How to consistently kill large numbers on Rape

[James Dixey]

How to kill large numbers on Rape

 

I want to set up an info exchange amongst experienced Pigeon Shooters about how to consistently kill large (50+) numbers on Rape

 

My proposition is this:

 

With decent field craft, good reconnaissance, and the right decoy patterns, anybody who can shoot straight can consistently kill good numbers (50+) on stubbles, clover, newly drilled corn, lucerne, peas, beans, blown corn. Very few pigeon shooters can consistently kill large numbers on Rape every time they go out. We all have our Red Letter days when we get a really good bag on Rape (by good I mean in excess of 50). Then we have a series of days when we only get the odd few.

 

What I want to do is to get the experienced amongst us to analyse the reasons why, when we have had a good day on the Rape; and to then summarise and share that thinking with the rest of us. In this way our combined levels of skills will go up; and we will be able to kill more pigeons and provide a better service to our Farmers.

 

I believe there are answers to why we all find it difficult to consistently kill large numbers on Rape. The purpose of this info exchange is to find those answers.

 

I shall start off:

 

Last Tuesday, 9th Dec, new farmer called. 5,000 swamping his Rape. Field unshot so far this winter

 

I decided to concentrate on being completely hidden so I set up in a ditch under an overhanging tree and I added a roof to my hide and created a window to shoot thru. Nothing of me or my hide was above ground level. I put out 30 decoys and dead birds and an electronic flapper.

 

Every bird that came in did so without any hesitation whatsoever; they completely committed and not one veered off all day; and most of the birds that came into the field came into my pattern. I have never had this before on Rape. I think it was due to my hide being so well concealed and unobtrusive.

 

Tomorrow, I am going to try another experiment for me on again a new field and that is to be on the field all set up as dawn breaks; my hope is that they will come in individually as they wake up and I can prevent the huge flocks building up and behaving as tho they were one bird.

We will see.

I shall report in over the weekend.

 

James Dixey

East Kent

[anser2]

I suspect the big trouble with rape is there are often a wide choice of fields to feed on and its a very bulky food they can fill up on fast. Having done so they then can spend some time digesting it . With a full crop pigeons may be prone to top up with small amounts of protein rich foods such as berries rather than return to the rape field for more low nutrient bulk food.

 

Thats one reason why I like to set up as early as possible in the morning as I find my local pigeons leave the rape fields by late morning at this time of year. By March they are more likely to spend all day feeding on rape. Most of my big bags over rape come in autumn 's when the acorns fail or in early spring when berries are getting scarce. I have often had very good days after the spring drillings have finnished and the pigeons return to rape.

Edited December 11, 2008 by anser2

[James Dixey]

Tried the tactic of being all set up by dawn. We were, good pattern, well concealed hide; they started to come in beautfully; a few shots and then they stopped coming.

 

My analysis of this failure was that despite 7 string bangers on local fields, there were still some fields where they could feed in peace. However, all of the 20 we shot, had nothing in their crops, so..? I am at a loss

 

James Dixey

[Catamong]

James,

 

Of course their crops were empty, what did you expect after a nights kip in the fir trees...........do you wake up every morning with a full belly..??

 

You've got the right idea by "thinking like a pigeon", and covering nearby fields with banger ropes, it's clear however that they had found other places to feed that weren't covered, hence they had no reason to return to your field.

 

Some tips I can offer from a good few years experience at this game:

 

* You MUST recce the area the day before you shoot, if somebody else is shooting your chosen field, then discount it, or, if the farmer has placed a banger gun there, don't think you can turn it off for the day and they'll still come in, 'cos they won't.

* Try and get other guns to cover nearby fields, wherever possible, alternatively use flags / scarecrows / banger ropes to keep the birds moving.

* NEVER let birds sit on your field or in trees within sound of your gunshot, as every bird that comes to the field will make a beeline for them in preference to your deeks.

* Avoid building a hide like a german bunker with a roof over and a slit to shoot through. These are fine for Bird Watching or Deer Rifling but not pigeon shooting, they're far too restrictive in terms of field of fire, you need to be able to shoot those birds that fly past at any angle at 30 - 40 yards range but have no intention of coming into your pattern. You're there to kill pigeons, not marvel at the flock of blue tits 10 feet from your hide. My preference is to stand in the hide so that I can shoot anything within a 360 degree arc, also try and put your hide against a 5 - 6 foot hedge to give you good all round vision. Keep absolutely still whilst the birds are on their approach drop to the deeks and only show yourself when they're well within range.

* When shooting over rape, it's ESSENTIAL to have movement in your deek pattern, using rotaries & flappers, plus as many static deeks as you can carry. I've had good results recently using 3 rotaries, a flapper and 30 deeks, it's OK if you have good vehicle access near to your hide position.

* Decide on your hide position the day before whilst doing your recce, try and position yourself where the birds are actually feeding, NOT where you hope that they will feed and that's convenient for you. Be in position at this time of year 15 minutes before dawn, the shooting can be fast and furious for the first half hour. Note carefully where the flocks are headed, if necessary leave your hide an hour or so after dawn and put additional banger ropes out on fields where birds are settling.

* Most experienced pigeon shooters should be able to average 50% + kill rate over decoys, if you're not up to that level you need to practice on clays.

 

These are my tips, others may disagree completely or wish to add their own, guys like anser2 and Harnser are worth listening to, they know a thing or two, other guys may say, "Well, I'm quite happy to wander about the fields all day just to shoot 2 or 3 woodies for the pot", well, those guys wouldn't be welcomed by any of the farmers I'm chummy with, they only want serious and committed pigeon shooters on their land .

 

Cat.

Edited December 12, 2008 by Catamong

[Jim Sarakun]

AN INTERESTING IDEA JD. AND I WILL BE WATCHING THIS THREAD WITH INTEREST, AS MY EXPERIENCE HAS BEEN THAT ONCE YOU THINK YOU HAVE FOUND A PATTERN, IT ALL CHANGES.

 

ONE THING I HAVE NOTICED THAT SEEMS TO PLAY A KEY ROLE IN WHERE THE BIRDS ARE ON MY SHOOT IS THE WIND DIRECTION. THIS COULD BE ON A LARGE SCALE OR SMALL, AND IS ALSO DEPENDENT ON THE VALUE TO THEM OF THE CROP THEY ARE FEEDING ON. LET ME TRY TO EXPLAIN.

 

GENERALLY THEY START THEIR DAY BY FLYING INTO THE WIND, THOUGH IF THE CROP THEY ARE FEEDING ON IS CLOSE, THEY WILL FLY DOWN WIND TO IT, IF THAT IS HOW THE WIND IS BLOWING. IF THE CROP THEY WANT IS FURTHER AWAY THEY SEEM TO LEAVE THE ROOST INTO THE WIND AND FLY IN A LARGE CIRCLE TO APPROACH THE FIELD THEY WANT TO FEED ON BY FLYING INTO THE WIND.

 

THE BIRDS I SHOOT LIVE IN THE CITY, AND I HAVE WATCHED THEM LEAVE BY FLYING INTO THE WIND WHILE I AM SITTING IN THE FIELD THEY WERE HAMMERING THE DAY BEFORE, WHICH IS DOWN WIND TO THEM AT THIS POINT. THEY THEN DO THE HUGE CIRCLE SO THAT THEY CAN APPROACH THIS FIELD BY FLYING INTO THE WIND.

 

IN THE EARLY DAYS I WOULD LEAVE THIS FIELD, AS I JUST SAW THEM GO IN A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT DIRECTION, ONLY TO FIND IT BLUE WITH THEM LATER IN THE DAY. I STILL MAKE THIS SAME MISTAKE.

 

ON A SMALLER SCALE, SAY JUST FIVE LARGE FIELDS, YOU CAN WATCH THIS HAPPEN, AS YOU SHOOT A FEW AND THE REST FLY OFF AND FLY THE LARGE CIRCLE TO APPROACH IT AGAIN BY FLYING INTO THE WIND. THIS PROCESS CAN TAKE ANYTHING UP TO HALF AN HOUR AS THEY MAY STOP FOR A WHILE IN SOME TREES ON THE WAY ROUND.

 

IF THEY ARE FEEDING ON ALL THESE FIELDS, LIKE IT IS ALL RAPE, THEY WILL ALIGHT IN THE NEXT ONE UP FROM YOU BUT YOUR BANGER WILL PUT THEM UP, AND SO ON INTO EACH FIELD, UNTIL THEY HAVE DONE THE FULL CIRCLE AND ARE BACK WITH YOU. I HAVE WATCHED THIS PROCESS MANY TIMES, THE LAST TIME BEING WEDNESDAY OF THIS WEEK, WHEN I RAN OUT OF BANGERS AND WALKED THEM OFF TO THE LAST BUT ONE FIELD FROM ME SO I KNEW WHERE I WAS SET UP, WAS THE NEXT POINT OF CALL FOR THEM.

 

WHEN THERE IS LITTLE OR NO WIND ON THE GROUND, THEY CLIMB VERY HIGH TO WHERE THE WIND IS AND DO THE EXACT SAME THING, BUT WHEN THEY LAND IT WILL BE IN THE MIDDLE OF A FIELD WHERE THEY CAN GET MORE LIFT IN THE FAINT BREEZE THAT YOU WILL NOT FIND IF YOU HAVE SET UP ON THE EDGE OF A WOOD OR BY A TALL HEDGE. SO WHEN YOU SET UP MAKE SURE YOUR DECOYS ARE IN A BREEZE. IF THE BREEZE IS ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE FIELD, THEN SET UP OVER THERE.

 

I ALWAYS LOOK ON THE WEATHER FORECAST FOR THE WIND DIRECTION IN RELATION TO THE CROP THEY ARE FEEDING ON BEFORE I GO SHOOTING, SO I KNOW WHICH SIDE OF THE CITY THEY WILL MOST LIKELY BE FEEDING ON. NOT ALWAYS THE CASE, BUT MOST LIKELY.

 

I OFTEN GET THE IMPRESSION THAT PIGEONS ARE VERY LAZY. OFTEN IN A WOOD WHERE THEY NEVER ROOST IN NUMBERS, THEY WILL ROOST IF THE DISH OF THE DAY HAS BEEN PLANTED CLOSE BY. I NEVER SHOOT TOO CLOSE TO IT, BUT SET UP ON THE OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE FIELD TO IT, IN A BREEZY SPOT, SO THAT THEY CAN GO BACK TO IT FOR SANCTUARY WHEN I HAVE SHOT A COUPLE OF THEIR MATES. THIS ENSURES A REASONABLE SHOOT FOR THE REST OF THE DAY.

 

PIGEON SHOOTING, AS WE ALL KNOW IS NOT AN EXACT SCIENCE, AND ANYTHING THAT WILL FURTHER MY KNOWLEDGE OF THE HABITS OF THIS BEAUTIFUL CREATURE, I FIND VERY INTERESTING, AND I FOR ONE SHALL BE WATCHING THIS THREAD WITH GREAT INTEREST.

[webber]

Jim

 

You make some interesting points, but your article would be much easier to read if it was not written in CAPITALS.

 

webber

[POW!]

Looking back in some old diaries , almost all of the big bags I have made have been when I only have a low number of cartridge with me , I trhen choose my shots carefully and if I dont scare too many , that seemed to be the answer ,

 

I dont manage to get the bags I used to , maybe its me but, I do belive wasting shots at too distance is a factor to low numbers , Dont shoot till yopu see the whites of thier eyes was an old tip for me when I started , I think folk underestimatehow hard pigeon shooting is , September to October young birds are easy [ easier!] , once they get shot at regularly , its a whole new ball game ,

 

Because I have shot for over more years than i care to recall , I dont belive I am a lot better than I was 20 years ago , but , I do belive pigeons are smarter !! [ Whos kidding who!!?]

 

Again looking bacj ALL my big bags 60+ were over peas or field beans , . next is fallen wheat , spring sown corn , and harvested maize , Oilseed rape is low , never more than 50 on long days ,

 

just found my best kill ratio 66 / 100 cartridge , again peas , SO there is a chance to improve!! .

 

Windy days allways best , too [ Text book I supose!! ] POW! .

[Jim Sarakun]

Jim

 

You make some interesting points, but your article would be much easier to read if it was not written in CAPITALS.

 

webber

 

 

 

I'VE ANSWERED THIS SO MANY TIMES.

 

I'M NOT SHOUTING JUST A BIT CHALLENGED IN THE EYE DIVISION AT CLOSE RANGE. I HAVE THE LARGEST FONTS ALLOWED ON THIS PC, AND CAN READ CAPITALS EASIER WITH MY MILK BOTTLE BOTTOM GLASSES, THEREFORE I CAN TYPE A BIT QUICKER, ALSO A CHALLENGE AS MY FINGERS ARE TOO FAT FOR THESE KEYS AND I HIT TWO KEYS AT THE SAME TIME, SO I HAVE TO EDIT SO MANY TIMES BECAUSE OF THIS.

 

THE UP SIDE IS I CAN SEE A FLY ON A TREE A MILE AWAY, HIT PRETTY MUCH EVERYTHING I POINT MY GUN AT AND MY HANDS NEVER GET COLD.

[magman]

James,

 

Of course their crops were empty, what did you expect after a nights kip in the fir trees...........do you wake up every morning with a full belly..??

 

You've got the right idea by "thinking like a pigeon", and covering nearby fields with banger ropes, it's clear however that they had found other places to feed that weren't covered, hence they had no reason to return to your field.

 

Some tips I can offer from a good few years experience at this game:

 

* You MUST recce the area the day before you shoot, if somebody else is shooting your chosen field, then discount it, or, if the farmer has placed a banger gun there, don't think you can turn it off for the day and they'll still come in, 'cos they won't.

* Try and get other guns to cover nearby fields, wherever possible, alternatively use flags / scarecrows / banger ropes to keep the birds moving.

* NEVER let birds sit on your field or in trees within sound of your gunshot, as every bird that comes to the field will make a beeline for them in preference to your deeks.

* Avoid building a hide like a german bunker with a roof over and a slit to shoot through. These are fine for Bird Watching or Deer Rifling but not pigeon shooting, they're far too restrictive in terms of field of fire, you need to be able to shoot those birds that fly past at any angle at 30 - 40 yards range but have no intention of coming into your pattern. You're there to kill pigeons, not marvel at the flock of blue tits 10 feet from your hide. My preference is to stand in the hide so that I can shoot anything within a 360 degree arc, also try and put your hide against a 5 - 6 foot hedge to give you good all round vision. Keep absolutely still whilst the birds are on their approach drop to the deeks and only show yourself when they're well within range.

* When shooting over rape, it's ESSENTIAL to have movement in your deek pattern, using rotaries & flappers, plus as many static deeks as you can carry. I've had good results recently using 3 rotaries, a flapper and 30 deeks, it's OK if you have good vehicle access near to your hide position.

* Decide on your hide position the day before whilst doing your recce, try and position yourself where the birds are actually feeding, NOT where you hope that they will feed and that's convenient for you. Be in position at this time of year 15 minutes before dawn, the shooting can be fast and furious for the first half hour. Note carefully where the flocks are headed, if necessary leave your hide an hour or so after dawn and put additional banger ropes out on fields where birds are settling.

* Most experienced pigeon shooters should be able to average 50% + kill rate over decoys, if you're not up to that level you need to practice on clays.

 

These are my tips, others may disagree completely or wish to add their own, guys like anser2 and Harnser are worth listening to, they know a thing or two, other guys may say, "Well, I'm quite happy to wander about the fields all day just to shoot 2 or 3 woodies for the pot", well, those guys wouldn't be welcomed by any of the farmers I'm chummy with, they only want serious and committed pigeon shooters on their land . :(

 

Cat.

 

Good post Cat and one i would agree with

[Catamong]

Webber is spot on there, if you type in caps, you're SHOUTING, so don't worry we can all hear you perfectly.

 

A couple of points on your thread:

 

* Wind direction - I've often wondered about this one, as a farmer I once knew (and had the greatest of respect for) had exactly the same theory, i.e. if the wind wasn't right they wouldn't feed on such and such a field. To be honest, I've not found this to be the case, in my opinion they will go to where the food is, irrespective of wind direction.

 

* You say "The birds I shoot live in the City" and "They will never roost in numbers in a wood", I can't understand these statements, please elaborate.?

 

Cat.

[Jim Sarakun]

Webber is spot on there, if you type in caps, you're SHOUTING, so don't worry we can all hear you perfectly.

 

A couple of points on your thread:

 

* Wind direction - I've often wondered about this one, as a farmer I once knew (and had the greatest of respect for) had exactly the same theory, i.e. if the wind wasn't right they wouldn't feed on such and such a field. To be honest, I've not found this to be the case, in my opinion they will go to where the food is, irrespective of wind direction.

 

* You say "The birds I shoot live in the City" and "They will never roost in numbers in a wood", I can't understand these statements, please elaborate.?

 

Cat.

 

THERE ARE SOME LARGE WOODS ON MY SHOOT WHICH COME EVENING TIME, THE PIGEONS DO NOT SEEM TO USE, BUT FLY PAST THEM AND KIP IN THE PARKS, THE BOTANICAL GARDENS, AND ALONG THE RIVER CAM IN THE TREES BY THE RIVER ALL IN THE CITY. THERE IS A HILL, THE GOGS IF YOU KNOW THEM, THAT YOU CAN STAND ON AND WATCH THE BIRDS LIFT UP FROM THE CITY AT DAWN, CIRCLE THEN SPLIT UP INTO SMALLER FLOCKS AND HEAD OUT, HOPEFULLY WHERE I AM.

 

YES THEY DO FEED ON ALL THE FIELDS WITH THE RIGHT FOOD ON, THOUGH I, LIKE YOU, GO OUT TO SHOOT PIGEONS, AND FIND THAT THE LARGER NUMBERS, WHICH I WANT, GRAVITATE TO THE FIELDS UP WIND FROM THE CITY...

[asap]

Hey jim ive got a picture in my head of you now ,Its of eli from Last Of The Summer Wine. I just wish i new how to post a picture of him.

[Jim Sarakun]

Hey jim ive got a picture in my head of you now ,Its of eli from Last Of The Summer Wine. I just wish i new how to post a picture of him.

 

CHEEKY GET. I LOOK LIKE A GREEK GOD....

[daz2202]

 

Here he is

[asap]

Sorry mate only joking, But as silly as it sounds i never realised wind direction had a effect on which fields they feed , i just set up according to wind direction on whatever field i shoot on. Im going to keep an eye on this from now on and see what i can find out

[asap]

Sweet picture daz, im sure thats cambridge in the back ground

[Harnser]

After many years of pigeon shooting i have come to the conclusion that pigeons are proberbly the most contrary of all the animal world . Deer are quite easy to find and shoot ,you know were your game birds are in the coverts round the feed bins or release pens ,creatures of habit . The humble woodie is proberbly the king (and queen ) of survival in the animal world . Yes they are creatures of habit in so much as they need to feed a couple of times a day to survive . Yes they will fly onto the farms to get a feed when they can ,and on a good day you can shoot big bags . What nobody has mentioned so far on this thread is ,they are wood pigeons . They are very capable of making a living in the forests and woodlands without having to expose them selfs to the dangers of open farmland . A lot of the time when feed in the woodlands is plenty full they are quite happy to fly from tree to bush feeding on what is a natural diet to them . I have over the years stood in woodland all day shooting pigeons as they fly around looking for a feed . They will of course take advantage of arable crops where and when available and you as the pigeon shooter need to keep your eyes open for them .

I have allways spent a lot of time on watching the farms that i shoot on ,i know it can be difficult getting the time to sit and watch when you can only get out to shoot at the weekends for a day or two and carnt afford the time to spend a day driving round and watching to see where the birds are feeding and were they want to go to . I can assure you that no time on recce is wasted . Just remember if you have access to woodland and you carnt see any birds feeding the arable dont be frightend to spend some time in the woods . Half a dozen lofted decoys on the edge of the wood or in a clearing can provide some excellent sporting shooting . Harnser .

[mikee]

from a shooting angle only assuming that you're on a field that the pigeons are using and there is a steady trickle of birds to your pattern, i have a few self impose rules that seem to aid making the most of the birds available. 1) dont shoot at packs of more than 15 or so birds, you may get 2 but 13+ are scared away that may have come back later in smaller groups, 2) dont intentionally try to get left and rights, just shoot the first bird that presents well, if another comes across the hide after that shoot him, if not save your ammo and the disturbance. 3) dont shoot at birds that there isnt a better than 75% chance of hitting, 4)only leave the hide when you really have to, to turn belly up birds over or rearrange the pattern deeks etc, dont go out every 4 or 5 to collect them, 5) some may not agree with this one on safety grounds, i dont hold my gun all day i lean it in the corner of the hide in a crook stick and only pick it up when i see birds coming, (i shoot alone and dont generally take a dog), the fatigue of holding a 71/2lb gun all day takes its toll on your ability to shoot well.

 

mikee

[Catamong]

Excellent advice from Mikee, I agree with virtually everything, apart from No 1, I always reckon "a bird on the deck is worth 2 flying away", I tend to find that if they fly past you, they don't come back, they head on somewhere else, it takes a very cool dude not to be tempted to take a couple of shots when they're dropping all around your ears like falling bricks..!! :blink:

 

Like you, I always lean my gun against something in the hide, (mine weighs 8.5 pounds :( ), but a bit of advice to newbies, ALWAYS make sure that there are no twigs or other snags anywhere near the trigger mechanism when the gun is at rest, as there is a possibility that the trigger may snag on something as you grab the gun, then BOOM, you're history, as they say.

 

Cat.

[anser2]

From my observations on my local N Norfolk pigeons is that their habitats vary according to individual locations. I have never noticed this theory of them flying with or against the wind when leaving a roost. The location of the major feeds is more important than wind direction. There is one major roost where the birds always leave along a flightline heading north west , frequently by the thousand. Like wise they trickle back along the same line ( but heading south east ) during the afternoon. The wind may vary the flightline by a couple of hundred yards , but the direction is constant. There is another roost 6 miles to the south where the birds never seem to leave the same way 2 days running no matter what direction the wind. Indeed the main flightline varies during the day. I can have birds arriving from the south on a rape field for an hour or so , only for the birds to start coming in from the north an hour later and perhaps later coming in from the east. It makes setting up your decoy Patten and hide difficult. I also think wind makes the birds restless and perhaps they find it unconfortable sitting on exposed moving twigs in a wind. During these coonditions I often find the pigeons digesting their meal in sheltered hollows in the fields.

 

The most important ingredient for a successful decoy shoot over rape in my area is wind . A nice 20-30 mph wind keeps them moving better. I have a theory that on calm days your shots disturbed a large area and perhaps the pigeons can pinpoint exactly where the shots are coming from a long way off. On a windy day they seem to ignore distant shooting and even quite close birds ( say 200 yards ) sitting in trees , when frightened by the sound of a shot will come into the decoys.

 

I would be surprised if we found a constant pattern of behaviour across the country , suspecting that local conditions of roost sites , feeding grounds and weather affecting their habits in different ways according to location. A good example of this can be found with my local pink footed geese. On my marsh they rarely flight out under the moon with the exception a a couple of days around full ( even then they often spend all night on the roost ). Yet on another marsh 30 miles to the west they flight inland with the faintest glimmer of a moon and indeed I have found them comming inland to feed under a bright starlit night with no moon.

Edited December 13, 2008 by anser2

[anser2]

Jim Sarakun , a way around your problem in having to use captals when typing is to write the post in microsoft word ( or what ever you use ) with what ever size of font you need , spell check and then reduce font size , copy and post. Its what i do as my spelling is noting to shout about.

Edited December 13, 2008 by anser2

[Cranfield]

I am not sure there is any different approach required for shooting large bags over rape, as any other crop.

 

The basic point is you can't shoot large bags if the pigeons are not on the crop, if they are not visiting it in numbers, then no amount of fieldcraft skills will get you a big bag.

"Reconnaissance" is the most important aspect for success and although trumpeted by most of those that give advice, it is usually ignored.

Also, use that reconnaissance to "know" your permissions.

There are certain fields that the birds favour no matter what edible crop is planted there, then there are always the flight lines to work out and the weather conditions to take into account.

 

So many shooters I know find their field, put their hide in a comfortable place (not too far from the transport), put out a "horseshoe" of decoys, fire up the rotary and sit back and wait for the pigeons to come.

When they don't, its put down as a bad day.

With a bit of preparation it could have been an excellent day.

 

Once you find the birds, calculate the best hide placement spot, then its down to decoy layout and your shooting expertise.

Another important thing is to be flexible, if after some time you realise your hide is 100 yards off line, then move it.

If birds don't seem to like the decoy layout, then change it.

If things go quiet, then pack up and drive round your permission to see if they are somewhere else.

Also pick up dead birds when you can, its surprising how just one upside down bird can spook pigeons from a distance.

 

I agree with a lot others have posted, especially that pigeon behaviour can be a very regional thing, but I don't subscribe to a lot of the popular thoughts, such as;

Don't shoot lone birds as they could be "scouts" for a bigger group.

Don't shoot at large flocks as they won't come back.

Don't start too early, let the birds have a feed first.

Don't shoot passing birds (if any bird is in range - shoot it)

Plus a few other I probably have forgotten.

 

None of us know it all, but we do not what has worked (and still does) for us.

[Catamong]

I agree with a lot others have posted, especially that pigeon behaviour can be a very regional thing, but I don't subscribe to a lot of the popular thoughts, such as;

Don't shoot lone birds as they could be "scouts" for a bigger group.

Don't shoot at large flocks as they won't come back.

Don't start too early, let the birds have a feed first.

Don't shoot passing birds (if any bird is in range - shoot it)

Plus a few other I probably have forgotten.

 

Cranners is talking good sense here, (for a change), I agree with everything he says.

 

Cat.

[6shot]

its great for me when i do have a 50 plus day on rape.it dont happen very offten :look:

 

.but if we could do it every time we went out would that not make it a litle bit pointless.

 

i read loads of great tips on here and think thats great aswell.but sometimes when i go out shooting pigeons and have a of day it just make me more detemined for the next time and thats 1 reason i use pigeon watch.

[mikee]

the reason i dont shoot at big groups is on my main permission there are 27 fields of rape this year some only 2-3 acres and some 50-60 acres dotted around the estate in 4 blocks from 60-300 acres, generally the majority seem to flock together but there are always smaller groups using other fields and flighting around the area but sooner or later they come to my chosen field, i have found that if i continually shoot at large groups the number of birds coming to me tends to dry up quicker than if i only shoot at small lots. I do shoot at passing birds not just those coming to the coys, but i dont take difficult shots, some may not agree with this but i'm there to shoot pigeons, if a bird lands in a nearby sitty tree i'll leave him until a bird comes to the coys but the first one i shoot will be the sitter then the flying bird if it still presents a reasonable chance.

 

mikee