The sunset reflected what the day had been.
A genuine "Cinnamon Roll"
We had a bit of excitement after the sun went down. We were sitting in the hot tub, when "Lefty" the Old English Rooster cackled alarm and came running around the house in the dark. I got my pistol and a light, but wasn't quick enough to get a shot at the Coyote disappearing around the corral. Apparently he managed the theft of a young Rooster that was slated for our table and one of my old white hens. The excitement never ends!
There was very little wind this morning, but I had neglected to charge the drone battery, so I was going to have to wait to fly Jessie. We loaded up Hope and headed for the rabbit field around 9 AM. The wind was still not blowing and Hope was actually about 10 grams lower that the weight that she was when I first got her. Today was to be the test to see how much weight factors in to her head count. Last year I would have told you that it really didn't matter other than she had to be low enough in wing loading to make the turns. I was of the opinion that up to 960 grams, (arrived at 878 grams ) her weight didn't matter, the reason for her difficulty this year seemed to be more of her judgement rather than her desire to close. Today should tell the tale.
The winds were calm upon our arrival at the field, but I was having problems, first in finding Rabbits and then in finding them close, rather than 50 to 100 yards out. I tried a different section of the field, but only managed to get three up, and they were out there quite a way. She tried hard, multiple times on each rabbit, but judgement again played a large part in her misses. Still crashing the brush, but no "cigar". We even had one who stayed in his bush until she actually saw him hiding. She crashed into one side of the bush, he came out of the other. We were too close for anything other than a crash into the ground trying to get her toes in his butt. Further away she could have busted through and got him on the other side. I have seen older birds, hover over the bush they were hiding in and grab them when their nerve broke.
I went around a rock pile and flushed a Jack. Hope took a shot at him- missed- got back in the air and grabbed him in a thick bush. He squealed , and I thought that we were done, but he scraped her off on the bush. She went after him again and lit on a bush. I ignored her, thinking that she was just bummed. She didn't leave it however, so I began to walk over to her. She was down in the bush a bit, and the rabbit snuck out of the other side without her seeing him.
Karen was following in the car as I zigged and zagged up the hill, and we had momentarily lost sight of each other. I had decided to head back down the hill through the part that I had not hunted yet. I got on top of a lava ridge so that she could see me. I indicated to her the direction that I was going to take, and started on my way. A Jack busted close under foot, and Hope took off after him. She crashed into the ground and missed. She got back up and this time she caught him. When I got there I could see that she was tangled up in the bush and he was sticking out on the other side straining for all he had to pull out of her feet. We had been through that once already, but not this time! I carry a 22 pistol for the Coyote that comes to a Rabbit call, that happens to be in her feet, or even Bob Cats that get tangled up in her toes if necessary. There was no way that she could move, and a wonder that she didn't get hurt as well, so I popped him in the head, putting all three of us out of our misery. I generally don't use the gun, but sometimes its necessary.
I had to break the bush apart to get her out. She had one foot on one side of the main stem and a pile of fur as well as his tail on the other. He also had a patch of skin about 4 inches in diameter torn out of his side. You can see it in the picture above.
I gave her her tidbits in the cup and a front leg from the Jack. She was pretty torqued up so I gave her the rib cage from her last bunny, and walked off and left her, going back to the car. We let the dogs out for a run, and soon she lifted over the Sage with the rib cage in her beak flying to me. Someday I will remember her tendency and get a picture of it.
The wind had been rising the last few minutes of our hunt, but not too bad so far. We loaded up and went on home. I had covered one mile of Sage in a straight line to our kill. Not sure how that would measure out along the twisted path that we covered.
By the time we arrived home the wind was up to 25 MPH. Jessie was at rock bottom, so I decided to just turn her loose and call her to the lure. She did so without any drama, but as she was sitting on the lure with her wings out the wind was scooting her back. She was holding onto the lure with both feet and beginning to lift off the ground without moving.
I mentioned in the first part of this story that I wasn't sure that weight was the problem with Hope's difficulty in making catches. She is a bit more nimble, but not more eager than she is at over 900 grams. The Rabbit that we caught today was the fattest Jack that I have seen in a long time. He was an old timer, very strong and very cunning. ( But today he was unlucky) This area that I am hunting is shared with a pair of Goldens that do not seem to be hurting for food. The Jack's that live here are honed by Coyotes, Bob Cats, and Golden Eagles. With the population this low, there are no dumb ones, other than Hope that is. :-) Time and experience will hone her skills. She always tries her best, and that is all one can ask. The rest comes with time.
