Another One Bites The Dust...

Coypu Hunter · May 26, 2015

So, there I was, walking the perimeter fence of our property with a loaded .22LR under my arm, as you do. I was on the lookout for a fox that a neighbour had spotted mooching around in the cow-field behind our chicken sheds two evenings ago.

I watched it myself last night -- a mangey old fox, limping from a damaged front left leg. It crossed the cow-field diagonally, and disappeared into the undergrowth by the stream at the bottom of the field, right next to our fence line, where our ducks tend to hang out. That's where the stream comes into the lake, and the fence is pretty low there due to the build-up of silt around its base. Since we've lost a couple of ducks recently -- one simply disappeared -- I was very interested to know what the fox was up to, and shoot it if it did anything I didn't like the look of.

Anyroadup, Charles was a no-show this evening, so I walked west along the fence at the north end of our property, which borders the field where I'd seen him. I came to the lake, which fills the western side of out property (to the east is woodland, with a perimeter path by the fence). I turned left/south back towards the house, keeping an eye out, and keeping the noise down, when I saw some ripples on the lake. I stopped and, sure enough, a coypu appeared and swam slowly towards the north end of the lake, where I'd just come from.

Since I was well camouflaged -- light blue shirt, light fawn trousers, white trainers -- I stalked back the way I'd come. Where the lake meets the northern fence, there's a thin strip of bank where you can get down to the stream. Peering through the dark tunnel of laurels down to this bank, I saw the coypu at the edge of the water, having a preen. It was around 15 yards away. I zoomed in the video camera, then like a complete numpty forgot to press record.

The path slopes down to the bank, so I was about ten feet above the critter, and it was facing to my left and quartering slightly away. I was in a clearing with no shooting sticks or nearby support, so it'd have to be a an offhand shot. Since the coypu was a bit closer than my 19-yard zero, it needed a bit of holdover, but since it was downhill, it needed bit of holdunder -- so I put the crosshairs right on its ear, took a deep breath, held it on the exhale, and squeezed the trigger.

Next time, I'll try to remember to press record.

Coypu%2023052015%201s.jpg