My hide was in the edge of standing corn and I put 20 feeding decoys 20-30 yards out in a freshly bailed hay field. I took a length of bamboo with a flocked full-body decoy on top and stuck it 5 yards to my right, on the same edge row of the corn as my hide. Like a perched sentry. Electronic caller stashed in with the field decoys. Sun at my back, tank netting covering my hide.
Crows that came from the front were easily seen. They came straight in, some wheels down. Here’s the thing. Sometimes crows came from behind, and I never knew it until they squawked at the sentry, like they were strafing it to ? knock it off the perch? This happened 4 times. A loud squawk or scream, one even ticked the decoy. None survived the attack but what are they trying to accomplish? The crows that came from the front didn’t go after the sentry decoy. Maybe because the blasting kept them away, or because the sentry was facing them. The crows that came from behind were looking at the back of the decoy. What are they doing, exerting dominance? Territorial? They were bigger crows. Don’t misunderstand, I liked it. I just wonder why they were doing that strafing move and maybe in future hunts I can incorporate a set that produces the same conditions. Those “going away Texas heart shots” were lethal. Crow dusters. Here’s a few pics.
By the looks of things, you had everything just about perfect! You may consider moving your "sentry bird" decoy a little further out, as being 5 yards away, any movement in the hide will spook the birds who are looking at the decoy.
The incoming birds growling as they come over is just what they do to announce their arrival. It's fun to hear and nice to have a heads-up, but not all incomers will do it. If there is reason to suspect a setup, approaching birds will be very quiet or will spook and run.
Congratulations on a great set-up. Now do you have any pictures on the TBC or Kill Zone area? Good post!
Demi
__________________
The man who thinks he can, and the man who thinks he can’t are both right.
Thanks for the hunt report and pictures! I’m not sure what the birds were doing with your sentry but I don’t argue with success! 100% kill rate on those types of dive-bombers is pretty good. A well placed sentry is a good addition to any set up.
Also, good job not shooting your own decoy on those types of close encounters. I know a fella named Jason that did that once, his annihilated & shot ridden decoy is still hanging in his workshop.
I don't know what those crows from behind were doing either, but it sounds like they were agitated about something. Were you using a distress sound at the time? Often, that gets them low and growling on the way in.
Good to see somebody at it. Thanks for the pictures and report.
This seems like a thing, that for some reason crows in my region will come at what I call a sentry decoy. I had the same scene repeat yesterday morning. Hide in the edge of standing corn, decoys out front in cut field and a single decoy on a bamboo stick in the corn just tassel height, 30’ to my right. Crows came at this sentry crow. If they came from the front across the open field they would fly over the decoy spread and head for the sentry. If they came from behind, from over the standing corn, they would bark and dip down like they wanted to flush the sentry off the stick. The crows that came from the front never barked, likely because they were drowned out by the sound of a Beretta. But from the back they all barked. Startled me a little when it happens, but not so bad that the crows will ever get to brag about it.
From what you guys say, what I’ve read and what I’ve witnessed, it seems like the crows are just saying hi or announcing their arrival. Maybe exerting dominance.
What a set up. Decoy on a stick.
Mr. Randy - I had an electronic caller out in the open field with the decoys, playing a feeding or gathering type of call. I think this manufacturer calls it “Sunrise crows”. Every so often, while reloading and the remaining crows in the air are heading away, I’ll hit a distress call. Most times it will bring one or two back.
When I set up my blind, I look for something to shield my backside from view. Typically it will be a row of trees and many times they are tall trees. In front of the trees will be my blind and 20-25 yards in front of the blind will be the decoys, very similar to what you described. Unlike your crow-on-a-stick trick, I will place 3-4 sentry decoys in trees nearby.
With this setup and like what you describe, incoming crows from the decoy side don't growl or announce themselves nearly as much as those incoming over the trees. I believe they may be surprised to see the decoys so close as they clear the trees (although they are coming in to our calling and expect to see feeding birds), thus the growling calls.
With my sentry birds in trees, incoming crows (from any direction) rarely swoop on them. In fact, they sometimes light in nearby branches.
Still not a Crow Savant, so this is only an educated guess. Maybe I'm overthinking things, but I hope it helps.
Demi
__________________
The man who thinks he can, and the man who thinks he can’t are both right.
