Tis the Season! My 2015/16 thread

[stonykill]

Nice job on that bobcat Tom!  They are very elusive and rare to see during the day.  I am guessing they can't resist the sound and smell of your chickens and ducks.  It looks like a juvenile and a little smaller than full grown adults I have seen at the zoo.  I don't think I have seen one in the wild though, but I know they are around.  I had tracks in the snow a few years ago that were pretty fresh and bigger than a house cat, so I am pretty sure they are in the area. 

19 FPE is plenty for yote/fox/bocat, but requires precise shot placement which you had no trouble making, so nice shooting.

Harry

 Thanks Harry! This was certainly a youngster. Much smaller than the adults I have seen and the one I killed with a .308 Savage 99 before I got back into air rifles. My guess is the 2 dozen chickens I lost this year, were to this ones Mama, feeding the kittens. This kitten knew where the food was, and was returning for more.

   It was pure luck I was where it was going yesterday. but I'll take the pure luck! Sometmes the stars align and they did yesterday.

  With a pumper in my hands it just would have been a nice story about a bobcat. With either of my Hatsans, this outcome was possible.

   My friend was very happy to receive the bob, and all I asked for was the skull back for my collection of AG kills, skulls. I like to study exactly where the brain is on the different critters.

  Thanks again Harry!

[only1harry]

Yes a little luck never hurts. 
I have recovered a couple of Groundhog skulls too, so I know what you mean.  Nothing better than studying the skull of the critters you go after.  The smaller G-hog skull (from a young one) actually broke into 3 pieces pieces when my son knocked it off the sill by accident.  It was 5-6 years old and getting brittle.  One the front teeth came off as it hit the concrete floor in my garage.  To my surprise the tooth went way up and back into the skull with a long curvature.  It was about 3 times longer than the part of the tooth that was exposed.

Harry

[stonykill]

 Interesting. I never saved a woodchuck skull, but will next year.

   This pic is of the track left by an adult bobcat. I took this last year while crossbow hunting. Typical cat, walked out of it's way, to walk across the fallen oak tree where I took this pic in the fresh dusting of snow. The sheer size of the tracks told me why I had not seen any deer that morning ( Idid ultimately fill all of my tags  ) According to my friend who traps almost like it was a religion, this bob would weigh 35 to 40 lbs that made these tracks. The one I killed yesterday was maybe 20 ish lbs. Didn't weigh it, but it was a small one.

 

[Tater]

   My friend was very happy to receive the bob, and all I asked for was the skull back for my collection of AG kills, skulls. I like to study exactly where the brain is on the different critters.

  Thanks again Harry!

When you get it back and cleaned up, please do post a pic of the skull with the hole in it.
Nice shooting Tom.

[stonykill]

   My friend was very happy to receive the bob, and all I asked for was the skull back for my collection of AG kills, skulls. I like to study exactly where the brain is on the different critters.

  Thanks again Harry!

When you get it back and cleaned up, please do post a pic of the skull with the hole in it.
Nice shooting Tom.

 Thanks Jerry! I will post a pic when it gets back to me.

[stonykill]

 I've been real busy the last couple of days and had little AG time. Saw nutters, told them it was their lucky day, and went on with life.

   Last night I took apart my 880 Carbine .22 for a good cleaning and maintenance. I took a few minutes this afternoon to shoot, and took a few of those minutes to sight in the Carbine.

  I had about 3 clicks to the right to go, otherwise was sighted back in and I heard leaves rustling. This not too bright rat was making his way TOWARDS my target. I kid you not, he stops directly in front of the back stop, and goes under the leaves. I just scope the moving leaves and wait. He is right in front of the backstop so I know with certainty he is 18 yards away.
  He emerges from the leaves and his tail is facing me as he is about to disappear. I sent the pointed hunting pellet in his behind and out his throat. Rolled over onto his back dead.

   I finished sighting in my carbine and then walked over to take this pic 

 

[UCChris]

Nice!

[dk1677]

Nice one Tom! A grey ran though and a red was way off in the trees here no good shots to take

[stonykill]

Thanks Chris and Dave!

  I forgot to tell this story. 1st thing this am . Gray nutter in a tree, 40 ish yards out. some stuff in the way, but I find a clearing. I aim for the brain, squeeze , and either the nutter moved a tad, or I was just off ( more likely the case) and I shot the acorn out of his mouth. He ran up the tree a little freaked out, scolded me some from a branch, and went about his business slowly getting further and further away from me. This was with The Hammer.

   He WILL be in that tree again 

[jettaglikop]

Great takes with the Hatsan!

So awesome you were in the right place at the right time to exact some revenge for your lost poultry getting a clean shot on that Bobcat!!!

[shadow]

Great shooting and pic bro and look forward to Wildcat skull pics. Ed

[stonykill]

  Thanks Kevin and Ed! I have the Bob head back in my possession , now to find the time to clean it up.

[longhunter]

Interesting. I never saved a woodchuck skull, but will next year.

   This pic is of the track left by an adult bobcat. I took this last year while crossbow hunting. Typical cat, walked out of it's way, to walk across the fallen oak tree where I took this pic in the fresh dusting of snow. The sheer size of the tracks told me why I had not seen any deer that morning ( Idid ultimately fill all of my tags  ) According to my friend who traps almost like it was a religion, this bob would weigh 35 to 40 lbs that made these tracks. The one I killed yesterday was maybe 20 ish lbs. Didn't weigh it, but it was a small one.

 

yup. that's easy 35-40 pounds worth. big kitty.

[Matt15]

Great shooting on the rat!! You did him in with a Texas heart shot.   

BTW: My dad saw a young Bobcat a couple nights ago while deer hunting. He said it was the size of a house cat.

[stonykill]

Great shooting on the rat!! You did him in with a Texas heart shot.   

BTW: My dad saw a young Bobcat a couple nights ago while deer hunting. He said it was the size of a house cat.

  Thanks Matt!!!

  Mine was a small Bob, but if compared to a house cat, size of a pure bred Maine Coon cat. Certainly a youngin. Unlike the track I posted.

   Indeed Scott, a big kitty left those tracks.

[Methuselah]

There's late then there's me... nice thread, great stories pics, and shooting 

Enjoyed every bit of it, could almost smell them nutters cooking...

[Methuselah]

(Double post, such happens on a tablet)

[stonykill]

 Thanks Steve!

[stonykill]

 Bobcat skull pics. I'm going to let nature do the rest of the cleaning.

   The in pic. Next to the eye. There is a round hole there, there is still some meat around it making it look broke out, butit isn't. The nice round hole doesn't showwell in the pic. The far right side of what looks broke out is the hole



 But the interesting part is this. There IS an exit hole. And a good sized one. The CPHP did a nice job making a mess of things. That hole is much more defined in the pic.

[HatsanPhantom]

So cool..a bobcat with the Striker. Thats good stuff man.
How do you get the skull to that point?