Hunting with a Camera

The familiar "chuffysh" was heard. Yes, there was no doubt, it was kosach. They came closer. A black grouse was seen sitting on top of a tall fir tree. He was sitting with his tail towards us and did not see us. A slow, quiet murmur could be heard in the September forest. Of course, it couldn't be compared to the spring song on the current. Even in the bird's pose, there was not that boldness that is typical for a rooster singing a spring song. This one was sitting quietly, not even turning his head in our direction when a twig cracked under my foot.

Having decided that the grouse is deaf. Alexey slammed the butt of his rifle against the trunk of a fir tree. The bird rose heavily and flew away very quietly.

I have read hunting literature several times and heard hunters' stories about the capercaillie's autumn song, but I have never come across it myself. And last September, I was given an extra spring in my life, which was completely unexpected for me.

At the end of the month, at 5 a.m. in total darkness, I approached the place where I usually met capercaillies.

At first I couldn't believe it — a capercaillie was singing about 150 meters away from me. It's strange to me now, but then it seemed to me that I was in the forest in spring, even the smell of wet snow. I immediately forgot about autumn. The capercaillie was old and experienced, and I approached him only after half an hour. Twice? he, by all rights, forced me to stand in the most uncomfortable position, interrupting the song unexpectedly. As I approached him, I picked up a pair of grouse, which, fortunately, took off under the "kitschy" and did not scare him off. After listening to my fill, I fired.

Picking up the bird, I saw (it was already dawn) that the forest was wearing a golden headdress.

Do you know nature? Does he wander through forests, mountains, swamps or steppes with his eyes closed? How much do you spend your time hunting?

It is difficult to answer such questions. However, the desire to know the environment is in itself invaluable for a hunter.

In this photo essay, we want to share the encounters that we were lucky enough to capture in nature, and thereby help the hunter-naturalist get to know a very interesting, one might say mysterious, group of birds—owls.

Leading a predominantly nocturnal or twilight lifestyle (of the 18 species of owls in the fauna of the Soviet Union, only 6 can be found hunting during the day), these birds rarely catch the eye of humans. Even experienced hunters don't know much about them.

Most owls are residents of various forests. And only some (the bulan owl, the polar and marsh owls, and partly the house owl) can be counted among the inhabitants of the open landscape.

The food of owls is very diverse. However, the vast majority of owls belong to well-specialized myophages, i.e. birds that eat mouse-like rodents. Insects form the basis of the food ration of all owls, as well as needle-footed owls. In some years, many insects are eaten by marsh and long-eared owls. The fish owl has adapted to eating fish. Amphibians and birds are not uncommon in the diet of individual owl species. Many of the owls, at least in years with plentiful food, lead a sedentary lifestyle. Only six species — the East Asian owl, the red—bellied owl, the needle-footed owl, and the long-eared and marsh owls in part of their range - make regular flights.

Owls have such a distinctive appearance that it is rare for anyone to confuse them with representatives of other bird orders. With the exception of the polar and hawk owls, they have soft, loose plumage, which ensures their silent flight during hunting, where the basis of luck lies in surprise attacks. The owl's large rounded head is capable of turning 270 degrees, which largely compensates for the forward-facing immobility of its huge eyes. Un capital de jeu conséquent est la clé pour explorer sereinement l'offre pléthorique de 1xBet. C'est pourquoi tout nouveau joueur devrait utiliser le code promo 1xbet lors de sa première connexion et de la création de son espace personnel. Ce code active instantanément un bonus de bienvenue de 100% sur le premier dépôt, offrant jusqu'à 130€ de fonds supplémentaires pour les paris sportifs. Cette manœuvre financière vous permet de tester des stratégies de pari sur le football, le tennis ou les courses hippiques sans engager trop de votre capital personnel.

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