is a pair of Buzzards that follow me and the dog when we ferret a piece of land not far from us, I think the reason is that they wait for us to paunch the rabbits and leave, then they gobble up the guts, rather them than me, black pudding to them I suppose :sick:

[jordy123 0]

THEM BUZZARDS CAN'T BE THAT HARD REALLY WHEN YOU SEE CROWS ETC GIVING THEM WHAT FOR!!

Hi Mate

 

I wouldn't put it past them, they're pretty damn hard! I see them around quite a lot over the warrens, but I haven't seen one make off with a rabbit yet.n =

 

I'm going to try using a WW2 Pill box (The farm is littered with them) as a hide for a bit more pigeon bashing this weekend. My In laws have given two guys with shoty's and a pigeon magnet an open permission to have a crack at the pigeons. Need to get my numbers up! That said, last Saturday they scored two, having reckoned on 50 - 100! I got 8 having promised to do nothing more than scare them!

 

I'll let you know how I go!

[a*beater 0]

I went pigeon shooting recently with a couple of friends and i was ther for bout hal hour when a flock of bout 15 come over sso took aim followed through and dropped one in the field to my right.Nice easy retrieve.I then left it for about 5 minutes whil i had a shot at a couple of others.When i went to retrieve to pigeon ther was nothing left apart from alot of feathers and i know for a fact there is a lot of buzzards and kites around.Amazing what these birds really can do however i cant be the only one to agree that there is starting to be a lot of them around and i personally feel some sort of cull will be needded in the near future atb dom

[Phantom 631]

Nice read SS

 

I mentioned last year about the Charlie that dashed out of some cover and robbed me of a kit that had barely hit the ground.

I wouldn't mind, but the Fox didn't hang around long enough for me to get a pic of it with my meal in its gob.

 

Some cheeky wildlife out there aint there?

 

I've not seen any Buzzards round here, but I'm informed there are many just over the hills behind us.

 

Phantom

[Freddy Watts 1]

THEM BUZZARDS CAN'T BE THAT HARD REALLY WHEN YOU SEE CROWS ETC GIVING THEM WHAT FOR!!

Hi Mate

 

I wouldn't put it past them, they're pretty damn hard! I see them around quite a lot over the warrens, but I haven't seen one make off with a rabbit yet.n =

 

I'm going to try using a WW2 Pill box (The farm is littered with them) as a hide for a bit more pigeon bashing this weekend. My In laws have given two guys with shoty's and a pigeon magnet an open permission to have a crack at the pigeons. Need to get my numbers up! That said, last Saturday they scored two, having reckoned on 50 - 100! I got 8 having promised to do nothing more than scare them!

 

I'll let you know how I go!

Have you ever been attacked by a couple of crows mate. I know who would be the one running away.

 

Nice post by the way silentshot sounds like you have a good time anyway.

 

Freddy

 

Freddy

[farmboy99 1]

great read that. crows are tough sods they swoop on most birds of prey from what ive seen. we've got loads of buzzards on our farm too theyre always up the back. ive never had them take anything ive shot though! i remember once in america providence, rhode island to be precise. there was a periguin falcon (probably spelt that wrong!) eating a pigeon right in the park i got within 6 ft of it for a picture then it started getting pissed off so i thought id best leave the poor thing to its dinner! was an amazing thing to see and right in the middle of a city!!

[Freddy Watts 1]

Good old falcon, keeping those damn ferels under control.

 

Freddy

[davyt63 1,845]

well done buddy

good read that

 

regards

 

davy