A totally freaky thing

[kent]

The other night there just wasn't enough wind to stalk bunnies, walking out towards the fell all I saw was white tails disappearing as what little wind there was swirled around this way and that and no doubt my size elevens clumping through the rushes and mud didn't help much either.

Anyhow on reaching the big dry stone wall that encloses the fell bottom I decided to stop right there a while and watch a young Sika stag and what I assumed was his sister and wait and see what occurred as regards the vermin with the Moderated .22 Hornet. After a while I picked out a bunny about 70-80 yards out and finished him with a swift side of the head shot taken standing off the wall top, 5 mins later his buddy came and had a look see why his friend hadn't moved and thwack it got one also an the base of the scull from behind.

Leaving them were they rested one on top of the other actually. Another showed coming out of the old badger set, offering a perfect longer range shot as is washed its paws off etc. I dialled in another 2 MOA on top of my 130 yards zero estimating the range at about 200 yards. After the brief pause it took from the slipping of the trigger to the bullet landing I watched through the scope as it did a back flip and lay still without the slightest twitch. Quite a pleasing shot from a wall top standing and I felt sure I either got the head or at worst the upper chest through the shoulders.

Anyhow after missing a few more chances of shots as bunnies passed in and out of rushy areas it was drawing dark and I decided time to collect the slain. I paced the last and longest at just over 220 and allowing for the rise in the ground over the last 20-30 yards I figured my range estimate was near enough and was interested to check the exact placement. Well it fairly obviously wasn't the body as there wasn't any sign, even the scull felt fine all I found was a bit of blood from one ear and a big sort of clot fell out the other. Yeah, right I though that's not likely with a 45 grn sierra but yes it was I have just prepped those bunnies for tonights tea and it did just that in one ear canal out the other ! I seriously wouldn't have thought that possible and the only damage on the carcass was a little brusing the the area surrounding top 25mm of neck were the blood must have been forced back under hydrostatic shock. The only time I have ever seen no visible damage previous was with the HMR that sometimes slipped into the ribs making a little .17 hole that soon seals itself up without any external bleeding out and hadn't the energy to exit the other side at longer range (the damage is far more extensive when you clean them though and to be fair I was expecting to find hidden damage to the one in question. I am not sure I have ever seen a genuine in and out through the ear hole on any other rabbit in over thirty years of shooting them.

Edited May 1, 2014 by kent

[Hamster]

Good read Kent but more freaky is that you can eat three rabbits for tea.

[The Mighty Prawn]

If there's a hole straight through you could stick a lens in each ear and hey presto - novelty rabbit head scope! Might give you the edge in concealment?

[Gonk]

Excellent!

[Graham M]

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Edited May 2, 2014 by Graham M

[Redgum]

Remarkable shot for sure Kent, there's only a few things that I know of that have little between the ears . I have always wanted to get a hornet to replace the hmr but know little about the rnds terminal ballistics. I was always under the impression that the hornet was good foxing rnd out to 200yds but it sounds like this would be far from true if the bullet does not have enough energy to expand in a rabbits head at this range. Do you reload for hornet.

[kent]

That's the freaky thing, it will smash the head literally open it up with a solid hit elsewhere. The retained energy at 200 is actually more than a HMR produces at the muzzle. The odd wounder I have had (very low percentage) I have gone low on the head and removed the lower section completely (sort of blows the hit or clean miss theory often banded about don't it just), they don't go anywhere but still have a blink response (if I see one squat when hit I give it another quick as this is what they tend to do without any kicking), body hits on bunnies are generally a bit too much but a hare can be chest or neck shot fine. Foxes? You dealing with 700 ft lb or thereabout so its very much a foxing round with handloads, look on it real simply though even with the squibbiest factory its a good few hundred ft sec faster than a HMR with another 25 grains of bullet (45 over 20).

As a HMR replacement for any hand loader I think its a must, there is no shadow of doubt in my mind on that. Put it this way I shouldn't point a Hummer at a 200 yard rabbit yet I can do this with perfect confidence with the 'Ornit. IF it was legal I would use it on deer up to the size of Roe, though I don't think it should be legal as some have no restraint and do not know their limitations

Like I say in my closing statement I have never ever seen an in one ear out the other with anything in 30+ years of shooting them so I have nothing to compare with as regards damage

[kent]

Good read Kent but more freaky is that you can eat three rabbits for tea.

 

Yeah, two daughters one wife one Kent. Front ends go to the dog, rest goes on the bait pile that's placed around 200 yards from the house for crow and fox shooting.

[Hamster]

 

Yeah, two daughters one wife one Kent. Front ends go to the dog, rest goes on the bait pile that's placed around 200 yards from the house for crow and fox shooting.

 

I do like the sound of that bait pile, must give cracking sport on the odd Magpie too.

[kent]

 

I do like the sound of that bait pile, must give cracking sport on the odd Magpie too.

 

We normally get a new pair each year, every year I kill them. So far this year I have only shot one just before they paired up so my eyes are open for a pair (they seem to like the spruce or hawthorn to nest in) . I don't see them as a major threat to ground nesting game and waders (certainly not Lambs) but we do get a few of the rarer species of small birds here so they are not welcome to stay,

[Gimlet]

Never had an earole shot but I've had one take both eyes out. It baffled me at first. It was a .22 with NV. The rabbit dropped like a brick and I was sure it was hit but it just didn't sound right and I heard the bullet swishing through the rape leaves behind. But there it was, both eyes gone and not a mark on it. It wasn't 220 yards though. More like 60.

Good shooting Kent.

[team tractor]

I had an ear ear shot recently with the hmr and it's brain fell out of it when I picked it up.

 

Over years of shooting I've seen some rare things like I shot a rabbit and walked upto it to find two dead

[Redgum]

One for Myth busters I think, I reckon it was a wild miss but timed exactly when the rabbit had come out of the burrow to see its wife under another bunny suffering an instant heart attack.