tough cooky black rabbit

[markha 99]

Work was finished soa drive over to the families farm.

Lots of acres to shoot in, but a couple of fields have some big rabbit problems.

The grass has just been mowed and nice crisp clover is now growing back, giving mr and mrs rabbit and extended family lots of juicy food.

On the drive over my girlfriends nephew is waxing lyrical about lots of rabbits, hares and some very large black rabbits he'd spotted before.

 

Now these rabbits are very willey chaps n chappesses, even a low flying bird will set them scurrying off never to be seen for hours.

So off we head for a slow wander round the hedge boundaries untill we get down wind and then the stalk is on.

We spent ages slowly moving, stopping and scopeing them and moving on as they put their heads down to have a munch.

These little fluff balls are very switched on! There is always atleast one who is constantly on guard, stood up high while the others graze and move etc, Its like they have blonking meerkat genes or something...

 

The stalk turns to a crawl, a very long slow crawl until we get within 70m or so of a group of 6 brown, 2 gray and one big black rabbit with a head size that would fill a very large bra! This boy was a monster, I kid you not, pitch black and was probably a pet rabbit at some point, either got loose or more likely ate so much bloody food that he was released in to the wild hahahaha!

 

So we've spent all this time, slow, methodical, crawl on the belly, stop,look, move, and just as we get within range a few crows come low over the field, the head rabbit doing sentry spots them and does a straight line runner in to the hedge and his burrow; the rest fo this little clan follow suit, ah well, it happens!

 

I decide Im just going to walk up to the corener they were in, get covered and set up for a wait as I really want the black rabbit, Im running through all the recipes in my head and of how much meat this monster bunny will give.

 

So we split up, the lad goes for a stalk on his own, with me telling him Im staying put here for an hour, so he can watch his arcs of fire if hes in the other fields.

the 20 acre field

 

I settle down in the longer grass and nettles, after about half an hour I notice some movement and slowly put my eye to the glass and spy a couple of very long black ears sticking above the grass, after a couple of minutes watching I figure that this is the 'big black' and he has his back to me, so slowly and quietly I start to move forward, little by little as Im hidden from his view just before a gently rise, then dip in the ground to where he is munching.

 

Im taking my time, slow,methodical, genlty rais the gun of the trip legs, move the gun forward, put it down, then slowly move me forward, I keep doing this untill I feel that any further and Im going to spook him off.

 

So now, Im set ready, I have a rock solid crosshair and can see half of his head, as the rest is covered by the longer grass, Im 40m away and my zero is 45m, so all is well.

At first I just watch him, then I hiss out loud a couple of times, no dice, he keeps munching, so a little louder I squeeze my lips to make a granny kiss kind of noise? This gets his attention straight away, he stands up for a look and he he not moving a muscle, the crosshairs are set and I take up the 1st stage, 2nd stage comes, hammer goes, Im watching, following through, I see the pellet and hear the thud, all in a moment...

 

Then it all goes a different way, the rabbit recipies are long gone from my head! This bad boy takes 2 bounds to the left and stops looking right at me, I follow with a second well placed shot and again hear the thwack, this one just makes him turn to the right, and plod off a couple of feet.. my brain and eyes are trying to make sense of the last few seconds, I suddenyl realise I havent got a contingency palne, then another micro burst of thinking stands me on my feet ready for another, 3rd shot! In this space of time the big black rabbit has vanished!!! Not a trace, amirage, a ghost bunny!

 

I wander over to where my big rabbit recipe should be and see nothing, then its detective work time, Im puzzled, 3 shots, 3 hits, all in my zero range and no rabbit? I spot a very big splash of blood on the ground, right, atleast that means something, this bad boy was probably so upset that someone waould want him for the pan, that he bit his tongue in angst! Possibly hehe, I follow the blood trail and it leads to a dead end, no rabbit hole, no way through in to the next field, he has gone, I sit and tune in to the sounds of evening, straining to hear any difference in sound between the grass and leaves moving and the possible sound of a rabbit close by and needing an end, But nothing, just a large splash of blood and a blood trail that ends with no bad black rabbit.

 

For me its not a happy conclusion as Im saddened that I have not got a humane kill, whatever the reason, and also that I never got the chance for a follow up to his hidding place, strange thing about the blood, there was a lot of it, the old medical saying of " 1 on the floor and four more" was in my head, for those who havent heard that it simply means if you come across an injured 'thing' and you see a pint of blood on the floor, that there is usually four more pints haemoraging inside the 'thing'.

 

So all this blood, no rabbit, vanished.

The rest of the evening was a no go, all of mr and mrs rabbits clan were underground, so I set up some 'shoot n c' 2" cirlces on a post at 45m and double checked my zero as I had done before the shoot, sure enough it was bullseye after bullseye.

 

So if your out and about one day, and see a very large black rabbit with a look of arrogance, please, think back to this post and leave this type of rabbit well alone and return at a later date with a shotgun or a grenade, as these bad ass ex rabbit hutch prisoners truly do have very thick skin indeed.

 

No pictures as nothing to photograph, just a pic of the 20 acre wide open field that I was in for the evening.

But rest assured, I now have the bit in my teeth as there were another 2 of these black rabbits spotted as we were leaving.

[Sweeney-Todd 208]

Hi Markha.

 

Excellent read mate, really enjoyed that

What a bugger you couldnt find THE SHADOW rabbit

From the sounds of things I would watch yourself on the next outing, he's gonna be pizzed with you

 

Joking aside, I know how you feel not being able to find him, you did your best mate

 

Have a slut for a great read.

 

 

 

Bill.

[Phantom 631]

I have a couple of these black bunnies on my permissions, only time I see em is when they are young.

Left em to grow and aint seen hide nor hair of them since.

Which is unfortumate as I have the chemicals now to preserve their hides.

 

Its distasteful for some to read when we to put up stories of our not so clean kills; but alas it reminds us all that we are human and that we have all had them and those of us who say neigh are liars.

 

One thing that stood out on your post though Mark is that you said you heard a "Thud"?

 

It is my humble opinion that a thud means a hit in the chest?

The sound of a hit on a skull is that of a very distinctive "Crack"

 

May I ask where you aim on your quarry?

 

Phantom

 

PS is that the sea I see in the distance?

[stealthy1 3,964]

Hard luck Markha, next time the armoured bunny will be yours, have a slut for your efforts to find him

[davyt63 1,845]

hi marka

no worries buddy, i havent even seen one yet!

but have a SP for a good read

 

regards

 

davy

[Ron Weasley 83]

Great read Markha. We've all had a similar story I'm sure. I know Aaron put a similar sort of post in the general banter section about pigeons recently.

 

Hard luck, and next time I hope you get him!

[farmerkev09 105]

great read buddy

 

hope you have better luck next time pal

 

happy hunting farmer

[jackinbox99 41]

Excellent read!

[gurtwurz 793]

obviously a devil rabbit mark, and therefore protected by beazlebub himself mate, hence the vanishing act. having had similar with a squirrel recently i sympathise buddy but no doubt youll get him next time, or one of his brothers

cheers, wurz

[markha 99]

 

 

One thing that stood out on your post though Mark is that you said you heard a "Thud"?

 

It is my humble opinion that a thud means a hit in the chest?

The sound of a hit on a skull is that of a very distinctive "Crack"

 

May I ask where you aim on your quarry?

 

Phantom

 

PS is that the sea I see in the distance?

 

Hi Phantom,

I had the hairs right between the eye and lower ear, yes the 1st shot was a thwack, may have been neck, possible deflection, slight burst of breeze, but 2nd shot was also spot on, it realy did bug me. That is the sea in the distance, lovely place to shoot, got around 8 fields on that side all 15-20 acres per field to mooch around.

 

 

Im glad you all liked the write up and thanks for the S'points - Ill definately remember to take the camera out with me on the next outing looking for ghost bunnies!

[venomviper 129]

hi ya mark

great write up matey and the picture was nice to

plus we have a few black rabbits here but they tend to stay close to the road or islands but i aint had the chance to get one yet but no doubt i will lol

but again mark nice read buddy

 

sp on me

 

shay

[fry 209]

good read an vast bit of lush land not really been to north wales the bass fishing there is supposed to be great. it s not a good feeling when you know you have hit one and they dont bite the dust but happens. i have yet to see any black bunnys on any of my shoots.

[JackReid 35]

Very bizarre stuff mate, Even the most robust bunny cant withstand a 12ftlb in the right place... Very strange and unfortunate.

 

Excellent writeup nevertheless!!!

 

Jack

[Phantom 631]

When up at Roos shooting, I can smell the sea although its not visible its not far away.

 

Something about sea air that makes me feel so alive, yet so very relaxed. Wheres the "Aaaaagh thats sooooo goood Icon"? lol

 

Also up at Roos Riff and I have seen a fair a few 'pure as driven snow' white bunnies

I've not even had chance to even aim at them but Riffs knocked a few of them over

 

Phantom