The waiting game

K

kswaterfowl

New member
Went out with a good friend of mine to a few of his spots this morning. And you can definitely tell that rifle season just ended. We made 8 stands in some good looking country, and there wasn't very many that were wanting to play.

We called in a nice little female after 21 minutes on the first stand. She was circling way down wind and made the fatal mistake of taking one last look before she got out of sight. I squeezed the trigger on the 6 dti and dumped her at 237 yards.

Then on the third stand we setup in a big pasture with some nice big draws and rolling hills. The wind was perfect but we had to face towards the sun. So I knew we would probably get picked out pretty quick, and that's exactly what happened. After 18 minutes we have a taker come over the hill 200+ yards out on my buddies side, and immediately come to a stop. I lip squeak to let him know there is a coyote, but it sneaks back behind the hill before he can get on it. I quickly swing my gun over and switch the call to a fight sound. And he couldn't help but come back and take a look. I get on him and dump him at 221 yards.

After 5 more dry stands, we ended up calling it a day.
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Good shooting. It is tough now I went today too. Didn't see any.

Had a great horned owl try to make off with my mojo critter and cs24. I have them hooked together he got them about a foot off the ground then dropped them. Them came back and chewed on the critter a while.

You shoot that one in the neck to save the hide or to show how good you are with the DTI
 
That would be quite the entertainment watching that owl. I would have been a little nervous though.

Actually all I could see was the neck and head. And I must have had a little luck on my side today. But that dti does make it a lot easier.
 
Originally Posted By: kswaterfowlThat would be quite the entertainment watching that owl. I would have been a little nervous though.

Actually all I could see was the neck and head. And I must have had a little luck on my side today. But that dti does make it a lot easier.

Good shooting ks!

I've used decoys regularly for a lot of years and have had a lot of birds swoop down for a look, but only one kestral ever actually attack a decoy, until one morning last year had 2 different owls actually steal the topper off my Jackdaddy decoy.

The first one stole the topper, flew about 25 yards with it, sat down on the ground and tried to eat it, then gave up and walked back over to the decoy, which was chirping and gave it the eagle eye for a couple of minutes before walking back to chew on the topper once more before flying off.

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The second one carried the topper several hundred yards, landed in a tree to consume his prize. My partner managed to locate him in the tree, ran the owl off and recovered the topper off a limb about 10' off the ground.

Yet another landed on a fence adjacent to decoy and watched it for 10 minutes before flying off.

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That same morning, after recovering the topper twice, a Harris hawk hit the topper again but carried it only a yard or so before dropping it.

Have no idea why all the sudden interest other than it was a heavily overcast day, maybe they could see it better in poor light??

Regards,
hm
 
I never use decoys, but I could imagine how many I would lose with all the red tail hawks around here. I watched a great horned owl knock a red tail hawk out of mid air. I wish I would have had a video camera for that for that one.
 
Originally Posted By: kswaterfowlI never use decoys, but I could imagine how many I would lose with all the red tail hawks around here. I watched a great horned owl knock a red tail hawk out of mid air. I wish I would have had a video camera for that for that one.

That would be something to watch! Was it fatal to the hawk?

Anyone know the species of owl in my first picture? I don't think I've ever seen one quite like it. We have quite a few Harris hawks and lots of Cara Cara. Most are curious but seldom attack decoys.

Regards,
hm
 
Originally Posted By: flintrockNice shooting. They sure are haired up nice this year!

Thanks. They are furred up, and there is plenty of em. It seems like they have a darker red tint to them this year.
 
Originally Posted By: hm1996Originally Posted By: kswaterfowlI never use decoys, but I could imagine how many I would lose with all the red tail hawks around here. I watched a great horned owl knock a red tail hawk out of mid air. I wish I would have had a video camera for that for that one.

That would be something to watch! Was it fatal to the hawk?

Anyone know the species of owl in my first picture? I don't think I've ever seen one quite like it. We have quite a few Harris hawks and lots of Cara Cara. Most are curious but seldom attack decoys.

Regards,
hm

I was actually driving down a dirt road when I saw it, so I'm not sure how the hawk ended up. But I never saw it get back up.
 
Originally Posted By: hm1996Anyone know the species of owl in my first picture?

it sure looks like a great horned owl but for some reason it doesn't have the tufts of feathers on its head like most great horned do.
 
Originally Posted By: SlickerThanSnotOriginally Posted By: hm1996Anyone know the species of owl in my first picture?

it sure looks like a great horned owl but for some reason it doesn't have the tufts of feathers on its head like most great horned do.

I went through a hundred or more pictures on google and couldn't find anything similar, but looking at some of my own photos, I think you're right slick. Believe it is a GH, just a lighter color phase than I've ever seen.

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Regards,
hm
 
Good hunting and sweet rifle. I get a lot of hawks coming to take a look when I call. Seems we are overrun with them here in KS. I rarely use my decoy anymore., but I did have a hawk almost grab it once.
 
HM, definitely a great horned owl. Just a little bit lighter color to his plumage and with the ear tufts laid back it makes him look a little unusual. I have had lots of predatory birds come in but the only one to hit my mojo spinner was a kestrel. It was bitter cold and it hit seconds after I turned it on while I was only a few steps away hanging my caller on a branch. Crazy stuff!
 
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