Nial Posted September 29, 2011 Report Share Posted September 29, 2011 Having been on here for a few years I've got a fair idea how to decoy piegons in and have had some sucess pigeon shooting. The permission I have has a fair number of corvids, including a rookery, but I am not sure how to approach shooting them. What times of day are best? Are you better putting out decoys, or getting them in and out of their nests? How well camouflaged do you have to be? I'd appreciate any tips or pointers, Nial. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swiss.tony Posted September 29, 2011 Report Share Posted September 29, 2011 (edited) Having been on here for a few years I've got a fair idea how to decoy piegons in and have had some sucess pigeon shooting. The permission I have has a fair number of corvids, including a rookery, but I am not sure how to approach shooting them. What times of day are best? Are you better putting out decoys, or getting them in and out of their nests? How well camouflaged do you have to be? I'd appreciate any tips or pointers, Nial. camouflage wise you have to be ivisible they have fantastic eye sight at 3 mile out iv all ways done well decoyin them never really set a patten up just thorn decoys down as long as there in to wind or even a dead rabbit down over a few day let them get use to it then shot them with hmr at long range that works well ps forgot to say steve-b-wales got a got photo on in pics section shooting crows and jacks worth a look at his patten looks well ..swiss Edited September 29, 2011 by swiss.tony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pegasus bridge Posted September 29, 2011 Report Share Posted September 29, 2011 corvids are (IMHO) much more wary than pigeons; they will cotton on quickly to tactics - so you will need to vary what you do. they also seem to spot any movement a mile off ,and spot a poor hide with ease. crow calls are useful - in conjunction with a few deeks, they love freshly turned / drilled fields. i have not shot them directly at a rookery though - Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cranfield Posted September 30, 2011 Report Share Posted September 30, 2011 I always build a good hide and usually have a roof on it. Corvids don't always sweep low into the decoys, they often come in high and come down like helicopters, surveying the area as they do. Any irregularities, or movement and they are off. I place my decoys at least 6-10ft apart in a random manner, not in formations (like horseshoe, etc). Corvids don't need a landing strip like pigeons , they are quite happy dropping among birds already on the ground. I sometimes use flappers, floaters and often a rotary with dead rooks and that works. Crow calls are also usually very effective. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellebarto Posted September 30, 2011 Report Share Posted September 30, 2011 I always build a good hide and usually have a roof on it. Corvids don't always sweep low into the decoys, they often come in high and come down like helicopters, surveying the area as they do. Any irregularities, or movement and they are off. I place my decoys at least 6-10ft apart in a random manner, not in formations (like horseshoe, etc). Corvids don't need a landing strip like pigeons , they are quite happy dropping among birds already on the ground. I sometimes use flappers, floaters and often a rotary with dead rooks and that works. Crow calls are also usually very effective. I'd say this is bang on. I always have a few cradles as well. Bang a dozen decoys out in no particular pattern but in a group within range then add the first dozen I shoot into the group on cradles and thats usually enough to keep you going. I find dawn until afternoon is about right to be worth your while staying. Movements the killer. Just stay still and well concealed until your ready to mount! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caeser Posted October 1, 2011 Report Share Posted October 1, 2011 Limestone cowboy, from this forum was out with me on tuesday ,shooting corvids. We didn't start until 11.00am. We were in a field that has been used by bullocks, and has had a cattle feeder in it. The cattle feeder had been removed but there was still quite a bit of cattle feed residue on the ground. We had seen a few crows dropping in so we built a hide in a small group of trees 40 yards from where the cattle feed was. 4 crow decoys out randomly, and within minutes we'd shot a couple of crows. One crow was put on the flapper, and from then on every other bird shot was just put randomly out as if it was feeding. The crows and jackdaws just kept coming in. We even had a couple of woodpigeons come into the crow decoys. We ended up at 5.30pm, with 63 mainly crows, some rooks and quite a few jackdaws. Also 6 woodpigeon. We did have the luxury of the cattle feed, I know, but I have done this before a few times, just in a grass field, starting off with only 4 decoys, adding to the pattern as I've shot them, but I always use the flapper too. As has already been pointed out, you do have to keep exceptionally still and well hidden. We just had the normal pigeon hide, which was a stealth net with a another net at head height at the back of us, because we didn't have a background in the sparse small group of trees, although we were in the shade. It was a bright day and we built the hide so that the sun was behind us all day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mpk Posted October 1, 2011 Report Share Posted October 1, 2011 Top tip : don't move at all until the very last second they have unbelievable eyesite a mate also bought some cheap pigeon decoys and sprayed them black which worked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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