Thread: Hares in the Garden

I have some friends who have a property in a rural area. Something was damaging plants in their garden and I said I thought it might be a hare. So I set up my game camera near the garden.

A couple of days later, I grabbed my fathers old Brno #1 .22 and walked around the farm. Climbing through a fence in a cunning way to avoid the electric wire, I got the worst electric shock I've ever experienced (and I've had a few). It was like someone big hit me between the shoulder blades with a sledgehammer. But I composed myself and carried on, and eventually shot one hare not long before dark.



I went up again a few nights later. Because of the wide paddocks and lack of cover I thought I'd be smart and take my Howa .223. But I saw nothing. I saw nothing on my next trip either (apart from a big ginger cat).... but I did bring the camera home. And yes, I got several pictures of a hare, but well after dark.



I realised that I probably should get prepared to shoot after dark. I prefer hunting in daylight, but the hares don't seem to be out then. I've spotlighted before.... using heavy batteries and big lights, but I've kept up with the times and I am well aware of how good LED torches are. I looked around to see what torches and mounts were available. But I figured that the torch I already had was fine.... and surely I could find some way of fitting it to my rifle.

I thought that my Anschutz might be the best choice for night work. It has a slimmer suppressor (thus should reflect less light back into my scope)... plus I didn't mind subjecting it to rougher treatment (whereas the Brno is a family heirloom). So I fitted a Nikko Mount Master to it and sighted it in. I sat on a low stool and rested my front hand in the vee of a pair of shooting sticks for this process. I was satisfied with how it performed (despite the gritty trigger):



Next I had to fit a torch. I wrapped a bit of black plastic tape around the front part of the stock to protect it.... then I fitted the torch with a couple of Waugh rubber tree-training bands (these make great slingshots incidentally). I was delighted to find that the beam pretty much lined up with the sights. Ha, I thought, I'm glad I didn't spend bazillions on a special rig.



I had a niggle in the back of my mind about how the torch might affect accuracy. When I was enquiring about commercial mounts, someone suggested that a magnetic mount on the barrel could be a good thing. I asked... might that affect accuracy? Nah... not much on a .22. I thought I'd better test the new rig. For the first group I fired I used some Kilwell Whisper that I'd taken on a few hunts. I thought I should use it up. The group I got was not so good:



Hmmm, I thought... I better try some new ammo. So I shot a group of four Norinco rounds (which performs very well most of the time). But the group was still disappointing:



So I took the torch off the rifle, but left the wrapping of plastic tape around the forestock and barrel. But the group was still not good:



So I took off the tape and shot a four-cartridge group.... much better this time:



So I'm thinking that a small flashlight mounted above the scope might be better. Meanwhile I thought I could hold the torch loosely in my left hand while supporting the rifle. I tried shooting a group like that. The results weren't wonderful, but the method might be good enough for close ranges:



So now I'm working on other ways to spotlight on my own. Maybe I will buy a scope mount and a thin-barreled torch.

Could you mount under the forend with a bit of velcro?
Then not touching barrel at all and any scope glare should be minimized.

Originally Posted by veitnamcam

Could you mount under the forend with a bit of velcro?
Then not touching barrel at all and any scope glare should be minimized.

Now that is a good idea thanks. I could use the adhesive velcro tape. Thank you. Well worth trying, especially if I use a lighter torch.

You've gone down the rabbit hole

Most people seem to have torches scope-mounted. On one of my rifles that has a stainless barrel, the glare is intolerable, so I've mounted the torch underneath the forend. Accu Long Range do a nice picatinny rail and a leveling wedge which is just right for the job.

Thanks MB, I shall check them out.

A piece of PVC waste pipe split, heated in the oven ( on baking paper) flared and shaped to accept the torch and spring over it will do the trick. mount under the fore end with velco or what ever and get into them.

A piece of PVC waste pipe split, heated in the oven ( on baking paper) flared and shaped to accept the torch and spring over it will do the trick. mount under the fore end with velco or what ever and get into them.

Also, in my garden hares love sitting under the Trampoline

Another good idea.

I like seeing the hares around. I'm guessing that family members may have a soft spot for the trampoline visitors.

I used to regularly see a hare when I went hunting on a neighbour's place. After I received my Rossi .357 lever gun, I went for a hunt there. I saw the hare sitting just a few feet away and I impulsively shot it. Now I miss seeing it. While the landowners would have been pleased to have it gone, I didn't really need the meat and the place isn't as interesting to visit now. And I think I've only seen one hare on the place in the last couple of years since.

@Coote

Hares are one of those damned if you do, damned if you don’t animals. A bit like pukekos.

I also like seeing them around and watching their antics. But leave them to breed up in an area with abundant feed, no pressure and suitable rough, ungrazed areas for them to bed down safely, and pretty soon you’ll be wondering what happened to all those nice shrubs and trees that you planted. Hare damage is very specific, terminal to the plants / trees, and intolerable when you consider the money & effort that goes into planting and rehabilitating riparian areas for example.

We had one come into our garden recently and he took a couple of bites out of every single butternut in the patch. If the dog hadn’t got onto it on what was probably the end of the first night it visited, I hate to think what would’ve happened to our squash crop.

A relatively new townie / lifestyler convert neighbour planted dozens of native saplings on his block this time two years ago. I told him then he needed to do something to protect them, and he ignored me. My wife told his wife they needed to do something to protect them, and she was ignored too. We are not brave enough to ask them how much money they lost to hare damage - the grapevine says “most of it”. (They also won’t let us shoot on their block, much to the annoyance of the immediate neighbours, so now there is a fairly abundant rabbit overflow which is a whole other story.)

So hares are one of those animals that can be present in low numbers without too many problems, but you must keep one eye on their numbers, and what is going on around the neighbourhood.

As an aside, our little valley has been transformed by riparian regeneration projects, and the planting of numerous small native blocks. The area in general has improved immeasurably over the 15 years I have owned property here. In the early noughties, it was a large rundown old dry stock farm with abundant gorse, wilding pines, shite pasture and millions of rats, stoats, ferrets, cats and rabbits. I spent five years cleaning out these pests, before moving to Australia for a while. When we got back five years later, there were tales of woe from neighbours old and new about sapling damage, and I was very surprised at how much general ignorance there was about the European Brown Hare. In the five years since I’ve been back from Australia, we’ve been very tough on the hares and sapling damage is now largely a thing of the past. One of our neighbours is re-planting pine on an old harvested pine block, first thing he did was line me and the wife up to come sort out the hares. Once bitten, twice shy.

Lastly I am very surprised that you cannot see hares during the day. Two hours before sunset and there are one or two hares visible on most sunny faces around here.

Old man is a commercial shooter and he runs torch on his helmet, takes a bit of naffing about untill you get it mounted right so 99% of the time when you're in a shooting position it's pointing down your line of sight but seems to work well and it's all he uses if not using thermal scope

Originally Posted by Ryan_Songhurst

Old man is a commercial shooter and he runs torch on his helmet, takes a bit of naffing about untill you get it mounted right so 99% of the time when you're in a shooting position it's pointing down your line of sight but seems to work well and it's all he uses if not using thermal scope

I was just reading about a setup like this. Maybe it was on this forum, but I can't find it. Maybe it was somewhere else or I dreamt it! Anyway, seems like a good solution.

the helmit light idea been around for 30 years...used to have big spotlight up there on bike helmit and you grabbed handle and swung it on tracked rail when wanting to shoot...I just hold torch in left hand and rest forestock across wrist of right....

Originally Posted by Micky Duck

the helmit light idea been around for 30 years...used to have big spotlight up there on bike helmit and you grabbed handle and swung it on tracked rail when wanting to shoot...I just hold torch in left hand and rest forestock across wrist of right....

Lot longer than 30years


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Underneath is what we have done for many years. Probably the best option. Do you have a sing mount on the fore end of the stock? You can use the screw hole to fit a mount for your scope. We used to take the sling mount out and replaced it with a bolt/screw with the same thread. Use a washer and do not over tighten.

If you are using shooting sticks, then you could fit it to the sticks.Or best option yet, find an assistant....A great way to introduce young relatives to shooting- it gives them something to 'help' with.

the $20 mounts from @teffyf on here are a lot easier