Since Ed's on the trail

[only1harry]

Chewing on your shed?  Get them all!!  hehehe

I had 4 of them on my property today, 2 in the back and 2 in the front.  I watched them for about 20min. as they were making their way diagonally to the same spot towards the side of the house coming from the front and the back.  They seem to be 2 different pairs of nutters because when they got within 25ft or so of each other, they stared at each other for about a minute, and then the bigger one that had come from the back gave a small chase to the other 2 that retreated quickly.  But so did the 2 in the back after that quick launch at them.  It was pretty funny.  They avoid contact and altercations.  They seem to be smart enough to avoid getting injured so it was like a mutual decision.  You go your way we 'll go ours.  The 2 retreated into my trees in the back yard where they came from and the other 2 ran across the street to the neighbor's.  I know they came down from up the street and the other 2 were the resident ones from my oak tree.  The thought did cross my mind to take one out since they seem to be abundant now.  I had counted 5 on my property a couple of days ago so I walked toward the 850 .22 but then I remembered I had to load a fresh CO2 cylinder and just let it go.  The longer I put off putting a new CO2 bottle in, the longer I can postpone taking them out of season.  I 'm also afraid they may have young ones in the nest so I don't feel bad better just leaving them alone for now.  It be interesting to see what it looks like around here in the summer time if the young ones start coming out.  

The crows are gone.  They don't stay around here all year round but the weird thing is a big raven has moved in and is hanging around a neighbor's tree 2 houses down.  I see it almost every morning on top of that 70-80ft tall tree.  It flies directly over my property or house a few times throughout the day.  I 'd say it's about 40-50% larger than the common crow that we get up here.  I have no idea what the laws are on the ravens.  I only see crow in my NY state small-game hunting guide & regulations.

Tim:  We have similar laws in NY state.  If you think animals or birds are acting as a pest and destroying personal property or crops, you have the right to take them out even during the out-of-season as long as you possess a valid hunting license.  The only law I don't like is the one that says if you shoot something on private property that's not yours, you better have written permission from the property owner :(  I don't like this law because there is a very large oak tree that seperates my property and one of the neighbor's.  Half the tree belongs to me and the other half is on his property (go figure).  If I shoot something on that tree (there 's plenty to shoot on that one all the time), I can't be sure sometimes where it will fall, his property or mine.. and he is not a big proponent of me shooting things in my back yard to begin with..

[Timmyj1959@yahoo.com]

The Oak Tree is "half on/half off",Hmmmm,As the crow drops?? Welcome to the "gray" side!LOL! Its a tough call. Just funnin Harry,I have neighbors too for now. When I complete my new house,ANYTHING GOES!! LOL! On a brighter note, my new 350 has 5 "confirmed" kills!! Not even sighted in yet (open sights) I had to hold over a tick. 5 snapping turtles are missing most of thier heads! I had GREAT fun today! They are so stupid, they will give you many follow up shots! By the end of the day,resting on my truck mirror,I am dialed in w/open sights& Crow Mags. I swear Harry I think some of my shots were pushing 50 yrds. (hard to judge distance across water). I am so much in love w/ my new 350 even though most will "beat me" cause it is 177 cal. ,,It spits  Crow Mags (8. & Silver Arrows (11.5) like no other airgun I have ever owned. (open sights). Cant wait to round up a decent mount to put some "Glass" on her! Sorry about the Bla,Bla, guys,Tim.

[only1harry]

That's funny about the turtles!  Don't you mean "they are so slow"?  Of course they 'll give you many follow up shots because it takes them an hour to move 12ft  :-)   Just kidding..  I have not seen a turtle around in years.  Does the 350 penetrate their hard shell?  I wouldn't mind having something like those to shoot at in the off-season :)  I know what you mean about water.  It's much harder to judge distance on water and across to the other side.  Do you have the OEM spring in yours or a JM one?

[Timmyj1959@yahoo.com]

Harry,Tim here. Follow up shots? These guys are in the lake,& only show there heads above water,If they are spooked,they dive down in an instant! I would not think anything other than a direct head shot would be appropriate.(Im shure the 350 would have no problem going thru the shell) It was very obvious when I had a "confirmed kill",, the water is clear& you could see the "perp." sinking to the bottom, as opposed to swimming off. Man that was great fun! Today I painstaikenly mounted "glass" on my new 350 Its doing great!! Cant wait to get back to the pond!! In the meantime,today while I was on the Ph. W Harv., I noticed the "carpenter" bees are boring new holes in my porch rafters,time to get out my XX,s,Great fun!! Man I forgot about that! The fun never ends for us dedicated airgunners,its year round!! Tim.

[shadow]

Turtles also like to sun themselves on a warm rock like most reptile type critter's so keep the peeper's open for afternoon sunner's and take em on the snooze:)..........just a tidbit from snaggin em off the rock's and cookin and em by sunset, shell and all, makes a great roaster:) Ed