quote:

Originally posted by nopride2:
Here in Washington a few years ago, a couple of (14?) kids shot a woman. They thought she was a bear.

Dave

Yes, she was bent over, getting something out of her pack. Shot from 120 yards away in some fog. terrible deal! not sure if the rumors she was wearing black are true.

When I first started hunting I went to deer camp with my friend and his father, grandfather, and uncles and other friends. As they were passing around the bottle they were telling us young hunters stories of years past. One of the Old timers had shot his own horse thinking it was an elk. How does someone shoot their own horse you say? Lots of alcohol was involved they said. Walked in a big circle and came into where he had tied up his horse. He saw some movement in the trees and said he swore it was an elk. He walked back into camp with the saddle and tack and never lived that one down.

Similar incidents have been attributed in part to the mind overpowering what the eyes are seing. It is easier than you think. Below is a short demonstration of this principle as further explained in this study: THE SCIENCE BEHIND MISTAKEN FOR GAME HUNTING ACCIDENTS: