# quail: no idea what i'm doing.



## monster

does anyone know a decent way to catch quail without having to build a trap?

i was stuck in ogden, ut for 4 days waiting for a train, running out of food and going crazy a few weeks ago when a delightful family of quail came moseying by. i had carved an atlatl a few hours earlier out of boredom but at close range and with such huge darts, shitty aim and thick brush, it was a completely impractical weapon. and it was just for practice.

anyway, i eyed those quail off and on for hours. i waited in the brush for them to come nearby for over an hour, but they just squinted at me like i was the ghetto of the park.

suggestions?


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## sykgutt

make a rabbit stick and PRACTICE

Throwing Stick

The throwing stick, commonly known as the rabbit stick, is very effective against small game (squirrels, chipmunks, and rabbits). The rabbit stick itself is a blunt stick, naturally curved at about a 45-degree angle. Select a stick with the desired angle from heavy hardwood such as oak. Shave off two opposite sides so that the stick is flat like a boomerang (Figure 12-5). You must practice the throwing technique for accuracy and speed. First, align the target by extending the non-throwing arm in line with the mid to lower section of the target. Slowly and repeatedly raise the throwing arm up and back until the throwing stick crosses the back at about a 45-degree angle or is in line with the non-throwing hip. Bring the throwing arm forward until it is just slightly above and parallel to the non-throwing arm. This will be the throwing stick's release point. Practice slowly and repeatedly to attain accuracy.








i know it says for small game, but i remember reading about a guy who made one out of a metal bar and killed pigeons with it


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## wokofshame

i'm looking at actually buying a fiberglass crossbow right now to carry around w/ me. ebay?


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## monster

if you're down with the old school, bowstick.com lets you build a bow for free as long as you document your process for further diy instruction.

http://www.bowstick.com/free.html


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## FrumpyWatkins

good wood for rabbit throwing stick is any hard wood, oak beech, etc...


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## Dameon

You could also learn to set traps. I'm not sure how a trap would work on quail (or much about trap making in general), and it's a slow process of getting food, but it works and doesn't take too much energy on your part.

Also, instead of a rabbit stick, what's wrong with a good ol' fashioned sling? Not as hard to make, and fairly accurate once you're practiced with it.


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## FrumpyWatkins

best and simplest traps are snares


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## kai

for quail, squirrels, pigeons and other small animals use a wrist rocket.

have a knife handy that's sharp so you can cut the throat cause sometimes the slingshot will only incapacitate the animal so that it can't escape and preferably I feel getting the kill over with as quickly and humanely as possible is important.


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## RandomRaccoon

If yer gonna cut throat, have a container ready... blood is to valuble to waste and if you slit the neck its all comin out...


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## sykgutt

what can you do with the blood?


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## skunkpit

eat the blood..
or dehydrate and store air tight, good travel food

(if you have some bait) finding a nice size rock with a flat bottom, digging a hole so the rock perfectly covers the top of the hole and a stick holding the rock up at one end and tied, and just wait for somethin to go inside to get the bait and pull the string

mmm mm


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## sykgutt

i don't think i will ever find myself eating blood (though i have on accident, biting into a burger i made in the dark)


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## monster

haha! i'm vegan but nothing lasts forever!


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## macks

i suppose that could be considered freegan


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## skunkpit

mmm vegan blood


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## finn

The blood is more for iron and salt than anything else- you can use it in soup or you can cook it in bread if drinking it makes you squeamish.


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## monster

if it's anywhere near as tasty as my own blood, i imagine i'll be making cocktails with it.

...you know, because i totally bleed myself regularly just to make hematinis.


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## RandomRaccoon

sykgutt said:


> i don't think i will ever find myself eating blood (though i have on accident, biting into a burger i made in the dark)



Trust me, in a survival situation, you NEED to eat the blood!!! you need everything you can get! Liver lungs kidneys heart BLOOD and brains, its all good food and more nutritions that even the meat is!


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## skunkpit

http://www.primitiveways.com/
seems like this dude really knows what hes doin.
lots of good info there


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## Bendixontherails

MURT said:


> i'm looking at actually buying a fiberglass crossbow right now to carry around w/ me. ebay?


 
I love my pistol crossbow, but I wouldn't take it on the road. Cops HATE crossbows. even the cheesy pistol crossbows have more usable puncture force at close range than most small arms fire. most crossbows will penetrate bulletproof vests much more often than pistol fire willat close range.


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## finn

Bendixontherails said:


> I love my pistol crossbow, but I wouldn't take it on the road. Cops HATE crossbows. even the cheesy pistol crossbows have more usable puncture force at close range than most small arms fire. most crossbows will penetrate bulletproof vests much more often than pistol fire will at close range.



Slingshots are also problematic, I hear possession is a felony in NJ. Maybe you'll have to get good with an improvised sling? Plenty of ammo!


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## BrokeWhiteBoy

finn said:


> Slingshots are also problematic, I hear possession is a felony in NJ. Maybe you'll have to get good with an improvised sling? Plenty of ammo!



A big rock and a strong arm... best improvised weapon/tool ever.


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## spoorprint

I've never tried this, but a couple of places I've read suggestions that you can bait lines with hooks and catch birds with them the same way you survival fish.Tie one end of the line to a branch and put some tasty bait out where the bird can see it.Uses multiple lines to increase your chances.

Sounds nasty, I 'don't know why I have more sympathy for birds than fish, but it might be good to use in a real emergency. And obviously, don't leave the hooks out on trails or beaches.


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## tothewind

A lot of people catch small birds with snare traps. Deadfalls are also very practical, and take almost no time/effort to make an ok one. 

http://www.i4at.org/surv/traps.htm


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## crumb

best way to do it without making a trap.... buy a shotgun.


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## finn

I heard of this kid in baltimore who uses pit traps to catch animals and eat them who used pit traps. The secret is to have a large rock raised over the hole with some smaller stones and then to scare the suckers in. The other variation has food in the bottom of the pit and makes the large rock fall in, pinning the animal inside as a combination deadfall/pit trap.


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## Johnny Lightspeed

weird seems like everyone I've met from baltimore was into traps and whatnot


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## Wotan

I saw this on a episode of the British Bush craft master Ray Mears. You will need about three feet of string or thin twine and a hand full of trail mix. Knot bits of fruit along the string at two inch intervals. Tie the end of the string tightly to the base of a tree. Make sure the baited twine is visible to a bird walking in the underbrush. If you are lucky a partridge or some game bird will find it. Once the bird starts eating along the rope it becomes trapped for it cannot vomit it up. I saw this survival dude do it successfully. I plan on trying it next time I'm in the bush.


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## oldmanLee

Follow birds till dark,observe where they roost.Throwing stick will work,but you can slip up if you are quiet,pluck a couple off the branch if low enough and wring their necks.Keep in mind to wait a few min. after they roost(usually not more than 5' off the ground) 'til they go to sleep.If quiet enough can get several before the ones left panic.


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## sleep

A blowgun might work they are easy to make and pretty accurate with practice.

Be careful carrying sling shots they are illegal in most places but if you have one iron ore pellets make great ammo and you can find tons of them near the train tracks if you look around they just look like little brown balls.


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## hartage

The best way I know of getting meat in the wilderness with the least amount of materials and effort with the highest rate of success would be snares. You can set several along various game trails low to the ground. You can trap quail, rabbits just about anything. Snares are really can be nothing more than a loop of string but preferably braided cable or other chew resistant and strong string. I'm not advocating leg snares. But low vertical set snares that will be quick through asphyxiation around neck. 

Google it. Buy one or two ready made snares. When you understand better how they work and what makes them work, make your own.

The appeal of snares is their effectiveness, you can set several then just do something else or just wait. Check on them a bit later and see what you have. Expenditure of YOUR energy is minimal. Another appeal is minimal cost and materials. A dozen small snares can fit in the palm of your hand mere a ounce or two of weight. Compared to other methods suggested here, dirt cheap. Also if LE looks through your pack snares are not a threat to LE so it won't give you issues with them. Though you'll have to look at your particular state's laws to see if mere possession of snares in the wilderness is against the law. Some states prohibit snares.


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