So today I now have two kills in my name. Both of these were just so darned unlikely that I couldn't believe it until I saw the stuff on my arrow and the impaled critter on the cardboard target face. If I had been prepared, I would've had my digital camera to take the pictures, but this time, you'll just have to take my word for it and given the nature of these shots, I don't think I could repeat those!
Kill #1: A huge dragonfly. Apparently it wasn't doing so well, as it didn't quite move in time to escape being hit by my nice self-fletched Carbon Express Heritage 150. It had a pretty nice "squish" effect since it was big enough to get hit by the arrow but was still smaller than my nice 125 grain field point. Bug stuff isn't so bad and I easily wiped it off when I got home.
Kill #2: A lizard. Yes, you may be asking me how the heck I pulled this one off, given that I'm in a hot, humid climate and lizards are pretty active. So basically this lizard decided that the small space between the cardboard target face and the foam backstop was a good place to take a nap. This makes sense because it's still fairly warm and it's inaccessible to any raptors that might be looking for an easy lunch. There's also plenty of bugs, so the lizard has a nice little hideaway. So what happens is I'm practicing and then I do my usual thing and as I'm pulling arrows, one arrow is covered in what looks like red fluid and some random other gunk. Ok, rotting plant material. Then I pull the arrow further out and my nice Heritage 150 and the 125 grain tip is covered in red stuff and when it fully comes out, a lizard drops out. It's got a pretty good size hole in it that matches my field point. I put 1 and 1 together and realize that I actually hit the lizard. Reluctantly in an attempt to show it some respect, I pick up the punctured body (and it was a nice chest shot too!) and place it away from the trail and bury it under some dead leaves. After that target, I made it a point to check for lizards.
Now, for those of you who know me, I actually do have a bit of a liking for reptiles, especially snakes and turtles, but I also do have a soft spot for small lizards because they're just so darned cute. To be honest, I have far more qualms about killing or hurting a rattlesnake than a rabbit. One of the coolest things to watch I think is just seeing how a snake or a hawk or any other predator catches a rabbit and eats it.
Two kills... and I wasn't even hunting for them. I guess that's Nature's way of taking out the "lazy" population!
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