Crow Sniping Tips?

J

JJTAlwaysWishing

New member
Hello all, my area is infested with crows. Not that they bother land or anything but the constant "cawing" gets quite annoying and I would like to clear some out. I'm not a fan of shotguns and only use them if the game I'm going after requires it (doves, quail, etc) one could say calling crows could require it but I have seen many articles in the past of people taking crows with rifles I also have done this, but 9/10 times when this happens it's a chance encounter and the crow lands in an area where a hunter has that shot.

From what I've read most crow hunters go about calling them into a specific area and just hammering them with high brass 12 gauge shells. But I'd like to call them in and maybe have them land and take them at atleast 100 yards mainly to build up my accuracy I normally use squirrels for pre deer season practice but lately it seems I can walk 5 miles without seeing or hearing a single one. I know rifle hunting crows is possible I would just like some insight from someone who maybe does this a lot or has in the past. Mainly what calls you use (ecaller or hand call, if ecaller what specific sound) and if you use decoys or not. I'm definetly going to try decoys but on the other hand I've seen a lot of down talk on them.

Thanks everyone,,, Jaycob.
 
I am a ways North of you, but I normally use meat sickles for Crow bait in the winter. I use deer parts from boning out Deer and the leftovers from scrapping the the animals I trap. Put in 5 gal. buckets and buy some cheap red drink mix and you can plant your bait where you want... Obviously snow helps a lot.
 
Originally Posted By: JJTAlwaysWishingI planned on using my AR in .223 I figured it would almost be the perfect gun for this purpose.
That will work well. Just make sure you use varmint tipped bullets so they break up on impact if you happen to miss and don't have a ricochet or a more solid bullet keep traveling down range.
 
Oh for sure, mainly where I'll be hunting there isn't any houses in miles of all directions anyways and mainly small openings where the crows will be 99% of the time so having a back stop won't be a problem. Safety is always my main concern although not everyone feels the same.
 

JJ,

I love shooting crows with a rifle, especially my CZ .17 HMR. It's a perfect crow sniper in my opinion.

Where legal, you can bait them and make a set specifically for the area you want to hunt, or catch them on or around a cornfield. Hunting around farms where cattle are present is a good place to find them too, especially around barns. Seems there are bugs stirred up by the cattle as well as grain around, and in the winter time the cattle will keep the snow tromped down which allows crows to get to seeds or grain easier. If there's a nearby tree beside a barn then crows have a place to perch and is a good hunting location. Crows have a tendency to perch in certain trees over others and finding those locations is a good method for a setup. In early morning after leaving the roost, crows will go to a known food source. I have had some success with calling them too and having them land in nearby trees so I could get a shot.

Just remember that shooting with a rifle brings a whole new thought to safely. Knowing the area where you will be shooting is a must.

You won't get as many crows when using a rifle but it's a lot of fun. Shotgunning will put more birds on the ground, but I really enjoy the HMR for crows.

Below is a trailer to a video I put together in attempting to address some of the questions PM members had a few years ago. I worked on this video for a while in order to demonstrate how I go about it. What works for you may be different.

Good luck. Keep us posted with success stories and photos.







 
I am using a foxpro spitfire to call with. I'm no pro at this. This is my first year doing it but I have learned a lot. Put the caller in the tree( not on the ground) in the tree with the speaker pointing up. Put the caller in a taller tree that is a good tall one so they land in it. If you place the caller in a small tree they fly around and don't land and you feel really stupid. Yes I did this............twice!!!
I start with a dying crow or struggling crow call. If i get one to land, which case I usually get one to land, after i shoot if they all scatter I play crow fight especially if I see two of them trying to hit each other when they fly off. then if I shoot again, I play crow and hawk fight. I have had this happen 4 times in the past three weekends where I have coaxed them back three times. After I have shot three times, I leave because they are smart birds and I don't want to educate them too much. I have been waiting a week in between times calling in the same area.
Camouflage camouflage camouflage if they pick you out they will be very reluctant to come in. Im not claiming to be good I am just sharing what I have found works. I hope it does for you if you try it. Sniping crows is one of my new favorite hunts. I absolutely love doing this!!!
 
22-250 works good. Some years ago I had 7 in a row at 225 yards. It sure is a wonderful (pop) sound that comes floating back to you,I enjoy the cloud of feathers as well.
Another time I got 3 in about 30 seconds and missed the 4th with a 17mach2. After the first one fell out the others came in to attack and landed one at a time. Pretty much fun, just make sure that you have a safe backstop.
 
I have best luck using bait around areas they are roosting in. After it snows I keep freshing it up with red colored water so it stays visible.
 
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I have been hunting crow for years now and LOVE it. I would rather hunt crow then anything else these days. I do full sets with decoys and mostly soft calling for feeding sets. I know of some people who have done what youre talking about but not exactly the same way. These people are targeting roosted young birds while they can fly very far. The really young birds will only be able to fly very short distances and will circle back to their roost so people are targeting those. We dont shoot roosts since we will try and kill hundreds in a season and shooting a roost is a quick way to ruin and area. I dont know how it is where you all are though so your sniping endeavor might work better there. Here i have shot some with a rifle but i was hunting predators and happen to have a shot. I would recommend you use a 22lr or 17hmr though. Youre going to be getting a LOT more shots of perched birds then you are grounded so the 223 is going to cause you to not be able to take as many shots.
 
I totally agree with jacobhwrd. I shot 10 times during a stand with a 22 rile and they didn't even know I was there. The 223 I can get about three shots a stand if I can get them called back in. The 223 crack is a little much if you are trying to down a lot of birds. Like I have said before I love sniping crows. We have wait till the 14th of January here in Iowa to go back after them again. If it wasn't for late muzzy season it would be a very long period in between seasons.
 
I tried the 22 250 and 204 on crows didn't like it . Went back to rimfires lots more fun! Did try the 22LR with sub sonic hps this year for the first time and thT was a blast! But nothing beats the HMR!
 
My modus operandi, is to use a couple of stuffed/taxidermy Crow with a plastic owl decoy on the ground by Tree and sit-back hidden with suppressed .22 .. Sometime draw a few in to start the party with using the foxpro to call a little in the beginning to draw a couple in to start Barking . Once the Barking start, then more just swarm-in .
. If you pop one and he is a 'hanger-on' just hanging inverted by a foot in the limbs of tree for a few minutes till he drops, that the real gem that drives them crazy and you can really clean house .
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( Crow Bait ) Something I found out about years ago by accident seeing a pile of Crow fighting. barking aggressively crazy over something laying in a Safeway parking lot. they were going Crazy . & NO was not a old dirty diaper, or a fresh puddle of puke ...LOL .
Was a can of ( Underwood Devil Ham ) that someone opened and ate some and just threw can on the pavement . ( that smell ) and the taste was like heroine to them .
. So I started using it . I would take and punch a couple of holes in lid , enough to get the smell out and them to jab there tongues in & out to eat .
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underwood%20Devil%20Ham_zpspho0r8kt.jpg


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edit add:
Bluejay & Magpie Bait . I found out by raising a few Jays by hand from hatching that the most attractive food that they can NOT pass-up is ( Gerber Lamb baby food ) in a jar . It draws jays and magpie in like magnet .
. I also have had a few pet Crow that I robed from Nest and raised from hatchling .
.
 
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If dead ones hit the ground --
Tie a 4' string and a nut or bolt of some kind to the leg and throw it back up in tree to tangle and stay there as a decoy ---
Thx
 
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They are smart birds and learn fast. Few years ago we set out the Foxpro on crow gathering and and probably 20 or more overhead in less than 2 minutes. Shot 3 and waited about 30 minutes and turned the call on again. This time only 5 or 6 showed up, got two and left. Came back about a month later, turned the call on and only got the sentry flying high but could hear a pile of them on the far side of a thicket. Came back 2 or 3 years later to same spot, same call. Only got the sentry out of range but could hear the rest of the murder but not see them. Evidently they taught the youngsters about the calls.
 
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