Hunters ED- parts 3-4

sustained lead

The sustained lead method is a little more challenging because it requires more experience (You estimate the length of the lead necessary to hit the target, and maintain that lead as you swing with the target, fire, and continue the swing)

Swing-Through

The two most common methods of leading targets at long distances are swing-through and sustained lead. - Swing-through is the best technique for the beginning student (Point your shotgun at a moving target and swing with it. Increase the speed of the gun so that the muzzle passes the target, and then fire. In other words, literally "swing through" the target and fire at a blank space in front of the target)

choosing choke for quarry

choice of choke may vary depending on ammunition, target distance, and hunting conditions. Always pattern your shotgun for the quarry you are hunting and the ammunition you are using.

when hunting your firearm should...

- Be powerful enough to kill the game quickly and effectively - Fit you properly - Have the correct amount of recoil, usually moderate, so that you will practice more often and shoot more proficiently.

animals can be identified by 4 basic characteristics

- distinctive markings - sounds - movement - group behavior

transporting game

Keep the dressed game cool and free of insects. - A sure way to ruin meat—as well as earn the disdain of non-hunters—is to tie the animal to the hood or roof of a car, where it's exposed to heat, exhaust fumes, road salt, and airborne dust. - If you've quartered the animal, pack the quarters in ice chests—don't process the deer beyond quartering until you reach your final destination. Be sure to keep proper "evidence of sex" if required by your game laws. - Most hunters take their game to a commercial meat cooler, where a typical white-tailed deer can be properly aged up to three or four days at 40° Fahrenheit.

4 main categories of wild animals

Large Mammals: Big game, such as deer, elk, and bear Small Mammals: Small game, such as rabbits, squirrels, and raccoons Upland Birds: Turkey, grouse, quail, and dove Waterfowl: Ducks and geese

Snap-Shooting

Snap-shooting is a technique to use if you must make a quick shot and the target is straight ahead at close range. You simply raise the shotgun, and point where you think the target will be when the shot arrives.

additional tips for field dressing larger animals

- Because it's harder to move larger animals, you may need to skin and quarter the animal to pack it out, particularly in a remote area. - If you're unable to hang the animal for skinning, begin by making a lengthwise cut and removing one side of the hide. Then turn the animal onto the skinned hide, and skin the other side. - To keep dirt off the meat, use the inside of the removed hide as a protective mat as you quarter the animal. - Put each quarter in a game sack and attach the sacks to a backpack frame for the hike out.

3 fundamentals of good marksmanship

- Proper sight adjustment or patterning - Proper shooting technique - Practice

Places to hunt from

- ground blinds: makeshift or temporary structures located on the ground that conceal the hunter. can be as simple as a natural blind built behind a tree, bush, log, or rock or as sophisticated as a portable, enclosed camouflage-cloth blind. - Elevated stands (tower stands or tree stands) offer a number of advantages to both firearm and bow hunters. Tower stands are above-ground seats or blinds that conceal the hunter above the level of the quarry. Tree stands are stands placed in or against trees.

more shot angles

- head-on: for firearms, this can be effective if you have an adequate firearm and your firearm is already positioned for the shot. However, head-on shots rarely result in a clean kill and ruin a lot of meat. Aim at the center of the chest to hit the vital organs, for bows, These angles offer very poor shot selection and should not be taken - rear-end: should not be taken by hunters using firearms or bows. It's difficult to hit a vital area on an animal that is running or moving straight away from you. Rather than risk crippling the animal or ruining the meat, wait for a better shot.

Approaching Downed Game

A downed deer or other large animal should be approached carefully from above and behind the head. - If the animal appears to be dead, wait a short distance away for a few minutes. Watch for any rise and fall of the chest cavity. - Notice whether the eyes are closed—the eyes of a dead animal are usually open. You can be certain that the animal is dead if the eye doesn't blink when touched with a stick. - If the animal is still alive, it should be finished with a quick shot to the base of the ear. If you wish to mount the head, place your shot in the heart-lung area. For bowhunters, the only option is placing an arrow in the heart-lung area. - Once the animal is dead, follow the state regulations for reporting or recording a kill. Some states require you to tag the animal immediately and indicate the date of the kill. Then begin field dressing.

Field Dressing techniques

As a rule, it's best to field dress immediately. - When cooling the body, use available shade. Hang deer, if possible. For larger animals, such as deer, elk, and moose, you should prop the carcass open with a clean stick to allow air to circulate. - In warm weather, it's helpful to place squirrels and doves in a cooler after dressing, as long as they remain dry. - Dispose of entrails carefully. Don't leave them lying by the side of a road or near a residence where they can be dragged home by a dog. - Keep meat clean by covering it with cheesecloth. This also protects it from flies, which lay eggs in exposed flesh. Rubbing meat with black pepper also will repel insects. If you have to drag the game to camp, try to keep dirt and debris out of the chest cavity. - Because moisture damages meat, don't use excessive amounts of water to wash the cavity. Allow it to dry. - If you plan to process the animal yourself, skin the animal as soon as possible to allow the carcass to cool. Wearing latex gloves while field dressing helps protect you from wildlife diseases.

Protecting Vision and Hearing

Hearing: wear earplugs/earmuff with high Noise Reduction Rating Vision: wear suitable eye protection, such as shooting glasses with high-impact lenses, when shooting or when cleaning gun if your colorblind, be careful and wear special glasses

4 most common choke

Here are the four most common chokes, ranging from most open to tightest. Cylinder (unchoked) Improved Cylinder Modified Full

Rifle-firing techniques

Shooting From a Rest, Breathing, Trigger Squeeze, follow through 4 fundamentals: - Aim carefully, aligning your sights. - Take a deep breath, and then release about half of it. - Squeeze the trigger slowly. Follow through.

shooting shotgun vs rifle

Shotgun: - Point a shotgun. - Focus your eye on the target. - Pull the trigger. Rifle - Aim a rifle. - Focus your eye on the crosshairs or front sight. - Squeeze the trigger.

Pattern Procedure

- Fire one shot at the center of the target (or bull's-eye) from the distance that you expect to be from your quarry (for example, 35 yards if hunting game birds). Repeat this two more times, each time with a new sheet of target paper. - On each of the three targets, draw a 30-inch circle around the densest part of the shot pattern. (This is not necessarily the center of the paper.) - On each of the three targets, count the number of pellet holes that fall within the 30-inch circle, marking them with the marker as you count each one. - Calculate the percentage of the load that is expected to land in a 30-inch circle at the distance that you expect to be from your quarry. [Average the pellet counts within the 30-inch circles (add the three counts from the previous step, and divide the sum by three)] [Then divide the average pellet count by the number of pellets in the load for the ammunition you are using, and multiply this result by 100]

what are three things that contribute to bacteria growth

- Heat: Heat is the number-one concern. Bacteria grow rapidly in a carcass, especially if it's allowed to stay warm. Meat begins to spoil above 40° Fahrenheit. The higher the temperature—and the longer the meat is exposed—the greater the chance of spoilage. This is particularly true with large game. - Moisture: Moisture also encourages the growth of bacteria. - Dirt: Dirt can introduce bacteria.

Determining Accuracy limits

- Rifles: Use an 8-inch paper plate as the standard target to establish deer hunting accuracy. An 8-inch target is about the same size as the vital area of a deer. - Shotguns: Pattern your shotgun, and then practice hitting targets at the distances you expect to be from game you shoot.

Sight alignment

- Sight alignment is the process of lining up rear and front sights open sight: line up the target with the blade or bead within notch of rear sight aperture sight: line up target so front sight is within rear peephole telescopic sight: line up target with crosshairs of sight

Types of Traps

- The most common type of killing devices are bodygrip traps. - Live-restraining devices include foothold traps, enclosed foothold devices, cage traps, and some types of cable devices. With these traps, you are able to release non-target animals. - Some furbearers are found more often in or near water. For these animals, trappers use submersion trapping systems, which hold the animal underwater until it dies.

Where to shoot

- The most effective shots are delivered to an animal's vital organs—heart and lungs. In large game animals, these organs lie in the chest cavity behind the front shoulder. A lung shot is the most effective shot for big game. - The area of the vital organs also contains major blood vessels and arteries. A shot in this area causes considerable bleeding. If the animal doesn't die immediately and tries to flee, it will leave a blood trail that's easy to track. - Patience: Hunters should limit shots to the vital organs only. If you do not have a clear shot to the vital organs, wait until the animal presents the best possible shot

How to prepare for hunt

- educate yourself about game and environment - obtain current state regulations - buy appropriate clothing/gear - Secure lease arrangements and permits - Visit the site in the off-season to prepare blinds and cabin facilities - Sight-in rifles, handguns, and bows; pattern shotguns. - Sharpen your skills at the shooting range. - Pack extra firearms, scopes, bowstrings, etc.

Ways to get an animals attention

- game calling (territorial sounds, feeding sounds, distress sounds) - driving (deer drive): to make the deer move, not run, out of their hiding places (drivers spread out across field and posters take positions at the end of cover) - flushing: using noise, movement, or dogs to cause game to become nervous and leave cover. Dogs include pointers, retrievers, spaniels and hunting hounds. - trapping: Trapping furbearing animals was once a full-time occupation. Trapping helps control animal populations by minimizing starvation, reducing spread of disease, and controlling habitat damage or destruction. Trapping helps protect personal property by preventing or decreasing

firing positions

- prone: steadiest (easiest to hold so easy to master fundamentals) - standing: most difficult position (try to keep movement of barrel to as small area - sitting: Both arms are supported by your legs. Next to the prone position, this is the steadiest position. - kneeling: With only one arm braced, the kneeling position is less steady than the prone and sitting positions.

ways to hunt (techniques)

- still hunting: walking stealthily through an animal's habitat, stopping frequently—sometimes for long periods—to scan and listen for game. - stalking: you follow signs leading to a particular type of game or group of animals, or close the distance to game already spotted. - Posting: sitting or standing in one spot.

shot angles

-Broadside: preferred shot angle for both firearm and bow hunters for larger game animals, such as elk, deer, and bear. for a firearm, the best target is the shoulder and chest area, and for a bow, the aiming spot is straight up from the back side of the front leg, one-third of the way up from the bottom of the chest. - Quartering-Away: target is facing away from you, but at an angle, for big game. The animal is usually looking away from you. For a firearm, The area just behind the shoulder is the best aiming spot for direct penetration of the vital organs. Focus on hitting the chest area above the opposite front leg, and for a bow, This is not a good shot for bowhunters on larger game because their massive stomachs and intestines will block a clean shot to the lungs or heart. The opposite front leg is a good reference point for aiming. - Quartering-Toward: when the animal is facing toward you but at an angle. Because the animal is typically looking your way, it most likely will spot your movements. For a firearm, a shot can be taken at this angle if the gun is already trained on the animal. For an effective hit, aim at the front of the shoulder of the near front leg. Be certain to use a firearm and ammunition adequate for the game you hunt and angle of the shot, for a bow, This angle offers a poor shot opportunity and should not be taken.

Trailing Wounded Game

it is an ethical responsibility to stop the hunt and search for any wounded animal - You should wait for at least a half-hour to an hour before trailing a deer unless the downed deer is in sight. - Make a practice of carefully observing every movement of a game animal after you shoot it. Investigate the ground and trail after shooting before assuming you missed. - Once at the site of the shot, look for signs: Blood on the ground or vegetation, Broken twigs or branches, or scattered leaves, a "dew" line if early in the morning, Tracks, Hair, meat, or bone fragments, Downhill trails, especially toward the water - If you lose a trail, search in a circular or grid pattern, and try to pick up the trail again. - Use fluorescent orange flagging to mark the blood trail in case darkness or weather forces you to quit the search and return the next day. Marking the blood trail also shows where to look for more signs if you lose the trail. Be sure to remove the orange flagging after use.