Taking Advantage of What’s Left
We sat in the dark, listening carefully for any noise to let us know our target creatures were getting close. Years of shooting a gun without hearing protection has curtailed my hearing, but when I heard my hunting buddy say, “I just heard them,” I walked out quickly and turned on the H.S. Undertaker electronic call.
After returning to my makeshift blind of stacked dead brush, I settled in. That’s when I saw the crows heading across the field, winging in our direction. They were higher than I would have liked, but these were not the foolish birds that come along later. The first crows to appear in the morning are affectionately called “biker birds” by my hunting group. They all come in at once and are the more seasoned and tougher crows to fool. They’ll circle your decoy spread a couple of times, becoming warier with each pass, and then move on. If you fool one, it’ll more than likely be on the first pass when they may come within effective shotgun range.
As I recall, we did get one of those early birds. From there, we waited another 10 to 15 minutes before the main body of crows left their roosts and came out in search of food.
I was talking with a friend about what a dismal duck season it had been. We had started it in South Dakota and had a great time, but normally we do a little better. This year, it seemed we were in between weather patterns—a cold front had moved many local birds out, but the ducks farther north hadn’t yet been pushed down. It was still a fun time with friends, and the experience was more about memories than the kill.
Back home, the season was disappointing. We never really saw a big push of ducks, and the ones that did arrive were probably forced in by heavy all-day hunting pressure rather than being allowed to rest in the evenings. At least that’s what I was told. I rarely hunt waterfowl in the evening for that reason, but to each his own.
Anyway, during the conversation, the question came up: “What’s left for us to hunt?” Goose season is still open, and rabbit season too—and I’ll likely participate in both—but my response was, “There’s always crows.”
Crow season runs through March 3, with no limit and the ability to use an electronic call. For waterfowl hunters, crows are the natural next step. Crow hunting involves decoys, camouflage and a lot of shooting, and you’re doing yourself a favor by reducing their numbers— they’re nest robbers of both songbirds and waterfowl. That’s part of why we entered an agreement with Mexico to allow the hunting of crows.
Down south, those with pecan orchards who rely on the mast harvest certainly have no love for crows. Another thing that draws waterfowlers to crow hunting is that crows are no pushovers—they’re very smart birds. Sure, you may occasionally encounter a dumb one or one that’s been fooled so badly it comes back even after shots are fired. But most of the time, you’ll earn every crow you take by hiding well and setting up a near-perfect spread.
If you’re thinking about getting involved in crow hunting, you probably already have the shotgun for it. If your gun allows for interchangeable choke tubes, I’d recommend sticking with a modified choke, since shots can range from long to right at the end of your barrel. As far as shot size, I’ve taken crows with nearly everything. They can be tough and take a beating. If all your shots were guaranteed to be under 20 yards, it wouldn’t matter much. I’ve used 7 1/2 shot and will continue to do so, but I also reloaded some #4 shot I found a few years ago in St. Louis with good results.
I recommend going with another crow hunter before investing in an electronic call, as they can be pricey. Do some research before buying one that may not meet your needs. Yes, a cheap mouth call can work, and you may kill a crow or two, but if you want consistent results and a variety of calls, go with an electronic one.
Speaking of pricey, crow decoys aren’t cheap either. I hate to say it, but I’ve had more success with large numbers of decoys than with just a few. When I started, I used black dress socks as decoys and had a friend make me a half-dozen silhouettes. Since he’s a decoy carver, those silhouettes are nearly primitive works of art, and I no longer use them. I eventually bought a dozen decoys, received some from Sunday school kids as gifts and inherited more from my late brother. I probably have at least three dozen now. I’ll find out soon when I swap out the duck decoys in the garage loft.
When placing crow decoys, I prefer having more on the ground as if they’re feeding, rather than perched in trees as if they’re wary. In the past, I’ve even rolled out a piece of carpet and placed decoys on it to simulate a carcass.
Camouflage is nearly mandatory for late-season crows, when cover is scarce. That includes a face mask— unless you can keep your eyes down and not look up until it’s time to shoot. In addition to wearing camo, it helps to find natural cover to break up your form. We have a spot on the farm where we’ve built a couple of blinds, each of which can hide one or two hunters. The trees there are short, so the crows fly lower, meaning they’re right on top of you and can quickly spot anything suspicious.
The blinds help a lot, but we don’t hunt the same place two weekends in a row— crows catch on fast. If you can crawl into a brush pile, do it. Get there early, set up long before the crows leave the roost, and bring plenty of ammo—it can get hectic on some days.
