Recognize me

[Ultrastu]

So out today trying to find some pigeons and while they will happily let walkers riders  ,joggers etc within 70 yds of there sitty tree .when they spot me in camo over 200 yds away along a hege they disappear over the horizon .

What's all that about then .? 

[old'un]

Plan of action…..buy brightly coloured jogging suit…think you know the rest 

[Ultrastu]

Maybe those Americans in their bright orange camo have sussed it out ? 

[Cranfield]

Lets open up the old debate as to whether pigeons can "recognise" colour.

I have often thought of getting an old tractor for "stalking" pigeons, they let them get to within 30 yards.
Setting up adjacent to a trailer of other piece of farm equipment left in the field has resulted in some good days for me.

[GingerCat]

If I  leave my back door with my pcp rifle, the tress in the garden empty out.  

Should I stroll out there with a cup of tea or the ball thrower and the dog then I can walk down the garden  and look up at the pigeons that have stayed put. 

[hawkfanz]

a bit like people hiding the dog in hide,my springer is always up front watchin n waitin,doesn,t make any difference to whether pigeon of crow come to decoys,she is out there,i dont believe for one moment a bird can think " hey theres a dog must be a shooter in there"after all the dog just looks like another ewe or any other animal.

[silver pigeon69]

3 minutes ago, hawkfanz said:

a bit like people hiding the dog in hide,my springer is always up front watchin n waitin,doesn,t make any difference to whether pigeon of crow come to decoys,she is out there,i dont believe for one moment a bird can think " hey theres a dog must be a shooter in there"after all the dog just looks like another ewe or any other animal.

I'm sure they dont associate a dog with a shooter but as you state  "the dog just looks like another ewe or any other animal" therefore possibley like a Fox? I'm sure they wouldn't land next to a Fox.

[hawkfanz]

when im shooting it dont seem to matter about dog,,she,s been in middle of pattern pickin a bird up and they still come in,so for my money its all on the day,for weeks ive had 100,s of pigeon on bean stubble but wont come near a decoy,set up for crows and the blacks  come in,i dont think there is any pattern its just how it is mometimes,thats what gives us a challenge.

[lakeside1000]

My wife and I used to ride horses out along the lanes , we could get within yards of most game and just about everything else as well, I often wondered if I would be able to hit anything with a decent air rifle from horseback, but as I can only just hit things when I'm standing still I somehow dought it.Anyway these days someone armed and dangerous on horseback would soon attract unwanted attention from the boy's ( and girls ) in blue.

We never wore camo clothing, just regular riding clothes but often had high vis jackets on as well. I think what we have now are birds and animals which have evolved to recognise people with guns and keep well clear, regardless of what you wear.

[motty]

17 hours ago, lakeside1000 said:

My wife and I used to ride horses out along the lanes , we could get within yards of most game and just about everything else as well, I often wondered if I would be able to hit anything with a decent air rifle from horseback, but as I can only just hit things when I'm standing still I somehow dought it.Anyway these days someone armed and dangerous on horseback would soon attract unwanted attention from the boy's ( and girls ) in blue.

We never wore camo clothing, just regular riding clothes but often had high vis jackets on as well. I think what we have now are birds and animals which have evolved to recognise people with guns and keep well clear, regardless of what you wear.

Birds and animals have definitely not evolved to recognise people with guns.

[Delwint]

You walk on a golf course Motty with your golf clubs and see crows happily walking yards away: can’t say the same with a shotgun in your arms!!!!!! Just an observation 

[39TDS]

2 hours ago, motty said:

Birds and animals have definitely not evolved to recognise people with guns.

I am far from convinced of that one, maybe not evolved but certainly learned around here. Maybe not so much these days as there are hardly any shooters any more. At one time you could always hear shotguns going off now it is quite rare.

 

I heard claim that a guy that had been paid to go clear the pigeons from the town square with his hawk could eventually clear the square without it as the pigeons recognised him.

[lakeside1000]

I have a large bird table at the edge of my patio where I feed anything that fly's in, pigeons crows doves ,all the usual garden birds and seagulls , we can sit on the patio and most of them will come in to feed just completely ignoring us, but if I go out to the shed with any of my guns (to clean or repair) they have a complete meltdown, scattering in all directions and dont come back for hours, 

Another example, I often go out to tidy up the decoy pattern and pick up dead birds, If I leave the gun in the hide you can guarantee birds will come right in over my head and just ignore me, but if I take my gun out 'just in case' any interested pigeon or crow will veer off 100 yards out and fly off at top speed in the opposite direction.

On a recent pheasant shoot we were beating along the edge of a huge wood, guns were lined out in the field , the pheasants were going straight over their heads but a flock of woodies came out of the trees and scattered back over the trees at the sight of the row of shotguns, coincidence, I dont think so, even if they have not evolved they certainly have heightened survival instincts which serve them well in these situations.

[old'un]

Pigeons as with most other birds see humans as potential danger, they do not know the difference between someone with or without a gun……apart from one bird!.... the Crow, think they know what car you drive and the registration.

[motty]

Some remarkable posts on this thread.

[Clodhopper]

For my two peneth, I believe creatures become used to and settled with a situation and are mostly concerned/wary of a change to that situation. For example, my Grandmother feeds pheasants in her garden, about 20 come each morning. The pheasants will happily feed around her. If however she meets the very same birds when walking down the lane next to the house these birds will scurry away and hide. Different place and situation. Should she have a gun in her hand whilst feeding them they would no doubt become used to this as they would still be getting the feed and no threat would be present. It would only be when the threat became real i.e. shooting them that those that had not been killed become wary of that particular situation.

Not sure I have verbalised my train of thought there very well but there you go.

[redogi73]

A farmer where I used to shoot put it well when I said the pigeons seemed to know what I was up to and would be in the field but feeding just our of range, he said "Well yes there the intelligent ones, all the stupid ones have already being shot" lol

Of course it was more the stupid fool behind the gun, who had just got his license and didn't know about rekkies, flight lines etc.

 

 

 

 

[la bala]

Get a horse or camo yourself as a walker

[The gouse]

Get your self to your local fancy dress shop.

dress like nurses the cow from Blackadder sorted?.

your shooting returns will double??

[tiny tim]

It’s because they can read your mind, that joggers and horse riders aren’t projecting evil thoughts about them

line your hat with tin foil and the problem is solved

[Westley]

I can recall many years ago, one of the shooting magazines ran an article where a pigeon shooter used the bright orange plastic screening, used by workmen, to make his hide. The pigeons just came into the decoys as normal. Movement is the biggest frightener !

[Stonepark]

Wild Birds (and animals) certainly treat a hunting dog or cat differently from one that is wandering about.

I suspect a lot of it is about eye contact, whether traditional human meaning or just generally using full face and both eyes to focus on a target.

joggers, passing non-hunting animals etc generally don't make eye contact and are ignored, hunting animals on the other hand are making eye contact as they search for and focus on prey.

[Flyboy1950]

13 hours ago, Stonepark said:

Wild Birds (and animals) certainly treat a hunting dog or cat differently from one that is wandering about.

+1

Pigeons can certainly recognise colour and are used bu the US Coast guard service for good reason.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOkpvEZ-p2k