Starlings everywhere! Ultimate screw-up (again)

[only1harry]

The Starlings can't stay away from my property.  I finally found the cat food I was using last year (Meow Mix Seafood Medley) but in a smaller bag and they can't have enough of it.  It also helps that I have set up downstairs now and shoot from 10ft inside the room through a very small opening in the blinds.  I have already put 1 half hole on the bilind on the left but still hit the Stalring yesterday(!), hehehe.  Anyway, I have filled the bowl 3x already and have not been able to take a shot.  By the time I set up the bipod deep into the room away from the window and get into position, 20-25 Starlings have eaten almost everything and are gone.  Only 1 or 2 will remain for a few more seconds walking around.  So actually I did take 2 shots this morning.  Turns out there was no magazine in the 850!!

Yesterday I was shooting with an empty magazine and today with no magazine in the gun!  Man, I 'm really bad.  Sucks getting old  BTW, the Starlings are up on the trees as I am typing this waiting for me to go out and put more catfood in the bowl..

Edit:
Update:  Got one after I filled the bowl again.  Last pic shows the flight path of the pellet before it slammed into the middle of the body.  This another bleeder.  Kind of unusual.  Many times I can't tell where they even get hit, but with .22 you can see or find the entry or exit wound better than with .177, if you look carefully.

[ShadowShot]

Get a feeder and a big bag.
Tie a string to the dispenser,
run iit back through the window and
have a live resettable target.

[only1harry]

Thanks Paul!  It's funny you mentioned this type of feeder because I went to 2 very large pet stores and didn't see it there.  I had not thought of tieing a string to it though and do it remotely.  Didn't even know it was possible.  Thanks for that tip!  It looks like I'll be spending a lot of $ on cat food this winter

Can get this feeder on line?  Have you used it with birds? thanks again.

[Mebits]

BTW, My butcher just sold me about 10 lbs of suet again for $0.99. I actually bit the bullet and carved it up into useable pieces and froze half of it. I don't think I can go through enough fast enough before it goes rancid (which the birds don't mind, but I do).

It's so cheap, however, that you can just put it out and not care if the critters eat what's left over night.

M

[Furseeker]

Stay on em Harry. We have had some pretty mild weather here in Utah as of late and it gives the birds more feeding options. So they have abandoned my yard completely. I'll be looking forward to some pictures.
P.S. Just a friendly reminder, load the gun, load the gun, load the gun.

[only1harry]

Mark, I paid 59 cents/pound at the Supermarket a couple of weeks ago so it wasn't such a bargain for me.  Besides, the little song birds ate all the ice cube sized pieces.  The Starlings ignored them and went for the cat food, so I think I am done with the suet for now anyway  It was a lot of work too..

Dave:  I know there is something I need to do before I shoot at Starlings.. what was it again?  hehehe  

[Mebits]

If you need more help, I can loan you my brad nailer (san brads, of course!)

LOL!

[only1harry]

After I filled the bowl it only took about 15-20min. before they arrived.  This time I was ready and took one out.  I waited another 30+min. but the rest never came back.  I think they headed for the hills  Actually 1 Starling came back and it would grab 1 piece of catfood very fast and fly away.  They are smart.  This one figured out if it stays more than a couple of secs it risks ending up like its buddies so he flies in and grabs a piece very fast.  As soon as it's at the tip of its beak it takes off without wasting any time.  I hope they don't all start doing that now. That would be something.  I had absolutely no shot.  This Starling did it lighting fast, almost like diving into the bowl and taking off.

Anyway, the one I got - distance 20-21yds.  In the last pic you can see the flight path of the pellet ripping through the wing before hitting the middle of the body.  This was another bleeder.  Too many this year.. kind of weird..  Last year most of the time I could hardly tell where I hit them, and I was using the 850 then too with the same ammo - CPHP.

Not sure if I 'll get another today because we are heading out to enjoy the sun a little even though it's very cold.  It doesn't look like they are coming back any time soon anyway.  It's been an hour now and nothing.  The cat food is still there.  Too bad I wasted another 2 shots this morning shooting nothing but air out of the gun.. literally  It seems like their limit is 3 or 4 attempts at their life, and then are reluctant to come back  I know they 'll be back later in the afternoon after 3pm but I probably won't be around.

[Mebits]

Finally! Are you shooting .22 at those guys (I can't remember, sorry)?

I got one today, but that was it. They're getting a bit nervous. He was a lone bird. Side shot. He actually flew up and over the fence, but then fell dead 20' from the poi. That's why I don't like side shots, even good ones.

Anyway, tomorrow may bring some more action, however. I put down more bread along with the suet and that's a big attractant. There are a lot of starlings in the neighborhood. Apparently there's 3 flocks. The primary flock has been trimmed back a lot, and the secondary has lost a few too, but the third is huge. There were over 50 birds in the garden on Friday. The Wife, who sometimes squicks out over the starling blood lust, said, "Oh. My. God...they're like rats! Honey, kill some of those birds..."

[1377x]

once again too bad about the magazine
but good shooting
maybe you should paint the mag a hi vis color so you will know if its in or not wont help on an empty mag though.HEHEHE

[dk1677]

Nice shooting Harry! ( I wont comment on the memory LOL)

[only1harry]

Thanks guys.

Mark:  
I usually take broadside shots because that's all I can take most of the time.  They fly in from either the left or right direction and that's where they are facing when they land on the bowl or inside it.  They almost never face me (towards the house).  If anything they may face away from me (the woods/trees for easy escape to the trees), so I have shot them in the back too  I prefer frontal shots but I 'll get them anyway I can.  At 20yds I am confident I can hit them every time so I don't worry about them going anywhere after being hit.  Broadside shots also destroy their wings so they can't fly.  In many of my pics you may see a wing that looks broken or sticks out.  Even if they don't die from that, they are stunned for a few seconds and don't walk or run right away like other birds.  That gives me time to pull the bolt & reload (fast - since the 850 is multi-shot) and I may take another shot, if I see them get on their feet or are still alive 5-10secs later.  I had to do it once or twice, but the .22 pellet goes through them no matter where I shoot them.  I don't think I have ever lost a Starling after hitting it.  Last year one circled around over my head after being hit.  I was outside shooting off-hand so I must 've been off a little.  That's when they were not afraid of me as much  Anyway it would lose altitute with every circle.  After circling 6-7 times it landed just a few feet away from me.  I actually had to move out of the way because I didn't want it landing on me, hehe.  It expired a few secs later.  I am trying to recall a time I have lost one but can't.  I took a couple with my Diana 36 .177 too and they died instantly.  
I have however lost a couple of Grackles after I hit them.  They are much tougher birds and know what to do when they get hit and can't fly.  They run into my neighbor's bushes right away or get inside a thorny bush.  That's to be expected though..  "lose" a bird here and there.  They 're dead anyway.  They 'll be lunch for a cat or some night predator.  They can't escape a skunk sniffing around..  
One out 15-20 Grackles is odds I can live with, but so far I 've had pretty good luck with Starlings.  They are more fragile than Grackles (or Black birds).  The smaller they are, they faster they go down.

[Furseeker]

Harry I had a similar situation happen to me today, it was like this. I had all my guns loaded but the dang birds forgot to show up.

[longislandhunter]

Good shootin Harry on that yellow beak, really nice pic too......

I'm gonna have to get me some of that specific brand of cat food.  

Jeff

[jake]

good shooting harry!