I am wanting to try for some of the small cats, and othedr nocturnal animals, as well as some of the smaller antelope next time.
I am going to take my drilling for birds anyway so I was wondering if any of you had used a shotgun for such.

I was wondering if ya'll thought big shot such as BB or#2's would be best or Buck Shot as in #4, 0, or 00?

Also we jumped some Grysbock[sp] and I thought if I had my Drilling I could have put them down.

Actual experiences and opinions appreciated.

The Drilling is 12x12x30-06, [2 3/4" 12 Ga].

N E 450

I've taken Serval,2 African Wild Cats, 5 Genets with a 12 ga. shotgun loaded with 3 inch #2's. The Genets I used #6's. I'd do it again in a second! Very happy with my choice of weapon.

5 Duikers, 2 Grysboks, 3 Klipspringers, 2 Civet, 6 Dassies and 4 porcupines, and 3 Blueballs, I used a .223, sorry, the Civets and one Klippie were with my 270, only thing I had at the time. Oh, two of the porcupines I used a .416 with solids. I used my PH's .223 on everything else. I'm looking to buy one for my own, a sweet calibur for the small stuff!

The drilling would be great. I usually take mine and have used 00 buck(16 Ga) for Dik Dik amd Blue Duiker. The other little guys I have taken I used my 338 with solids. Most of the small guys should be close shooting except for the Klippie or Orbi which could and probably will offer longer shots say 100 yds or more. Next year I am planning to take my 20 ga O/U instead of the drilling as I understand only two rifles and I don't want to get into a problem as to the classification of a drilling - rifle or shot gun. I am planning on going back to Zim looking for Leopard (338) and Hippo (416) and then to Natal for the little guys Grusbok, Red Duiker, Suni with the buck and rifle slugs and Vaal Rehbok (338). Oh the logistics of things.

I leave for the Selous Tuesday. I would like to take a caracal and serval. How do you hunt them? Night spotlighting or are the just targets of opportunity? Is night hunting legal in Tanzania/Selous?

Gentlemen
Thanks for the info.
Texas Hunter we saw several of them early in the morning and after dark when on the hunting roads looking for animal tracks or heading back to camp.
Also many times they apparently come to leopard baits, as we saw their tracks around tha baits.

As I am hunting leopard on this trip I plan to set on baits where we see these tracks even if a leopard is not comming around.
If a leopard does happen to show up the scoped drilling with the 30-06 should handle him.

Since there are a lot of elephant in the area I will have my big bore double in the blind with me, as I beleive when in elephant country always have an elephant rifle.

quote:

N E 450 No2

Thanks for the info. I'll give it a go. I would really like to have a caracal and a serval. I will propose we do some night driving and bait hanging.

Thanks,

Russell

Texas Hunter
On my first trip to Zim I killed a monster civet and a side striped jackel, on the same night, when driving back to camp. I took them both with my 9,3x74R Chapuis double with the illuminated reticle of the scope turned on.

Does anyone have any concerns about spot lighting game animals. In Oz we hunt with the light to erdaicate feral pests and most young blokes go through a period of "tally hunting" ie trying to shoot large numbers of animals using the light.

More mature hunters consider the dark hours to be dedicated to good beer, wine and whiskey and eschew spot lighting as unsporting (as well as cold and dangerous - not only from the firearms point of view but from falls, driving the vehicle into trees, ditches etc and cutting fingers off while skinning in the cold.

In Africa I've had the chance to go spotlighting but I'd rather sit in camp with a fire and a beer.

mike

I am going to do some pattern testing with my drilling with oo, No1 and No4 Buck as well as some of the larger shot sizes. Also I am curious how well the shotgun pattern is in line with the scope when the scope is sighted in with the rifle bbl.

Mike, like you I enjoy setting around the fire, however I have no problem shooting nocturnal animals at night under light, where legal.

NE.I have never been happy with No-4 buck,even on the small swamp deer here in the states,,dosen't seem to have the oomph needed to put them down, not sure how it would work on cats..and such,, I seem to have better luck with No-1 buck in the 16 and 12 ga. and use the triple-0 in the 10ga

I love hunting at night .. (Big No No up here in Alberta, though) .. in Africa and South America one sees the small (sometimes not so tiny) carnivores that only come out then .. always fascinating to me .. (although I still don't have a genet, civet, serval etc ...)

I have patterned various buckshot several times and never been satisfied with the results. In shotgunning the pellets typically lose energy so fast multiple hits are the key, even with buckshot hence the importance of pattern although there are remarkable stories about "golden pellets". Remember, a bad hit with the shotgun will cost you the same as a dead cat! With a rifle it'll likely be a clean miss or a trophy on such small game.