newbie to website and to crow hunting. I have been trying these birds for a couple years now with some success, but still have alot to learn. This morning we had a number of birds land 100 yards up in a tree and spent 10 minutes or so talking back and forth only to watch them fly off in the other direction. Is hard calling or soft calls better in that situation?
Neither will work in that situation. They will either commit or they know something is out of place and wont come within range. Are you hidden well with good calling techniques? If the answer to those questions is yes, then you are hunting birds that have seen your game before. I that case you are not going to kill very many.
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"If money can fix it, it ain't broke" The great theologian and my crow hunting partner AW.
we were hidden pretty well in a grown over field, I tried matching him call for call not being to overpowering ,another similar situation we tried the caller with the same result. I am pretty sure these birds are not getting hunted hard if at all.
I am pretty sure these birds are not getting hunted hard if at all.
You'd be suprised how many people actually do "hunt" crows. I thought I was about the only crow hunter in this area. (The shops around here do NOT carry crow calls, crow decoys, etc.) Come to find out in casual conversations that there are others "hunting" crows. I now figure there are about 12 guys in this area alone. Some have foxpros, some have cheap 25$ electronic callers, some have decoys, etc.
the end of my story........you got yourself some educated crows !!
brdhntr: If you are hidden well enough..and often that is a big "if" and there is nothing suspicious about the area you are in (truck parked too close to your setup for example) and make reasonable "crow sounds"... virgin or green birds will come a-running...almost always! Since they are not doing this for you and if you meet the above requirments... I fully agree with the others... you have educated birds. Forget this group of birds, go find some fresh ones.
Yes to decoys, about 3 or 4 in trees(abouy 16 feet up, as high as I can get them) some on the ground, and buster doing his thing. Could be they are hunted, I know the property gets poached pretty hard for deer so I guess its possible. Even the birds passing through seemed to be on a mission and not give us a second look.
Yes to decoys, about 3 or 4 in trees(abouy 16 feet up, as high as I can get them) some on the ground, and buster doing his thing. Could be they are hunted, I know the property gets poached pretty hard for deer so I guess its possible. Even the birds passing through seemed to be on a mission and not give us a second look.
Those are educated birds without a doubt. And if they weren't, they are now. As Skip said, need to find some new birds.
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"If money can fix it, it ain't broke" The great theologian and my crow hunting partner AW.
I am pretty sure these birds are not getting hunted hard if at all.
You'd be suprised how many people actually do "hunt" crows. I thought I was about the only crow hunter in this area. (The shops around here do NOT carry crow calls, crow decoys, etc.) Come to find out in casual conversations that there are others "hunting" crows. I now figure there are about 12 guys in this area alone. Some have foxpros, some have cheap 25$ electronic callers, some have decoys, etc.
the end of my story........you got yourself some educated crows !!
Pat
Too many guys out there now with electronic callers. Outfits like Cabelas are putting lots of entry market units on sale and they are being snapped up like crazy.
I've notice this with varmints such as coyotes. One has to go several hours away from any major city now to get yotes to react like yotes used to. Lots of coyote/preditor hunting type TV shows these days on the outdoor channels are IMO driving this rage. Plenty of "duffers" out there shooting few and educating many.
Nobody up here hunts crows and I like that! I say little to people I know that may be remotely interested and I certainly don't advertize. It does not take a lot of crow hunters in a region to educate masses of crows, more so if they know little of what to properly do. I cringe to think of the day I see a crow shooting TV production.
Ted
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Life's tough... It's even tougher if you're stupid. John Wayne
Agreed. Too many people giving yote hunting a try and in the process are educating them. I too cringe about seeing a crow hunting show on the tube. Saw Bob on a show getting interviewed and prayed no one was watching. Sorry Bob.
I too think you have educated crows your dealing with. I am by no means an expert but my next move would be to run owl or hawk sounds only, no crow sounds, and see if they move in to investigate. Next move would be to another county to hunt.
Find some new birds, wait a couple weeks, then comeback and try run and gun on this flock. Maybe you could pick off a few that come to investigate. Sometimes, IMO decoys can have an adverse effect if others are hunting the same birds. You are facing the challenge we all see as the season goes on. Resident flocks that are hunted relentlessly all season long. They are not only educated they are downright paranoid and that gives them a sixth sense to just move past your setup. Also sometimes not calling at all can work as well, just hide well and let them investigate on their own. It is tough to hear birds and call sparingly, but sometimes that is what it takes. If you use decoys again on these birds change your setup, such as less/more decoys and at least move 1/8-1/4 mile from where you tried before. Good Luck!!
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whatever i'm doing i'm thinking about crow hunting
Try not using Crow calls and decoys. Change to Predator calling(Rabbit or anything distressed) with a Mojo Critter. I always have crows calling for Preds.
I suppose those overcast days do make it look like the black & white film footage of the World War 2 era.
In about another 3 to 4 weeks you should see some crows in your neck of the woods. You know everyone just assumes that all the crows are gun shy that head back to Ontario and Saskatchewan. Over the past 20 years I have found areas where the crows have never heard a crow call and I'm quite sure there are many more areas that I don't know about. So when the crows get to Ontario you can greet the ones that have never been touched yet!
Ted, the photo above is a photo of my old friend Jerry Byroade. Here he is with a combination of fish crows and common crows together. Thats his 20 gauge model 12 in the photo.
Bob A.
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To listen to this radio talk show go to episode 12, Bob Aronsohn
Something that has worked for us when you have educated crows that hang up out of range is to continue calling them for a bit then stop but stay in your blind. I have had the crow come to investigate five, or even 10 minutes after I stopped calling!
I suppose those overcast days do make it look like the black & white film footage of the World War 2 era.
In about another 3 to 4 weeks you should see some crows in your neck of the woods. You know everyone just assumes that all the crows are gun shy that head back to Ontario and Saskatchewan. Over the past 20 years I have found areas where the crows have never heard a crow call and I'm quite sure there are many more areas that I don't know about. So when the crows get to Ontario you can greet the ones that have never been touched yet!
Nice photo of your pal Jerry there with a good mornings work. Bob spring crows up here can be tough at times. Lack of cover is a big factor. Also the first crows to arrive in huntable numbers usually come north in pairs. Bigger kills are hard to muster up. I would say 20-25 per morning would be a good spring bag for me.
Fall crows are in large feeding concentrations that stay for a few weeks. A decent kill for one hunter would be in the range of 50 birds or so. I was doing this on a regular basis last September/October as long as I didn't have my young son in tow.
Ted
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Life's tough... It's even tougher if you're stupid. John Wayne
It could possibly be a volume problem. If you are hunting educated birds, Then it's not likely that you can solve the problem. I've done some pretty out of the box things to kill those birds. If you are using an E=caller. DON'T point the speaker up or at the sky. Point it at a glancing angle towards the ground. Your call won't echo near as bad and will sound more natural. I have hidden as far as 200 yards from my spread to kill those smart bandits that always lite in the tallest tree farthest away. Once I sent my son to hide under one of those trees. He did not want to go at first but after the 20th bird he stayed and enjoyed it. The birds you are hunting have been hunted. They very well could have been shot 3 or 4 hundred miles up north. M12 could have burnt em way before you had the chance. Keep the attitude that all birds have been hunted and you will naturaly make better hides and smarter sets. It's the little things that make a big difference
Crows have earned the name"the smartest things on wings"for a reason.When dealing with educated birds,things get really tuff to get them to finish.Sometimes that first pass at 40 to 45 yds is all you are going to get.We all like the screamers that come rollin in at 20yds or even less,but late season birds sometimes just don't commit.Take that first pass shot if that's what you have.You can roll them birds out with a good load of 6's or 7.5's with a Lt. Mod or Modified choke. Good Luck,or find some dumber birds,and sometimes that is easier said than done as most seasons begin to wind down.
I have to ask if you are using a mouth call or E-Caller? If a mouth caller - and you say you are new to crow hunting is why I suggest this - I wonder if you are doing what I used to do when I 1st tried crows years ago with a mouth call. I always heard the CAW CAW CAW sound around the farm and so I figured it would call some in. It did always get responses from crows in the area but EVERY time they would land 100 or so yards out and refuse to come any closer. Later when I figured out that it was an alarm sound that I was making, I understood what was going on. :) I went with an E-Caller to remedy my lack of talent!
