Hi, all.
I'm quite new to the whole hunting/foraging thing, and there are some complications here in Australia (particularly in suburban areas) which make it quite difficult. No guns. No slingshots. Archery is allowed - although somewhat controlled.
The situation: I have just planted a decent garden, and have a whole heap of green stuff growing in my back yard. It looks like it'll be a nice harvest in a little while. Unfortunately, there appears to be an ever-increasing rabbit population growing in my local area. The last few mornings/nights, I've been able to spot a few out of my window. I'm actually quite ambivalent about this fact - I don't want those little bastards eating my crops, but at the same time I quite like the idea of popping a couple of them in the stewpot if I can get my hands on them.
Last night, upon turning off all the lights to go to bed, I noticed a happy little light brown fellow munching away across the road from me, lit by the lamppost outside our house. It's a sleepy little suburb, pretty much as far north as you can go and still call yourself Sydney. So there's no cars, no people about. I decide to try my luck.
Without any weapon prepared, I have to have a quick think about what to use. Ah, yes - those staves of wood I saved from a weed tree I chopped up the other day. I have them seasoning away in the garage. So I slowly, quietly make my way to the garage, silently open it and heft a 4 foot length up to shoulder height.
I stalk the bunny.
As I move closer in the shadows of my shrubberies, I go over my plan of attack. Should I rush forward, hoping to catch the bunny by surprise and knock the stuffing out of him? Or should I creep as close as possible and throw the branch, spear-like, at my prey, hoping to the unbalance or stun him long enough for me to grab him? I settle on the latter plan and raise the wood to my shoulder, testing its weight.
I manage to stalk closer and closer. The bunny isn't paying too much attention - he's used to humans walking past, and doesn't see me as a threat, I suppose. I manage to get half-way across the road, by this time in the full light of the lamppost, before the bunny decides I'm a threat. The moment of decision arrives - am I close enough to take the shot?
Alas, no. The bunny hops off into the underbrush.
Along with 4 of his friends whom I had not spotted!
Now, those of you who have been hunting for years will probably read this and face-palm in disgust at my lack of skill and knowledge. However, this is my first attempted hunt (other than spear-fishing), and I'm working under some limitations (see above.) I am open to any advice you might wish to give! (such as cross the well-lit road where it's not well-lit, and stalk up in the shadows of the other side of the road. That would be an obvious one.)
Incidentally, I had a go at setting a home-made bunny trap a couple of weeks ago, to no avail. I will try again tonight.
