3.5 in turkey loads, you need near elephant gun recoil to shoot a bird. Who need shoulders?
Yeah, the recoil is pretty brutal. Not something one would want to take to the trap range. I've shot a total of two 3.5" turkey load shells to pattern. Not for me.
Around our place where we live in the country, we are ground zero for nesting hens. We live up on a west facing ridge. They like that situation so they can leave their eggs for a bit with the sun keeping them warm while they go out and feed. In 35 years of living there, it's the same situation year after year, so I think I have a handle on our local population anyway. I've actually found the nests after it's been robbed by ground predators. Egg shells scattered about.
We live in an area where there are thousands of acres with no hunting, so masses of hunters didn't cause the decline in our turkey numbers to where only mature hens were seen for a couple of years with zero poults.
It has to be nest robbers. Like you, I've been trapping our area for years but slacked off for several years. Those same years is when the population started its decline.
Started trapping a couple years ago pretty heavy and now we are seeing an increase in numbers and poults.
I'm sure there may be more underlying reasons, as one person can't make a change in that many acres, but those hens around our place may be the ones that are getting broods now.
I've said it before, that I think the ODW should put on a trial program of putting a bounty on raccoons especially. $1 a tail. Trappers would come out of the woodwork to get that buck.
I agree with you. The fur market is horrible for coons and such, I know a few fur buyers who’ll pay a buck (I think) for coon skulls and the male’s “bone”.
I know one of them has put on a nest robbers tourney to not only get rid of nest robbers but to collect some skulls and peters.
I know one of them has put on a nest robbers tourney to not only get rid of nest robbers but to collect some skulls and peters.
Have to be careful, can be a perverse incentive like the cobra effect an example of one https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Hanoi_Rat_Massacre
Interesting info. Back in those days, one cent was a pretty good bounty.
I don't see many folks though trying to hold down a raccoon and nip off its tail unless they are in a Kevlar suit.
Good find, I was trying to find that and was thinking it was in India.
That was just one example, the name cobra effect comes from a British bounty on cobras in India. Initially numbers went down. Then people decided to breed cobras for the bounty,.. or so the story goes.
Just poop at their gate.
Range and pattern on my prospective 2-12ga shotguns for turkey today. My Remington 870 had a EF Turkey choke. My Browning Maxus was sporting a standard full choke. Both using the same 2 3/4” turkey load ammo. The cardboard targets are about 3’ square.
What I learned with just 4 shots. 2 3/4” is plenty. I could possibly take one at 60 yds but I probably should wait for a 30 yd shot. I need to concentrate on not jerking the trigger. Can you spot the 4th shot where I concentrated on preeessssss the trigger.
What I learned with just 4 shots. 2 3/4” is plenty. I could possibly take one at 60 yds but I probably should wait for a 30 yd shot. I need to concentrate on not jerking the trigger. Can you spot the 4th shot where I concentrated on preeessssss the trigger.
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