Anybody have the answer to why a white bed sheet will flair crows??? I haven't tried it with my layout but it rarely works in the snow. Must be a different color that I'm not seeing????? any input???
The sheets that we tried were the cheapest we could find and the problem I saw ( from looking off a ledge down at my buddy) was the silluet under the sheet... mind you I've just started crow hunting so we dug out the snow around us and card board then the sheet... so no human shapes... worked good but a little cold lol
i think you can make them serviceable by trying to cover the sheets with a light amount of snow to break up the outline; assuming you have them laying on the ground. just like trying to add natural material to a cloth blind or using stubble to hide a layout blind, etc.
i suspect that the birds can see some version of UV that we don't just like waterfowl, big game. this last February/March I was experimenting with some .357 reloads for expansion/penetration by shooting jugs of water. i must of accumulated 50 jugs and i had a number of the big ones that originally held laundry detergent. they were labelled "free and clear"---no dyes or perfumes. however they must have one heck of a brigtener incorporated into them. when they were shot the water would spray all over the snow and it would turn the snow a brilliant white color that didn't come close to matching the actual snow.
i don't worry about what can be seen in the UV spectrum when hunting crows but i wouldnt be surprised that a white sheet might be seen as a very distinct and unnatural square pattern to an overhead crow if it isn't naturally camoflagued. then again its just a speculation; maybe you just have some birds that have already been hunted hard and the sheet has nothing to do with the flaring
My take..... is the uv highlighter that is used in their production prior to sale. Also the uv highlighter that is in ordinary detergent.
Try washing with bleach and no soap/detergent. Or try using a flat white spray paint and dust the white sheets with it. I too have noticed that crows flair from whites sheets. Also noticed that they flair from whites my friend has just washed......
P.S. I don't have white camo..... so I hide in blinds made on site or I hide out of sight until it is too late for them (like standing in an irrigation ditch that has alders growing along the side of it. This is done in the dead of winter so the ice holds me up and I don't get wet.) or hide among the evergreens with either shadowgrass camo or max4 camo......
If you look at them, especially if they have been bleached they will have a bluish tint to them which stands out in the snow. That why we don't bleach our snow covers for our goose hunting layout blinds.
The problem with sheets unless you wash with a UV killer like Sportwash , they glow like a neon bulb and worse if they get wet. Try to find some bulk Tyvek. It matches the snow and is lightweight and most stains can be wiped off with a wet rag, as long as you don't let it sit too long.
I don't use white sheets when I hunt in the snow, I use white sweat pants and sweat shirt. I bought them really big so they can fit over my other clothes that keep me warm. It seems to work for me. Also, I have a little cover to conceal my movement. Just my 2 cents.
Use old dirty sheets as snow is not actually white. Same stands for winter white garments be it for fur shooting,crows or whatever. Double fold sheets and use a stapler to fasten them tightly trees or wood frame. Make sure ends dont flap in the wind as well.
Ted
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I just cut a hole in the middle of the sheet and put it on me like a poncho, and then hide. Also, made some over-sized full-arm length gloves that go over my coat sleeves. I hunt in the snow most of the time here.
I think a common misconception is dressing in white somewhat eliminates the need for a good blind. I do not agree.
On a recent crow hunt, another group of hunters set up about 350 yards from me in a treeline. They had no blinds but were wearing white suits. I could spot their white silhouettes against the dark treeline backdrop pretty easily even from that distance.
I'll take the crow blind over fancy snow camo any day. In a good blind I can wear ordinary camo without any problems. I've got a white mesh camo tarp that makes nice walls for a winter blind but trying to use it without brushing it in is nearly a waste of time. We've had decent luck laying under it in the late goose season but even then it still needs snow thrown on top
I'm a far better coyote hunter than crow hunter and a long time ago I concluded that wearing pure white was generally not an ideal solution for any concealment
I have used sheets in the past. I cut a hole and used it like a poncho. I also used some flat black paint to make a bit of a camo type pattern, my camo coat sleeves were somewhat exposed, but I always stood in some brush or short trees for cover. It blended good as it was not just a white blob.
I have sine bought a couple different versions of snow camo which I use now.
Definitely agree about still needing a good blind. That's what I meant when I said, "...and then hide." White camo alone doesn't help any more than dark camo alone in a dark background. My problem in the snow is that a really good blind, well-brushed in still stands out against all the snow that we have here in Upstate NY. It's a challenge, but still fun.
When I first started, I thought that a tyvek painter's drop cloth painted with a few brown/tan lines would work as a blind propped up in standing brown corn in the winter. You would think that it was pretty good. That's when I really began to understand how crows are just too smart for that!
I have never seen where anyone can suddenly throw up a blind and expect the crows not to notice. This probably works with migrants never being in your area before but not the locals. I have seen where this dummy threw up a burlap blind all rectangular and you could see it from the moon. I don't think he ever got many locals..in fact they stayed hundreds of yards away eating by the road trying to warn new arrivals to forget that little area with all the "stiff' crows...all 12 of them (nice shiny plastic decoys they watched him stick out even!)!
The trick is to leave your blind out so that everything is familiar with it and don't view it with suspicion. You wouldn't ignore a hammer on your thumb now would you?
Think of it this way; years ago farmers put out "scarecrows' which worked maybe the first week but after you ever see those cartoons with the crow sittng on the scarecrows' shoulder? Based on fact; the scarecrows got familiar and perceived as nO threat! Are you trying to scare them or attract them?
I find even conspicuous blinds placed in snow conditions will work well on crows. I have no problem getting birds within 20 yards of the attached photo.
We all probably look for different things for what we consider a perfect hide. I've got a handful of blinds that are basically permanent fixtures and need little work each year. Imagine the crows are use to seeing them each day. But that is just a small % of birds. i think a good blind can be set up with some work and it'll bring in just as many crows plus you can put it where needed. Sometimes the birds aren't exactly working the permanent blind and there is no easy moving it 100 yards for better gunning. And to be real blunt I'm not a fan of too many permanent fixtures as it makes it too damn easy for the rest of you to see where I've been hunting.
In the past I might have used a blind like M12shooters. I really like the decoys in the tree. These day it would be unlikely for me to pick such a spot due to the tree line. I have little use for having trees above me unless there are no other options. Just limits range of shooting too much.
Here is a pretty good example of a blind put up in the middle of the road, not a well used one I might add. It was a wet year and I wanted firm footing not being stuck in the mud where you can't turn because your feet are stuck in the mud! This photo was taken in 2011 and we shot 190 odd crows in that spot in roughly 3 hours.
Well, M12, BigBB, and Bob -- this is encouraging to me. I'm on the right track. My issues are probably more to do with bird numbers, movement, educated birds, and crappy shooting. Hahahaha. That's why Im forever a "Rook-ie."
In the past I might have used a blind like M12shooters. I really like the decoys in the tree. These day it would be unlikely for me to pick such a spot due to the tree line. I have little use for having trees above me unless there are no other options. Just limits range of shooting too much.
BBB, I must almost fully agree with your comment pertaining to setting up an ambush point in trees. But, all rules have exceptions and here I feel hedgerows as depicted in the attachments to be very deadly on the crows with the right wind and conditions.
M-12 said: "BBB, I must almost fully agree with your comment pertaining to setting up an ambush point in trees. But, all rules have exceptions and here I feel hedgerows as depicted in the attachments to be very deadly on the crows with the right wind and conditions."
The photo you show is in my mind a near-perfect setup; natural cover augmented by a blind with vast approaches where the bandits must commit to you and have no place to hide above--only to die!
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"Arms are the only true badges of liberty. The possession of arms is the distinction of a free man from a slave." -- Andrew Fletcher 1698
You gotta go with what is available. sometimes we wish for something else but if we wait for things to be perfect we probably wouldnt hunt all that much.
