Weird kill?

[MNpurple]

Only my 2nd year chasing roosters, loving it!! Yesterday I hit a WPA, 30 mph winds but sunny so it wasn't bad. One of the roosters I got fLushed close, I shot, he flinched a little but kept flying strong. I was cussing myself and watching the bird fly away and when he was maybe 250 yards out he started climbing, he got way higher than I have ever seen a pheasant fly!! Then without warning, his wings locked and he dropped like a rock straight to the ground into the cats. Me and the dog headed down there and after about half an hour searching found him dead. IS this odd behavior or reletively common? Did I just get him with one pellet maybe and why would he climb so high before dying. Seriously, this was pushing hawk altitude.

[Quackaddict9]

maybe not that high as youre talking about but I've had this happened twice to me when a couple flew and dropped out of the blue hundred of yards away, lucky both places were in harvested/disked field and someone's yard!

but this has happened quite often when goose hunting though.

[Imkmfly]

I do a lot of pheasant hunting and have seen this happen a few times. Usually a single BB to the heart from what I've seen when cleaning. Funny the first time you see it happen but does make you always watch after shooting at a bird and thinking you missed.

[2thepointsetters]

I have seen 4 times in the last 3 years. I have also seen grouse do the same thing but they dont fly has high/far.

[BobT]

Kudos to you for finding that bird! It upsets me enough to lose one when I see it land just 50 yards away. Can't imagine how you possibly did that.

Good job.

Bob

[goblueM]

Cool story. I've had them fly for a while then just drop stone dead, but I've never seen them go higher like that. Would have loved to see it.

[ikatcher]

that happened to me and my father a long time ago. he shot it and the bird starts flying staight up. this was in the mid eighties. it has not happened to me since.

[2 DA GILLS]

I have seen it in both ducks and pheasants. Like someone already stated, it must have something to do with where the fatal hit happened.

The one I recall best was a mallard. It must have gone 200+ yards and then started cork-screwing upward. My dad had stopped watching it and when I told him it had dropped stone dead half way across the lake, he did not believe at first. We motored across the lake and there it was. Pretty cool and it teaches you to watch your "missed" birds for some distance.

[ZEEK1223]

We had a rooster flush, and we all missed. The rooster was making its way to some near by cattails when it hit a high line wire. (the anchor wire that runs to the ground) The bird dropped like a rock, but we found it 20 yds from where it fell.

[dogs]

Hammer head stall; when you have one go a aways then straight up. Seen it happen on roosters a few times. seen ducks fold a ways out and drop like a rock, usally heart shot. Roosters will have to"Quincey" the next one to see where the shot lies.

[Matt Breuer]

My dad always used to say, "You shot him in the rudder!"

I had a ruffy flying away, shot, he kept flying and then suddenly turned and flew straight back at me. I actually ducked because I thought he was going to hit me. When I turned around he was a good 50' high and he just folded and landed behind me.

I've seen two other ruffed grouse, both of them were just fly aways I thought I missed then suddenly I saw them climb straight up above the trees and drop dead.

Also had sharp-tails fly outward of 100-150 yards before falling dead after an odd twitchy flight.

Agree with the above, one BB to the heart...

[NWBuck]

Classic heart shot behavior. Seen it many times over the years, and they are always dead in the air.

[Surface Tension]

Seen it happen a few times hunting pheasants.

Was hunting grouse one day. Bird got up I shot, bird kept going and then looked like it landed in a stand of balsams. I marked where it went and went in for another flush. Dog starts looking up in the balsams, I look can't see it. A few minutes later the grouse falls out of the tree to the ground. Figured I hit it in the lung.

[123fish]

I'm with NWBuck. Have seen it many, many times over 40+ years of pheasant hunting. Always get a good mark where that bird comes down after rocketing straight up because it is a guarantee they will be dead lying right where they came back to earth. Seen it enough times that it is a good feeling after thinking you missed to see the bird do that and know he's going to be laying right where he came down. We've always figured it was a heart shot.

[Gadgetman]

I think that it is called "towering" and is pretty cool to see. Heart shot for sure

[winniewalleye777]

I have seen that happen several times, the most interesting of which occured on the land neighboring our grass. We saw the neighbor group hunting the 80 next to ours, and they were on the opposite side. We happened to see a rooster get up and hear several shots, but no bird fall. The bird flew our way and was about 100 yds from our property when it rose high into the air and locked up and fell straight down. The other guys didn't see it fall, so I left my gun and walked over to get it for them. As I bend down to pick up the bird, the neighbor peels out in his truck down the road towards us and pulls up chewing us out for hunting his land. I told him what had happened, handed him the bird and he drove away with his tail between his legs.

[B@ssmaster]

I haven't personally witnessed this, but several of my hunting buddies have. They call it the "Death Climb" or "Death Spiral" (apparently once in a while they circle on their way up too). They tell me as soon as they see the climb start they know the bird will be dead in a very short time. They also are guessing a heart shot....

[mn_archer]

This is funny someone brought this up. I've seen it a few times, but last week in SD my future brother-in-law shot at a bird and I saw he hit it for sure the first shot, and probably again the 2nd shot, but it was out there by then.

We watched the obviously injured bird fly erratically up over a cut corn field and at about 200 yards or so it folded up stone dead- or so I thought. I saw exactly where it fell so I said I'll get it.

I ran over to the exact spot and it wasn't there- I looked to my right and it was running over the hill! I ran it down and gave him the neck-tie trick.

I thought for sure he was dead and we were lucky to get him-

michael

[Jim Bob]

We hunt in Kansas and have seen it happen several times. We were told it was a head shot.

[wolfman-k]

I had this happen last week-end on a trip to NoDak, I shot at a rooster, my pump jammed, I didn't pay attention to the bird but when we walked up to the truck, my friend asked if I found the rooster, he flew about 100' straight up after I shot, then came straight down stone dead. I walked back the 200 yards and picked him up! Later I picked-up one that committed suicide by breaking his neck flying into a telephone wire! Weird to see!

[huskie0302]

Read this post a couple days ago and was thinking I never saw this happen before. Sure enough I was out today and it happend!! Weirdest thing I have ever seen.

[Hills]

Ironically they are always dead in my experience as well. Typically not flying that high however.

[Stickjiggler]

Thats a HEART shot me boy. Good job finding it. Even if you thought you missed keep watching a bit. It happens more than you think.

[norwall]

Seen it it Canada geese plenty of times .It was a heart shot that results in delayed kill

[BLACKJACK]

I've seen it happen several times in the past and once this year where they start flying straight up. The one this year instead of dropping like a rock actually set his wings and glided down, but almost vertically. He was dead when the dog brought him back.

Don't always assume you missed. Twice in the last week I've followed the direction that the bird flew after a 'missed' shot and within 100 yards my dogs pulled a rooster out of the grass. Both times during the autopsy I found fresh shot in them.