Crow Hunting

[Elmo]

Small game hunting is over but I refuse to stop so I guess its time for me to switch over to crow hunting.  I just order a crow mouth call, a normal decoy, and a second decoy that has an electronic call built into it.  That gives me a total of two decoys.  I'll jerry-rig a plain white bed sheet as my blind in the snow.  Using a 12 gauge (#6 stell shot) with full choke.  Anything else I'm missing?  Will two decoys be enough?  Thanks!

[max3]

We would hang an owl decoy  from a tree branch and have the crow decoy's around it. We would put out a bunch of decoys from what I remember.  Make it look like the crows got the owls number. That was a lot of the fun setting up the decoys.

You will find you are generaly laughing your butt off during the whole set up.

Good Luck ! safe shoot'n 

[martin]

  Max is correct. You laugh the whole time you hunting. Be careful,its addicting. I use #4 shot,but maybe #6 full choke will work to. 2 decoys are ok to. If you see a squirrel before u go,shoot it or pick one up off the road. Gut it open and let blood go all over and place a decoy over it like its eating. I'm using a stuff animal that looks like a squirrel and spray painted it red. Don't be afraid to be creative. There is a good site,its called  "crowbusters.com". Its very informative. I'm on it and love it. I go as often as I can. Remember,no hunting tuesday,wednesday or thursday...Chris my friend and I laugh the whole time and of course curse at them to. There are more ideas but once you get going you'll think of ideas as well.. I'll take you out up here and we'll blast them. I have a fly way here...Good luck.

[greybeard]

I bought my first crow call in '65 or '66. I probably have 20 of them now.  For many years it was my favorite hunting. I still carry crow calls that I made in my car and call crows just to get 'em going.

I use 2 , or 3 decoys, but think more would be better. I just didn't want to carry more. I also used an owl decoy at times. I just saw a red tailed hawk decoy for sale on the internet, looks pretty good, but haven't bought it yet.

I 've been reading crow busters for a number of years and even bought an instruction tape made by Bob Ahronson (not sure if spelling I'm his name right). The tape was great .I also really like the site.

I also carry predator calls , which at time work really well. Many times when I'm calling fox , the crows come in really cranked. I've had some BIG flocks of crows come in to predator calls.Doesn't always work, but it works often enough for me to carry one.

[max3]

Today while I was outside I heard some crows and looked up as they flew over. A big smile came to my face just thinking about hunting them. Last night when I answered this thread was the first time in yrs I had thought about hunting them.

Actually it brought a smile to my face a couple times today just thinking about the good times we had years ago. Its one of the hunts that your invloved with the whole time from set-up to calling to letting the lead fly.

Anyone who goes bring the camera !

[growalot]

I love crow hunting...they drive me nuts during bow season....just waiting for a deer to walk through the woods to set up an awful racket...we have a lot of beech trees and whitch hazel they seem to like...I cut most of the mature wild grape ...killing our trees...they like fall tree top grapes...I do think our season dates are strange

[greybeard]

I was out today, not hunting, just  trying to call fox with a new predator call when a crow flew over.

I took out a crow call and made  the sound of a distressed crow. He turned calling back to me and circled and I did combo with a predator call and a crow call. With that a few more came in screaming. They wouldn't leave until I stood up. I love crows.

[Pygmy]

I did a lot of crow hunting when I was a young feller... 

My buddies and I had a number of days when we killed 50 or more crows in one day..

My FAVORITE setup is when you can build a blind in a feeding area and shoot them just like ducks over decoys..Calling is part of it, but you can shoot lots of crows just coming in to the decoys.. Start out with 4 or 5 decoys, and every time you shoot a crow you have ANOTHER decoy..

We shot 100s of crows by just setting up under evergreen cover and turning on an electronic caller and shooting them as they came over...

You can shoot crows with whatever loads you prefer, but heavy loads are NOT required... Crows are more difficult to hit than they are to kill.. I have killed 100s of them with # 9 skeet loads in a 28 gauge and a 20 gauge...  Probably the load I killed most with was a 12 gauge  field load with with either  1 1/8 or 1 1/4 of 7.5 or 8 shot... Pattern density of small shot will kill more crows than high velocity loads of large shot such as # 4 or # 6....

[Elmo]

Thanks all.  Decoys arrived today.  Looking to head out Sunday morning for some crow mayhem.  The call (Haydel's Triple Tone Crow Call) sounds more like a duck than a crow.  Odd.

[martin]

blow harder.

[greybeard]

  I have around 20 mouth crow calls including the  Hadel's Triple Tone crow call.

I always liked it. It changes tone when you bite down. I've called in quite a few crows with it.

As in most, if not all crow calls ,you  should blow hard into it and give it some emotion too.

In addition to just blowing into them , I add a bit of sort of gargling  into my calls at times, which gives the call a good sound. I believe  that the sort of throaty call makes "SOME" sounds more realistic.That's my opinion anyway. good luck

[Pygmy]

Toruk... With many crow calls, in order to get an authentic call, you have to GROWL in your throat as you are blowing...

Hard to explain other than that.. Kinda like you are hawking up an oyster as you are exhaling..

Huff up air from your diapragm and kind of clear your throat as you exhale..... Gives the call a more gutteral sound than you would get by just blowing through it like a whistle...

GOOD LUCK.... ...

[greybeard]

Pygmy.. That's what I meant by gargling, but you described it much better..  that is a perfect explanation..

[growalot]

Do any of you call with your natural voice?

[Pygmy]

Pygmy.. That's what I meant by gargling, but you described it much better..  that is a perfect explanation..

Thanks, Greybeard...You and I were composing our posts at the same time... I thought that your term GARGLING was quite descriptive also....

Growalot....I can call with natural voice and have shot crows that way...First person I ever saw do it was my Dad... However, I don't claim to be GOOD at it....I get hoarse doing it after a short time...

I'm not sure if the crows respond because they really think I am a crow, or perhaps because they think I am a sick CHICKEN and want to take advantage of the situation... :-\ ....

[greybeard]

growalot..I tried...I failed.. I have a terrible crow voice, can't sing either.

I knew a guy years back that was real good at it.He's the only guy I ever saw do it..

[Elmo]

I just want to say that right now crows are my sworn enemy.  It seems that whatever I do, they are always one step ahead of me.  I keep passing this one area where I routinely see a couple of crows fly by.  A couple of weeks ago, I saw a flock of at least two dozen.  So I order a couple of decoys and bought two calls.  One mouth and one electronic.  This time out.  Not a single crow anywhere.  I tried several different ways of calling and I still sound like a duck.  Thankfully, I have the electronic call.  I fell through the ice and sunk my feet into a small stream twice.  Not fun.  Those crows will not get the best of me.  They will eventually go down.

[DTG3k]

Remember guys you can hunt crow with rifles. So feel free to put a 30-06 round through a crow at 150 yards, if they get too annoying. lol.

[max3]

Remember they are pretty smart. I don't think anyone had mentioned that in earlier post's . Probably  because we were all to busy smiling and laughing just thinking about what fun crow hunting can be. LOL!  We would camo  our selves good in either man made blinds or under a white sheet this time of year. They have great eye sight .  Have fun ! good luck !& keep us posted.

[Fitzy]

Hey Guys,

I've only taken a shot at a crow once! I was about 12 and was out hunt'n 'chucks with my dad. We stopped the old car, got out, used a  pillow on the hood as a rest, and I took the shot with a 6.5 jap and iron sights at @ 75 yds.. I missed.

Ever since then I've wondered what I would do with a crow. I've never heard of any recipes for them. So what do ya do with them?

[DTG3k]

Use them as bait to kill more annoying crows. lol

or Maybe a nice Crow hat.

[martin]

You can eat crows,but I wouldn't until it gets cold. Go to crowbusters.com and they have recipies. Hey toruk..I love the attitude. I have had that attitude since I was a teenager. Keep up the good work and never give up...

[Pygmy]

I have eaten crow MANY times, but it was figuratively, rather than literally.... : ....

I've seen what THEY eat....I feel the same way about possum... ??? ....

[max3]

I would never eat them !  ???

You would probably get sick from them. At the very least the SRB's !

Translation for the SRB's = The sh#@' s real bad !

[Elmo]

I probably won't get a chance to go this weekend but I'll try again next weekend.  If successful, I would try some crow.  I mean worst comes to worst it'll taste like crap and I spit it out or I'll get some good reading done in the bathroom.