| Small Game Articles |
John N. Felsher's Rabbit Hunting Adventures
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"That sounds like old Molly,” said Shawn Knapp as he listened to the
howling of beagles echoing through the pine forest. “She’s on a hot rabbit
trail with Thibodeaux and Rascal.”
We attempted to follow Molly, Thibodeaux, Rascal and eight other
beagles through heavy underbrush, perfect habitat for rabbits. However,
thorny vines barred the way. We could not move as quickly through the
frosty cover as either the rabbits or dogs.
Shawn, Fred Smith and Enoch Drozda pressed forward into the central
Louisiana thicket. Many rabbit hunters wear heavy canvas pants or chaps
to bust through thick cover. Briers can easily rip light cotton -- and skin. J.
W. Bolton, my sons, Daniel and Steven and I chose the road more
traveled. We took up positions on old fire trails around the thicket edge.
Trees showed scars of a fire that burned much of the brush.
Such recently burned forests or clear-cuts often sprout with new green
shoots, offering excellent nourishment for bunnies. Rabbits relish new
growth grasses, clovers, blackberry, dewberry, greenbrier, honeysuckle,
and even bark of some trees. When feeding, rabbits make distinctive 45-
degree cuts on plant stems to distinguish them from the jagged bites of
deer and other herbivores. Such cuts and scattered round droppings leave
sign that rabbits inhabit an area.
I stayed near Steven. Daniel advanced about 50 yards up the trail and
stood near a burn-scarred pine tree. The dogs howled unseen in the
dense thicket.
“They are getting closer, guys,” I said. “Listen to the dogs howl. Be
alert because a rabbit might come running out of this thicket at any minute.”
Just beyond the green vegetation barrier, the howling dogs pressed
their acute noses to the cold, damp ground. Only yards away, we could
catch glimpses of the dogs, but no rabbits, through the impenetrable
underbrush.
When hunting in heavy brush, teams of hunters must communicate.
They should wear orange to keep track of each other. In the rush of
excitement when a rabbit bolts from cover, hunters need to know which
directions offer safe shooting. People should never fire unless they can
positively identify their targets and what remains beyond.
Suddenly, a big swamp rabbit burst from the growth and ran toward
Daniel. It crossed the path out of range from Steven. We alerted Daniel.
The rabbit stopped in a small patch of grass and disappeared 20 yards
from him. He never saw it.
Daniel walked toward the clump, still unable to see the camouflaged
rabbit. As he approached, it erupted from the bush and raced back toward
the thicket. Daniel sent a quick load of shot from his 20-gauge Remington
pump toward the weaving swamper, but missed. When a rabbit rockets
from cover, shooters must react fast and throw a lot of lead in the direction
of the bounding furball. Many people prefer a fast, light 20-gauge short-
barreled pump or semi-automatic shotgun with an improved cylinder choke.
“The best gun is a 20 gauge with number 6 shot,” Knapp said. “Open
the pattern as much as possible because most of the shots are at running
rabbits. It doesn’t take much to bring down a rabbit if people can hit one.
One or two hops from those powerful hind legs and they disappear into
thick brush quickly.”
The dogs began running toward the other end of the thicket, towards
Shawn, Doug and Enoch. Soon, we heard a shot from inside the thicket.
Shawn bagged the first bunny of the day. Dogs didn’t remain silent for long
as they picked up another hot trail and crashed into the brambles. They
continued howling for the next several hours. Periodically, a shot echoed
through the thicket as one of the members in our party found an elusive
target.
“I just like to come out here to listen to the dogs howl,” J.W. said. “If
someone has been doing this long enough, they can tell which dog is
howling and why. We can tell when a dog is on a hot trail or just searching.
I don’t care if I shoot a rabbit at all. It’s exciting just to hear the dogs.”
Most sportsmen may target two rabbit species, eastern cottontails
(Sylvilagus floridanus) and swamp rabbits (Sylvilagus aquaticus), also
known as “cane cutters.” Both species often overlap their territories. More
widespread and common, cottontails generally prefer thickets near
pastures, forest edges or clear-cuts. They like weedy brier patches, woody
cover or thick underbrush.
Swamp rabbits prefer wetlands, marshes or wooded bottomlands.
They readily swim to escape predators. When pursued by dogs, coyotes or
bobcats, they jump into water to dissipate their scent. Sometimes, they
submerge with only their noses sticking out of the water to breathe.
Both species are almost identical except that swamp rabbits typically
grow slightly larger, about 3 to 6.5 pounds compared to 1.5 to 3.5 pounds
for a cottontail. Darker swamp rabbits tend to show more brown and black
on their fur and have a dark ring around their eyes. In contrast, grayish-
reddish cottontails have a pale cream-colored ring around their eyes.
howling of beagles echoing through the pine forest. “She’s on a hot rabbit
trail with Thibodeaux and Rascal.”
We attempted to follow Molly, Thibodeaux, Rascal and eight other
beagles through heavy underbrush, perfect habitat for rabbits. However,
thorny vines barred the way. We could not move as quickly through the
frosty cover as either the rabbits or dogs.
Shawn, Fred Smith and Enoch Drozda pressed forward into the central
Louisiana thicket. Many rabbit hunters wear heavy canvas pants or chaps
to bust through thick cover. Briers can easily rip light cotton -- and skin. J.
W. Bolton, my sons, Daniel and Steven and I chose the road more
traveled. We took up positions on old fire trails around the thicket edge.
Trees showed scars of a fire that burned much of the brush.
Such recently burned forests or clear-cuts often sprout with new green
shoots, offering excellent nourishment for bunnies. Rabbits relish new
growth grasses, clovers, blackberry, dewberry, greenbrier, honeysuckle,
and even bark of some trees. When feeding, rabbits make distinctive 45-
degree cuts on plant stems to distinguish them from the jagged bites of
deer and other herbivores. Such cuts and scattered round droppings leave
sign that rabbits inhabit an area.
I stayed near Steven. Daniel advanced about 50 yards up the trail and
stood near a burn-scarred pine tree. The dogs howled unseen in the
dense thicket.
“They are getting closer, guys,” I said. “Listen to the dogs howl. Be
alert because a rabbit might come running out of this thicket at any minute.”
Just beyond the green vegetation barrier, the howling dogs pressed
their acute noses to the cold, damp ground. Only yards away, we could
catch glimpses of the dogs, but no rabbits, through the impenetrable
underbrush.
When hunting in heavy brush, teams of hunters must communicate.
They should wear orange to keep track of each other. In the rush of
excitement when a rabbit bolts from cover, hunters need to know which
directions offer safe shooting. People should never fire unless they can
positively identify their targets and what remains beyond.
Suddenly, a big swamp rabbit burst from the growth and ran toward
Daniel. It crossed the path out of range from Steven. We alerted Daniel.
The rabbit stopped in a small patch of grass and disappeared 20 yards
from him. He never saw it.
Daniel walked toward the clump, still unable to see the camouflaged
rabbit. As he approached, it erupted from the bush and raced back toward
the thicket. Daniel sent a quick load of shot from his 20-gauge Remington
pump toward the weaving swamper, but missed. When a rabbit rockets
from cover, shooters must react fast and throw a lot of lead in the direction
of the bounding furball. Many people prefer a fast, light 20-gauge short-
barreled pump or semi-automatic shotgun with an improved cylinder choke.
“The best gun is a 20 gauge with number 6 shot,” Knapp said. “Open
the pattern as much as possible because most of the shots are at running
rabbits. It doesn’t take much to bring down a rabbit if people can hit one.
One or two hops from those powerful hind legs and they disappear into
thick brush quickly.”
The dogs began running toward the other end of the thicket, towards
Shawn, Doug and Enoch. Soon, we heard a shot from inside the thicket.
Shawn bagged the first bunny of the day. Dogs didn’t remain silent for long
as they picked up another hot trail and crashed into the brambles. They
continued howling for the next several hours. Periodically, a shot echoed
through the thicket as one of the members in our party found an elusive
target.
“I just like to come out here to listen to the dogs howl,” J.W. said. “If
someone has been doing this long enough, they can tell which dog is
howling and why. We can tell when a dog is on a hot trail or just searching.
I don’t care if I shoot a rabbit at all. It’s exciting just to hear the dogs.”
Most sportsmen may target two rabbit species, eastern cottontails
(Sylvilagus floridanus) and swamp rabbits (Sylvilagus aquaticus), also
known as “cane cutters.” Both species often overlap their territories. More
widespread and common, cottontails generally prefer thickets near
pastures, forest edges or clear-cuts. They like weedy brier patches, woody
cover or thick underbrush.
Swamp rabbits prefer wetlands, marshes or wooded bottomlands.
They readily swim to escape predators. When pursued by dogs, coyotes or
bobcats, they jump into water to dissipate their scent. Sometimes, they
submerge with only their noses sticking out of the water to breathe.
Both species are almost identical except that swamp rabbits typically
grow slightly larger, about 3 to 6.5 pounds compared to 1.5 to 3.5 pounds
for a cottontail. Darker swamp rabbits tend to show more brown and black
on their fur and have a dark ring around their eyes. In contrast, grayish-
reddish cottontails have a pale cream-colored ring around their eyes.
Rabbit hunters let the dogs out
to roam in the woods and thickets
to roam in the woods and thickets
Enoch Drozda and J.W. Bolton compare rabbits they killed with the
help of a pack of beagles while hunting near Singer, La.
help of a pack of beagles while hunting near Singer, La.
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