Yesterday was our last day of Rabbit Season, and we've had no rabbits yet. I quit my block laying, grabbed the 22 and hopped into Pat's golf cart. As it got late, they started hopping out of the briers for some green grass. Four shots and four bunnies. All head shots. She was happy !!!
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you gonna make slippers out of the furs?
Nice Rabbits Magicman!
Rabbit hunting was some of the first hunting I ever did. Not easy without a dog, but it can be done. Got one this bird season with the 12 gauge. One winter we had an early snow, and then it melted. Bunnies had already turned white, but no snow! They stuck out like a sore thumb, sat there like they were hiding. Think me and dad got 5 or 6 that day. hope you enjoy those rabbits, what are they gonna go into? stew?
Whatever it is, I'll bet hot biscuits and gravy goes with it. digin1
We used to love to go rabbit hunting in the groves when I was little. They were one of the few things we could legally hunt at night. 'Course I dont think we were supposed to pick them up when they were shot as agricultural pests, but we did. You shine a light down-between two rows of trees. If the little reflection you see is yellow, it's a spider. If it is Red.....Rabbit. ;D You wouldn't believe how many rabbits live in an Orange Grove. You wouldn't believe how many of them died in an orange grove either. :)
We've shined many at night. My late Brother was the shooter and I was the toter. We thought that it was illegal, but a few years later someone got caught, challenged it in court, and won. It didn't take very long until it was illegal. We still went. Country folks had ta eat.
Did you ever kill any swampers? It's been a long time since we would hunt the river bottoms for them. Missouri Conservation is doing a 'swamp-rabbit' study in this area this spring. The first such study since '91, they're using college 'natural history' students to help in scouting areas suitable of habitat. The area of interest is first surveyed and evidence of swampers is then mapped for later study.
They identify the rabbit 'pills' on logs and something interesting to note about some 'pills', the ones that are light in color, often a yellow green or pale, are half digested when defecation occurs, the rabbit will eat the pills later for nourishment. Fully digested 'pills' are nearly black in color.
Also, swampers are very territorial, one study says they only range out over an acre or two, unless forced by floods or predators or scarcity of food. I know the old swamper hunters always said, "stay right where you jumped him, he will be back!"
Three of these were swampers and one hillbilly. Growing up, we did not have any swamp rabbits. They were only found along the Mississippi River bottoms which is 15 miles West of me. Now, the majority of our rabbits are swampers?
We found both in the groves, but cottontails were more prevalent. The Mangrove swamps and beaches on the Atlantic had, almost all, swamp rabbits. There was always the expert who stuck his chest out, put his hands on his hips and said that swamp rabbits were no good. We shot them anyway and found that you couldn't tell the difference once they were dressed (undressed?) and fried. ;D :P
Grew up in Missouri with a .22 and a river bottom farm land environs, rabbits were a steady fare after the first frost, quail, too, after I got the .20 gauge. Mom would fry em up, dad would not let me clean them till he was sure it was cold enough that the rabbit fever was over with.
During the early '40's dad would supplement the table meat with jack rabbits, we lived (I was barely alive, under 5 in Colorado) in Colorado and shells were hard to come by because of the war, so dad bought any he could find, 12 gauge. He found a couple of cases of buck shot some where, and loose shoot, sacks of it. I still have a couple of mason jars full of 00 buck that dad emptied out and reloaded the shells. Mom would can the jack meat (apparently we ate a LOT of rabbit) the canned seemed to get a lot more tender after awhile in what ever she canned it in.
I haven't eaten rabbit since I can to Texas back in the '60's, to dang hot and they really are a mess down here, fleas, ticks, and who knows what else.
There was 8 in our family growing up so any meat was certainly welcome for the table. My mom's unwritten rule was if we would clean it she would cook it. A large part of the farm I grew up on was over grown woods with plenty of rabbits and squirrels there. I inherited a savage single shot bolt action that it's stock had been broken and taped back up. Shells were expensive so you tried to make sure that head shots were used to not mess up the meat and make a quick clean kill. I sure liked skinning them over squirrel.
I've eaten hare and they are just as good as chicken. I have not eaten any in awhile and my woods is beginning to get quite a crop. Actually I like coming upon a hare, it won't eat you or chase you down. ;D . Probably of all the mammals out there you'll come across a hare more often than any. Well, besides squirrels.....and moose. ;)
We don't see any mooses :P ::)
Too hot down there I guess. ;D
We use to eat a lot of rabbit stew.My Father loved to hunt rabbit with a beagle.He was always looking for a good dog.He bought one from a hunting magazine from a supposedly a good stock.Had it flown to Maine form the south somewheres. Was not worth nothing.Had better luck from the litter down the road.He called it Money Bags as a nickname.Have to remember money was tight in our house.Took alot to have him part with probably $200 for a dog back in 1970.Just never know how a dog will do.I think this one ended up out back and got replaced with a better one.Than the rabbits disappeared.
I got home from sawing this evening and the Crock Pot was bubbling. digin1