Shooting treed crows with a .22?

[vtsteve]

Lately I've been hunting crows with my 12GA, which works fine if they come into range (60 yards or so for my skills). Quite often they'll land in nearby trees at around 100 yards or so. I could definitely up my kill count if I could take them out as well, but I'm not sure if it can be done safely. Is a high angle shot with a .22 safe to take with nothing behind for 5-600 yards? I've heard they can go a mile and a half, but how far away are they actually dangerous when shot upwards?

I have a .177 air rifle I can use, but I'm not sure it would have the power to take a crow at that range (it's 1000 FPS). I feel like the air rifle would be perfectly safe to use, but that got me thinking, a standard velocity .22 isn't much faster. What about something a bit slower like CCI quiets (700 fps). Any ideas?

 

[Sniper66]

You'll never harm a crow with a pellet gun unless the crow is close, say under 50 yards. Depending on which chart to look at and the angle of the shot the .22LR will be hitting the dirt within 600-700 yards. What is on the other side of the 600 yards? If there are homes or people or livestock 600-700 yards away, I would not take the shot. The CCI quiets would of course have a considerably shorter range.

 

[jlr1962]

I have hit large crows with a strong pellet gun with no noticeable effect. They are like flying opossum.

 

[T.R.]

I don't bother with shooting crows. They have a disgusting but necessary job to perform. That is, eating squashed dead animals and fish guts.

TR

 

[jmorris]

I got this one from 98 yards with my RWS 34 pellet gun, DRT.

 

[OYE]

Depends on where you are at. Crows are sharp little critters. My guess is you kill a couple at 100 yds. Then you don't get any closer than 200 yds the next go round.

A neighbor down the road raised a bunch one summer. The next year they ran out the magpies and everything else. After we shot the second one, they left and never came back. That's been 6 or seven years ago. Once in a great while I see one in the vicinity but never here. They don't like losing family members.
OYE

 

[Officers'Wife]

Just keep in mind that the second a rifle ball leaves your property line you have bought any trouble it might get into. Unless you can be absolutely, positively 100% certain there are no walkers, campers, hikers, bird watchers, hormone flooded teenagers looking for privacy or just someone that God is PO'd at in the line of fire you had best stick with the shotgun. Never forget the old adage- Murphy was an optimist.

And before you tell me it's an area that nobody goes...

The story is told that in ancient times my Gramps and Grams decided on some extra-curricular... snuggling time... Having two teenage boys and a teenage girl they decided on a area ringed in by three hills hidden from view of the road and safe from... interruption because it was a place were no one ever went... My uncle at the time was doing his OMB thing and making fireworks rockets. Large enough the payload was described in kilograms rather than ounces. Not sure of the propellent or the fusing for the header he aimed it at an area ringing in by three hills and safe for ground explosions because it was a place where nobody ever went. Needless to say Murphy enforced his law that day with not only a vengeance but a rather sick sense of humor.

When the inventory was finished, Gramps lost a two year old pickup truck, Grams her favorite blouse and much of her dignity and my uncle a beautiful father/son relationship.

 

[Grumulkin]

Crows by and large, except for young and foolish ones, avoid my air space.

Being on 100 acres, if I were shooting straight up or almost so I'd shoot at a crow with a 22 LR as I'd know the bullet would come down on my property. I would never try a shallower angle even if there was allegedly nothing out there.

I think crows are pretty tough. A 270 Winchester and a 204 Ruger does a pretty good job on them. I called one in one time and took 3 shots at it with a 12 gauge shotgun. The thing kept flying after the last shot for probably 100 yards and then suddenly died and fell out of the sky. For my shotgun crow loads now, I use #4 or #5 shot.

 

[cat_IT_guy]

500-600y doesnt sound like a large enough margin of safety to me. 1) I really dont want to hurt anyone / anything (other than the target) and 2) I really dont want to get sued for negligence by victim's owner or family.

 

[Murphys Law]

Ha! Great story Officer's Wife . The old rule for rifles, If you can see "Sky, then best not Try" still works.

 

[ironworkerwill]

Depends on where you are at. Crows are sharp little critters. My guess is you kill a couple at 100 yds. Then you don't get any closer than 200 yds the next go round.

Yes! I bought a call and it worked very good... the first time. The second time a few came in, they stayed out of shotgun range. After a few die they learn what killed the others. Unlike some humans they learn from the mistakes of the fallen.

Now we have to run around to different locations and use hawk calls in for insurance. Maybe some McDonald's cheeseburger wrappers to get them on the ground. Squirrel hides and corn works good too. Corn works really good during planting time.

 

[buck460XVR]

Depends on where you are at. Crows are sharp little critters. My guess is you kill a couple at 100 yds. Then you don't get any closer than 200 yds the next go round.

Yep...that pretty well sums it up. Crows are fast learners, and you need to continuously change your tactics and area to stay successful. As for shooting a crow in the tree with a .22LR......is that any different that shooting squirrels with a .22? No, and folks do that all the time.

As for shooting flying crows @ 60 yards with a 12 ga., I ain't saying it can't be done, but even with high priced duck/goose/turkey loads, you are really pushing it. JMO.

 

[Hardtarget]

I taken very few crows with rifle. Its always the safety factor.
Most fun with crows was in a cedar tree filled field when I was about 15 yrs old. The trees were 12 to 15 feet tall. I was carrying a .410. I hit one and he was down and squalling. The others couldn't see me and I was snap shooting straight up as they passed over. Think I missed a few but got six before they all flew off. It was busy for a few minutes though!

If crows see you and identify you as the villain they will mark your territory...and leave it alone.

Mark

 

[vtsteve]

As for shooting flying crows @ 60 yards with a 12 ga., I ain't saying it can't be done, but even with high priced duck/goose/turkey loads, you are really pushing it. JMO.

You're right, I was being a bit optimistic. It's more like 40-45 max and even that is pushing it. They're tough little bastards, but they sure are tasty if you prepare them right.

 

[Sheepdog1968]

Do crows do a lot of damage to farming operations? Just curious. I have no issues hunting them for sport either.

 

[Sniper66]

No, I don't think they damage farm operations, but they do raid song bird nests. So, where you find large populations of crows, the song bird population suffers.

 

[Rule3]

A bullet (in this case a 22) shot up in the air at more than a 45 degree angle will only come down at the force of gravity. it is no longer going over a 1000 fps.

The math/physics wizards can do the calculations, I am old and forget,

No I would not one to drop on my head but it is not as deadly as one going in a straight line. Not saying you should have bullets land on others property.

 

[TimSr]

As for shooting a crow in the tree with a .22LR......is that any different that shooting squirrels with a .22?

A little bit. I hunt squirrels with .22 but won't take the shot if he's in the small branches with nothing but air behind. Most squirrel shots for me involve the tre trunk as a backstop or positioning where you are not shooting so much upward. When the trees still have leaves, it doesn't take much to slow down and deflect a .22.

 

[Officers'Wife]

No, I don't think they damage farm operations, but they do raid song bird nests. So, where you find large populations of crows, the song bird population suffers.

Same problems as sparrows, when they roost in buildings they tend to poop on machinery. Their manure is even more corrosive than hog manure. Starlings and crows also have a bad habit of attacking feed supplement in paper bags if stored in a non bird-proofed building. Tearing holes in the bags and spilling the meal and ... shall we say fouling that that stays in the bag.

 

[Chevelle SS]

I use a 22 mag on crows when they are out of shotgun range.

 

[Blade First]

May I suggest something in a hypervelocity .17 HMR load using the lightest bullet available? A center-mass hit on a crow will result in precipitation of claws, a beak and larger feathers...not much else.

And long-range liability of a tiny bullet should be less. A 15.5 or 17-grain bullet at such considerable velocity tends to totally fragment itself upon encountering anything...target or not.

I'm not a lawyer and wouldn't stoop to playing one on teebee. Please do your own research, but .17HMRs seem to be safe and incredibly accurate if you can coax crows to be active on other than what I call crow-days. They do like the nasty weather around here...

 

[au_prospector]

Physics

A bullet (in this case a 22) shot up in the air at more than a 45 degree angle will only come down at the force of gravity. it is no longer going over a 1000 fps.

The math/physics wizards can do the calculations, I am old and forget,

The force of gravity is measured in meters per second per second. Which simply means gravity ACCELERATES. This is measured in a vacuum with no resistance.

Reasoning this, once the bullet tops out and begins to drop it will accelerate until it hits the ground. Friction with air and any wind will effect this acceleration until terminal velocity is reached. If the bullet is stable, it will have more velocity of course than if it is tumbling. A human body tops out at around 120-130 mph in free fall (about 180 feet per second). A more aerodynamic bullet will hit the ground much faster. Personally I do not want a 40 grain anything hitting my car, or house window, or me for that matter at 300 feet per second.

So yes, there is a very good reason why manufactures warn to the 1.25 mile range. It is for the situation you yourself are asking about. ~ Aerial shots with a rifle.

 

[Taurus 617 CCW]

I took a crow in flight as a kid with a .22. It scared my mom to death when it nosedived onto the porch where she was sitting. I had to clean up all the blood. It went down in one shot. I could never take them at distance though. I was using Aguila colibri quiet ammunition and culd never get it dialed in. I would see them move their heads as the bullet passed by but never scored a direct hit. I got impatient and grabbed the shotgun. I got another one with a single shot from that.

 

[MtnCreek]

If the bullet's landing on your land, go for it. As mentioned, they are quick learners.

If you want some ground shots, plant a few rows of corn and wait for it to sprout. They pull the sprouts and eat the kernel.

 

[jmorris]

The math/physics wizards can do the calculations, I am old and forget,

Acceleration from zero, after it stops going up and starts back down, at clost to 32 ft per second per second at least until it reaches termanial velocity because of drag in the air.

Looks like that number is around 300 ft/second, if straight up and down.

New years seems to be the worst day for falling bullets as well, I would guess many thousands in the air across the US and more than a few in high population areas.

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celebratory_gunfire

Just ran the numbers (not vertical but also not completely horizontal if your going to compensate for the drop) in a ballistic calculator for a 22lr round. At 1000 yards one would still be going 387 fps and have had almost 240ft of drop.