A tripod mounted pellet gun in the trailer blind. The tripod head is attached to a basic wood cradle, and the gun stock is shielded by a piece of foam. The tripod is positioned so that, when looking through the opening of a nest box, the gun barrel rests on the blinds gun port. This makes it possible to get close-up views of starlings or house sparrows that have taken over a nest box. However, if the starling perches close by, it prevents you from quickly moving.
3. Always brace the gun barrel because the opening in the blind provides ideal support for the barrel since you should always be shooting from a blind. You may need to use the gunstock or another brace for your arms if you are still unable to maintain the target still and centered on the crosshairs. If the blind’s slot can be adjusted to allow for the ideal shooting angle, this support can be obtained by sitting backwards on a kitchen chair and bracing the gun against the chair’s back. This kind of use of two supports is similar to conducting a bench test. All risk of error has been removed.
Be careful: In the United States, it is only permissible to shoot or trap house sparrows and European starlings at nest boxes. S. Don’t even try to identify a female house sparrow if you are unsure. If you focus on reducing the number of males, the females won’t cause any issues at your nest boxes.
Updated April 4, 2004: I’ve been getting a lot of emails lately asking which pellet gun is the best. I don’t know! I’ve only used three different models of pellet guns, and I haven’t looked into the other varieties that are out there. I recently used a Diana spring gun and a Daisy 22 cal multi-pump. For about $70, I purchased the original Daisy at Walmart. It functioned well for two weeks before losing power. I tried a second instance of the same model, and it functioned flawlessly for a week before losing power. I gave up and went to a legitimate gun store, where I was given the Diana 177 caliber. spring gun for around $170. It has been used extensively for the past year and functions flawlessly. However, keeping a spring gun cocked for an extended amount of time weakens the spring, which is one drawback to using one for this purpose. The gun needs to be loaded and cocked before waiting for a house sparrow to land at the sparrow feeder or a starling to visit the flicker box. When the bird arrives, there just isn’t enough time to do this. There isn’t any evidence to suggest that the spring has weakened yet. When I leave the blind, I always pull the trigger, but it has been cocked for several hours. Although the Diana is excellent for accuracy, it is also very heavy, which could be problematic for people who handhold for extended periods of time. A spring gun has substantially more recoil and a trigger pull than other types of weapons. Remember to use the foam pad on your bracing device to absorb this recoil.
2005 update: It appears that the Diana spring is still going strong. Only 13 shots were fired this season, two of which were to confirm the scope setting and eleven of which were instant kills of eleven starlings. My conservatism, not my expertise, is the reason for the 100 percent kill ratio. If its not an easy kill, I dont shoot. Reaction time is the only significant variable that remains when employing a blind and tripod support. It is never a good idea to compare a human’s reaction time to a bird’s. If the bird appears ready to fly, I dont shoot.
Air Guns and Arrow Guns Means and Methods
Definitions:
- An arrow gun is a weapon that uses compressed unignited gas as its only source of propulsion to shoot an arrow or bolt.
- An air gun is a weapon that only uses compressed, unignited gas as fuel to fire bullets.
- Pre-charged pneumatic refers to an arrow or air gun where the propellant is introduced or supplied by a source that is physically isolated from the arrow or air gun.
Air guns and arrow guns are available for hunting alligators, game animals, furbearers, squirrels, and non-migratory game birds (with the exception of Eastern Turkey).
- The only animals that may be taken are alligators, bighorn sheep, javelina, mule deer, white-tailed deer, pronghorn, and turkey (with the exception of Eastern Turkey). Pre-charged pneumatic air guns are required to fire projectiles with a minimum diameter of 30 caliber and a minimum weight of 150 grains at a minimum muzzle velocity of 800 feet per second. Alternatively, the projectiles may be fired at any combination of bullet weight and muzzle velocity that results in a minimum muzzle energy of 215 foot pounds.
- Air guns that can shoot a projectile of at least can be used to hunt squirrels, pheasants, quail, and chachalacas. 177 caliber (4. 5 mm), which results in a muzzle velocity of at least 600 fps.
- When using an arrow gun, bolts or arrows must meet the same requirements as projectiles used in archery.
- During archery season, deer and turkey hunting is prohibited with arrow guns.
FAQ
Can you hunt birds with a pellet gun?
Is a pellet gun better than a BB gun for birds?
How far does a 12 lb air rifle shoot?
What states is it legal to hunt with an air rifle?