Backyard Bushcraft - Natural Body Armor

          Nine-Banded Armadillo Foraging

                                                                 

The art of bushcraft involves many things. Learning about those creatures in nature that we share our surroundings with is an important part of the process. Many creatures have developed special abilities that are unique or have adapted in special ways to their environment. One such creature is the nine-banded armadillo which is found in many parts of the southeastern United States.

Nine-Banded Armadillo at Dusk

The most unique characteristic about the nine-banded armadillo is that it has natural body armor. This characteristic combined with their surprising speed and the ability to quickly dig a hole to hide in can make it virtually impossible to catch them. Once they get dug in, it is extremely difficult to dislodge them and most predators will quickly give up and search for an easier meal. Many armadillos also have numerous burrows throughout their territory that they inhabit on a frequent basis.

They generally feed at dusk or in the early evening hours and forage mainly for insects, grubs and worms. Their grubbing can cause extensive damage at times and they have an appetite for eggs. If you are raising chickens, this can be a problem if you have armadillos around your area.

Their meat is edible and the taste is somewhat similar to pork and even though they have natural body armor, they are not “bullet-proof”. They are also quite often hunted for their meat. Nice to know that you can have a little variety in your "survival" diet.

When searching for armadillos, it’s best to wait for them to show themselves. Abandoned armadillo burrows are often used as homes by skunks and rattlesnakes. If you aren’t careful, you might find yourself encountering something altogether different than you expected.

The nine-banded armadillo (the actual number of bands can vary) has another very unique ability. It has the ability to inflate its intestines which allows it to simply float across rivers and streams. This makes it one more of nature’s creatures that are...

Staying above the water line!

Riverwalker

Rifle Safety Tip - Using Telescopic Sights Safely

Many rifle owners quite often overlook a very important safety practice when using telescopic sights on their rifle. The safe use of your rifle should always be a primary concern for your safety and the safety of others around you. Relying on your telescopic sights when hunting for long range spotting can be a very dangerous practice.

It's a lot safer to carry a good pair of binoculars for use in long range spotting instead of using the telescopic sight mounted on your hunting rifle. When using the telescopic sight on your rifle in this manner, your rifle will be in the firing position and pointed in the target’s direction. If someone or something that is not an intended target winds up in the telescopic sights of your rifle, you will also be violating one of the most important rules of gun safety.

Never point your rifle at anything or anybody unless you intend to fire.

It’s a lot safer to carry a good pair of binoculars to use for long range spotting.

Got binoculars?

Staying above the water line!

Riverwalker

Riverwalker's Pics - New Mexico Hunt

New Mexico Hunt

Here's a picture of a friend of mine from a recent hunting trip in New Mexico. Mrs. RW and myself recently had dinner with my friend and his better half. It's difficult for us to meet up very often because of work, etc. but sometimes things work out and we have a little get-together. As usual, the discussion got around to guns and hunting and about how some people have doubts about lever action rifles. My friend merely stated "Give me a couple of good hunting dogs, a lever action rifle and the rest will take care of itself."

Got lever action rifle?

Staying above the water line!

Riverwalker

Riverwalker's Gear - MX 450 Monopod Combo

Multi-use items are a great way to save money and minimize the amount of gear you may need to carry. They can serve a variety of purposes that will allow you to get the job done. Less items that you need to carry can save time and effort on your part. A great little item I came across at a yard sale is an MX 450 Monopod Combo. This is a great piece of gear that only cost $5.

This monopod comes with a foam grip and wrist strap for ease of use as a walking stick. A cap is included and is easily removed to allow the mounting of the V-shaped gun support. It also incorporates a standard camera mount in case you're shooting pictures instead of your gun.

Fully collapsed it is only 21 inches long and can be extended to 67 inches by use of the quick lever leg locks. This makes it fully adjustable for most people. My grandson even tried to appropriate it for his own use and took an immediate liking to it. Kids recognize a good thing when they see it!

It also comes with a rubber foot and ground spike. A few quick turns quickly converts from the rubber foot to the ground spike.

With this new addition to my gear, the ability to have a good walking stick that can quickly convert to a gun or camera support will always be handy. Having the option of a rubber foot or ground spike only increases it's versatility when used as a walking stick. A few simple modifications may be in order to further increase its use may be forthcoming.

Some of the modifications that I'm considering is the addition of some paracord on the upper handle and a case for a small multi-tool as well. I may even duct tape a small flashlight to it.

Got multi-use gear?

Staying above the water line!

Riverwalker

Pigstickers, Porkers, and Packs of Old Yellers

DG, a co-worker and my main back-up at work managed to get a little hawg huntin’ time in a while back and sent some pictures by e-mail you might like. I didn’t get to go on this little outing because I was probably busy fixing fence, sleepin’, or eatin’. And while I’m on the subject of eatin’, just wanted to let you know I had a really good bowl of beans for breakfast this morning. Beans…gotta love ‘em! Now back to the hawg huntin’!

My friends hunt with pigstickers and a pack of Old Yellers. For those of you who might not be familiar with Old Yellers, they are actually Blackmouth Cur Dogs. Old_Yeller in the book was actually one of these types of dogs. The dog in the movie version was a yellow lab. This feral_hog was average size and came in around 225 pounds. It did have some pretty big tusks for one this small. So if you’re looking for some practice against the invading hordes or looking to put some extra food on the table , do a little hawg huntin’, dig out your recipe book, and start cookin’!

BTW, sure hoping to get some extra time this weekend to spend with the twins!