I took my (almost) 3 year old out today in the desert by my house to try for some quail and maybe a rabbit if we could find ourselves into some. Well, we kicked up several coveys and I was able to get a couple shots, but nothing connected.
Quail are hard to hunt with a bow!! I was able to get close to some, only to have my boy scare them off (doesn't bother me at all), but keeping them on the ground long enough to fling an arrow was tough.
Anyone have better luck than me on quail?
Jethro
we cant shoot Quail with a Bow but that would be way to cool to have a go yall lucky. :clapper:
I have a buddy who lives outside of Phoenix. I think he said it took him at least 30 shots before he finally connected on one (longbow). I have been out to see him a couple of times and tried chasing those quail you have out there. Boy those things can run.
The first time that I went to AZ hunting Javi I got my pig on the first day that I was there. I spent the next week hunting with my Dad and trying like crazy to get a quail. I wanted to put one with my javi mount ya know. Well those little critters are tough to hit. I am not sure how many arrows I shot at them but I would guess in the relm of 20-30 before I got one.
I have taken several Hungarian partridge with a bow though. I am not sure why I could hit those.
I've missed 10 or more this year and got ONE.
I took a shot at one but missed, and lost the arrow. I only had four arrows with me and I was hunting javelina so I didn't want to risk any more. Guess I need to make a back quiver and fill it up!
You might consider judo points. Typically, I am not too high on them for actual critter shootin', as they don't hit hard enough for squirrell or even rabbit in my experiance. However, they do work alright for dove. Quail being roughly the same size and perhaps slightly more tender than dove, I suspect a judo would work fine. Granted, I'm thinking sitting still shots. If you are comfortable with that, you might give judos a try.
If I didn't have my loud son with me I might be able to sneak a bit more, but I wouldn't go without him.
I shoot field points with an adder on it. They kill birds and rabbits great, when you can hit them. The problem with quail is that they are rarely alone and the one you don't see is watching you. Around this time of year they have been hunted pretty hard and are pretty skittish. Even if they are on the ground, they run very fast. I love the challenge of them, can't wait to take a few.
I used to have a German shorthair that understood quail. I got 5 quail with that dog. Four on the gound and one in the air. i am sure of two of the grounders were the ones I was shooting at and the one out of the air was not the one I was shooting. I don't want to think about how many bludgeons are laying out there hanging on to rotting unfinished cedar sticks. I did get a woodcock out of the air with an 89 pound longbow while quail hunting once. That I had it mounted and ate the breast meat, very dark meat but not bad.
I used to have a photo of Howard Hill holding a stringer of about 15 or so quail. The caption read, "A Mornings Bag."
When I hunted in AL with Don and Skyler, Joe and Chase, annd Conan, we all shot at them flying and on the ground.
Young Skyler Wilson was the only one to shoot one out of the air...saw it with my own eyes!!
Just drive up to Colorado and shoot some grouse. They will just sit there and look at you.
Man I wish we had quail like that around here. Those were the days.
I'm using quail to train my dog,confident it'll work with the wild ones!!
Grouse=easy money
Quail=frustration, and broken and lost arrows
I've killed them on the wing, but these were all taken on the ground... some actually standing still!
(http://www.tradgang.com/upload/charlie/quailtimme.jpg)
Charlie, thats a fairy tale of a life youve lived.Too cool. :notworthy:
Izzy... I've certainly been blessed by God.
(http://www.tradgang.com/upload/charlie/theomequail.jpg)
My most favorite hunt happened many years ago in Ohio after heavy snow storm. I located a large covey of quail in small wooded area with several shallow ravines. I stalked that covey and got many shots but never scored. That was the most fun 3-4 hours I ever had with a bow. I will never forget that day.
Here is one that I got back in November on the wing. It happened to be on the first shot, but I kicked up a couple more on that hunt and didn't connect on any of them. A Snaro or Bullhead will increase your chances of a kill, especially on the smaller birds like quail.
(http://oxnams.com/outdoors/11.25.10_Archery_Quail_web.jpg)
(http://oxnams.com/outdoors/11.25.10_Archery_Quail_close_web.jpg)
(http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j411/scottlangston1/P1000076.jpg) First animal i ever shot with a stickbow 1998
Tough to hit on the wing,I've missed a few on the ground.
I think ruffed grouse would be the hardest thing to hit airborne.They're hard enough to get with a shotgun!
No quail by me, but I have shot at woodcock. I missed a lot so decided to try a snaro. Put one on a flu-flu and went out only to find that the woodcock can outfly an arrow with a 300gr snaro and flu-flus. ;)
try shooting mice in the shop its wild!!
They are very tough to get either way ground or air, but it doesn't look that way for Charlie nice pic Charlie>>
Man Charlie, Thats some root'n toot'n fine good shoot'n! Jason
If they still make the Kondor head, you might want tto look into them
Nice lookin dog Oxnam
I have taken two bobwhites in the air. One was at the end of filming an ESPN tv show called Ultimate Outdoorsman. All weekend I had been using a shotgun (a weapon I hunt with on RARE occasion). On the last day I broke out the recurve. I missed the first three and hit the fourth square in the back knocking it from the sky.
Great shooting fellas!!
I didn't think of using snaro points. That may help, although the season is just about over.
You have to be quick on the draw to get them on the wing. They are quick in flight and hit the ground again running. I gotta admire you guys that have taken them on the wing.
Where I hunt them with a shotgun I may have more luck because they have more cover and stay set longer, but that area is covered with rocks and I can't afford the arrows!
Compared to flying quail, flying pheasants are a sitting target. When it came to shooting grouse the closest i could get was when I shot at the tree the grouse was bound to fly around.