Hide and seek the corvids

Tom Sykes experiments with a new tactic to shoot from a hide constructed to look like a bale

Ilove to experiment with different tactics and attempt to gain the advantage over intelligent quarry, it is one of the great joys of fieldsports. Convincing any wild quarry to come within range of a shotgun can be a challenge, and rightly so or the game of cat and mouse would tire quickly. Concealment is a major factor of fieldcraft that applies throughout many shooting disciplines. The ability to remain undetected in the heart of the target’s territory by blending into the chosen environment is often the key to success.

A great tactic for fooling corvids is to diverge from the typical approach of setting the hide on field boundaries. Taking the fight to the quarry by setting an ambush in the middle of the field can be a great way to hit the birds where they feel more confident. This theory works with all manner of quarry and is the reason why American’s are very fond of utilising layout blinds when in pursuit of wildfowl. Although I have had success in the past from my layout blinds, they can be awkward to shoot from and I am always looking for the next game plan to add to the corvid control playbook.

Tip-off

The estate shepherd phoned to give me a tip-off that the crows were becoming a problem on the sheep feeders once again. After heading to the estate to investigate further, I discovered an abundance of crows congregating in a grass field that still had the hay bales scattered throughout. There seemed to more birds in this area than on the feeders in the neighbouring fields and that it would possibly be the better location to deal with the problem corvids. This is part of the reason why I like to do my own reconnaissance where possible after receiving information about bird activity, rather than solely relying on other people’s sightings.

There are a number of different hide set-ups that I could have used to conceal the shooting position in this field. The bales could have been rolled together to provide basic cover and the position could have been finished with hide materials. I have built a hide on the end of bales before, but I really wanted to try a fresh idea, so decided I would attempt to convert my umbrella hide into a counterfeit bale. This would allow me to set the hide anywhere I liked in the field and blend in and not discourage the crows from decoying.

Once back home and with different designs running through my head, I rummaged through the workshop to gather the necessary equipment to have a trial run in the garden.

With a little bit of experimenting, I soon had the rough design which I was sure would be good enough to convince crows to come in range. The hide consisted of the umbrella as the bulk of the shape and a large hessian sheet drooped over hide poles to provide adequate cover from the front. I then arranged a variety of different sheets of hessian over the top of the umbrella canopy to give the overall generic colour of a hay bale. Despite not being perfect due to the mishmash of hessian sheets, I was confident that even the most intelligent of crows would not be able to pick out the hide from the line of actual bales.

The trap

I arrived at the field in the early hours of the morning the following day and soon had the prototype hide in place ready for the first field-test. I set a mixture of full-bodied and Sillosocks crow decoys to imitate the crow congregation I had witnessed the previous day. I added some of these decoys to the tops of the bales to increase the visibility of the pattern from a distance. I had a couple of crows from a recent expedition that were added to the magnet to provide movement to the pattern. I added the Sillosocks HypaFlap crow to a bouncer, which gave the appearance of a bird coming into land. The hide placement and decoy layout would, in theory, allow me to shoot the birds as left to right crossers as the crows use the wind to drop into the spread. I wanted the birds to cross broadside opposed to decoying towards my position, hopefully guiding their attention away from the hide.

They began to stir shortly after the low sun cast long shadows behind the bales.

I was sitting comfortably in my little bale bunker with a warming coffee as the first bird crossed low over the decoys. I gripped my gun and mounted pulling the bead just in front of the slow flying target before the first shot of the day rang out with an echo swiftly followed by a thud on the ground. The young carrion hadn’t taken any notice of the hide and sealed its fate by cruising in perfectly. One crow in the bag gave me the confidence that the plan could work.

The birds continued to glide into the cool morning breeze and time after time fell to well-placed shots from my auto. With a steady bag building, the hide design seemed to be working. One downside to the umbrella compared with typical hide netting is that the material obstructs the vision, meaning that the field of view is restricted to the opening over the decoy pattern. This usually isn’t an issue when setting up under a hedge, but it did create the problem of shielding my view on any birds approaching from the rear of my position. There were a few occasions when silent birds snuck in undetected. However, these birds could not see me either, allowing spontaneous reactions to make quick work at despatching any unanticipated close-quarter targets. These birds really kept me on my toes throughout the day as I was caught off guard a few times resulting in very fast-0paced bursts of action.

I decided to call it a day after a few hours of good shooting. The hide was a real success and seemed to convince streetwise adults as well as inexperienced juveniles to swoop into the decoys. The umbrella hide was one of the nicer set-ups I have used, as there was lots of room inside for all my gear, including a cool box of refreshments. The dogs had plenty of room to laze about while keeping me company through the lulls. I am looking forward to experimenting with new and exciting ideas in the future and I am sure that the umbrella bale hide will be making another appearance at some point.

“I soon had a design which I was sure would convince crows to come in range”

Thinking outside the box is required to get the better of canny corvids

The area was extensively decoyed before the morning’s shoot began

The hide allowed ample movement but materials meant the view was restricted

Out on bale: it was just a matter of time before the crows’ misdeeds were punished

The result of a successful morning spent in the guise of a hay bale