Night hunting is something unappealing to many hunters. The reason is that you need special gears to hunt at night, as well as put your life at higher risk. But it is also more rewarding and exciting. If you can afford a thermal vision or night vision scope, then you should know 3 reasons why you should try night hunting once in your life.
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Rare animal species
The most interesting period of the wildlife day is the evening. The forest will be more energetic than ever. A lot of animal species goes out of the shelter to find food. Then, it is also when nocturnal predators appear. Some of them you will never see in during the daytime. Therefore, night hunting gives you chances to hunt a lot of rare species.
During daytime, the most common hunting targets are birds, whitetails, or some subspecies of bulls. Meanwhile the night, you can hunt wild boars, coyotes, and even panther. Some especially big bulls also work at night. Moreover, you can look for animal’s bedding grounds to hunt. Feeding grounds sometimes are too large, so beddings are easier and more effective.
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More challenging
Night hunting doesn’t not only give you special targets but also give you an opportunity. It’s the opportunity to feel more excitement and adrenaline inside you. Night hunting, in every aspect, is a lot challenging than day hunting.
Hog hunting is common night hunting practice. They are not only pigs, they are wild boars. They are mightier, smarter, more sensitive, and harder to be hunted. They walk in random patterns and do not leave many trails to follow. They are hard to be recognized in the dark. But more important, if you don’t approach properly, you may lose them or even be counterattacked.
To hunt a predator is the most challenging thing. They are carnivore animals, their senses are a lot better than human, so they can easily detect us. They are also too smart to be hunted by normal traps. Moreover, each kind of predator has different hunting and living habits, as well as other customs. Therefore, you must learn and prepare for any specific species and specific conditions. You even need to spend much time to observe the animals. There are many things to do to have a successful hunt, and thus more exciting.
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Improve survival ability
Hunters need to learn how to survive in the wild. And night hunting is the hardest test for your survival abilities. Under the moonlight, there are a lot of targets for the hunt, and also a lot of threats for you. As said, predators are very sensitive, and if you’re careless, you may become their food. In the jungle night, you have to spend 200% of your power to survive.
In the dark, your visibility is limited. Even when using a thermal scope, your vision is also narrower than it is in the morning. If you don’t move properly, you can alert the animals so they will know your location. When you are spotting some animals, there may be some others are spotting you. You must their pattern comprehensively, and timely react to any of their moves. If you feel danger, you need to escape in the safest and most quiet way. Otherwise, you will provoke the predators, being chased and attacked.
Although it’s appealing, you mustn’t forget that night hunting is dangerous. So, you need to remember some precautions to keep yourself safe and alive.
Precautions
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Have at least two tactical flashlights
Vision is your survival in the dark. Without it, you are blinded, thus are hunted. A good police flashlight is reliable and can last for days. But you must have a second one in your bag for the worst situations. May be the hunt is longer than you estimation and the light is out of battery. Or you accidentally drop it during work. Everything is possible, so you need an extra light support ready in your bag.
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Buy a bushcraft knife
If you are camping, knives are just supporting tools. But if you are hunting, they are more effective than you think.
For some reasons, you will need other weapons aside from your rifle. Maybe it gets errors or runs out of rounds, your gun should not be your only weapon. A knife, especially bushcraft knife can be the choice. Those bushcraft knives are for survival purposes, so they are as tough as small swords. They can be used to secure a weakened but struggling animal. Or you can defend yourself against agressive predators, even bad manners. Intruders will think twice when they know that you have weapons.
Hunters also need a shelter to rest and recovery during the hunt, the knives will help you. You can use them to cut or carve wood and make tinder to start the fire. Their solid pommel can be used for hammering tasks to nail something to the ground. You can also use knives to fix other gears. Their sharp, thin points can be used to turn the screws and other tiny parts.
- Try blind shooting strategy
Blind shooting means you will hide and shoot from in a shooting blind. This strategy is especially good for night hunting. Blind shooting reduces chances of getting detected from other dangerous animals. You are safer when aiming, no sudden attacks will happen until you reveal yourself.
You can spot the location of the targets in the morning. Then, place your blind nearby in the evening and wait for them to appear at night. This strategy allows you time to carefully choose targets, angles, and perfect shooting moments.
The blind also protects you from the severe cold of the night forest. You may spend hours out there without a good chance to kill the animals. A long time exposure to the cold can result in sickness. Being sick is the forest is the worst thing ever.
With the fact that there are more hunters use an AR-15 rifle to hunt, blind shooting can improve your results. It’s because you can easily deploy a bipod. The downside of an AR-15 rifle is the aftershot recoil and barrel hops. They move your reticle around, resulting in inaccurate shots. Using a bipod will eliminate those factors and increase shooting precision. A shooting blind allows you time to aim and the ability to use a bipod. Therefore, it generally increases your shooting accuracy.
Look for a good AR-15 bipod here to increase your shooting accuracy.
Rare animal species, especially predators, and higher difficulty are exactly the reasons why you should try night hunting. It is also a good way to test and improve your survival abilities. Just remember to call some fellow hunters to hunt with you as it will be safer and more effective.
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