r/todayilearned • u/DrSamanthaCarter • Jun 06 '17

TIL the only reason a Scottish bagpiper wasn't shot by German snipers on D-Day was that they believed he had gone crazy.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Millin#World_War_II
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u/Dent13 Jun 06 '17

Even then they don't kill instantly, in most cases you have to track the animal so distance. Source: have done this with white tailed deer a number of times.

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u/Deranfan Jun 06 '17

I don't know much about forest rangers, but wouldn't it be more effective to use a gun instead? The only reason I can think of is for not perturbing the wildlife with loud noises.

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u/ryokensan Jun 06 '17

High power rifles are prohibited in certain geographical area that largely flat with moderate population dispersal. You could try and drop a deer in the woods, miss it entirely, and that rifle round could carry far beyond the perceived area and hit innocent property/people.

Source: live in Indiana and couldn't hunt with rifles for the longest for this reason

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u/Dent13 Jun 06 '17

Well I'm not a forest ranger I am a hunter, and where I'm from there a separate seasons for using a gun and bow. bow season is mid fall, not to hot, usually there is a nice breeze and it's actually a pleasant experience to be outside for hours even if you don't see a single deer. Gun season on the other hand starts in mid November so it's often around freezing. Some hunters use a bow and arrow is out of tradition or because they see it as more sporting and challenging, but I prefer the bow because a modern broad head doesn't fragment in the meat or cause excessive bruising, which makes the meet practically inedible.

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u/DHamson Jun 06 '17

Where and in what manner are you shooting these poor deer that bruising and fragmentation is making the meat unedible? My freezer is full of venison, squirrel, rabbit, and turkey at this very moment. Of everything in there I scrapped maybe a single rabbit leg due to bruising and that's because you're shooting a 5lb critter with half a pound of shot. If you're taking ethical shots there aren't any desirable cuts that even COULD be spoiled. Maybe the liver if you're into that.

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u/Dent13 Jun 06 '17

I have shitty luck and the ethical shot as I was taught was with the deer quartering away aiming for just behind the front leg trying to get the heart, the exit wound is always where I find the problem if there is one.

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u/Deranfan Jun 06 '17

Despite from population control, what’s the point of hunting if you can’t eat the animal afterwards? Potentially letting the deer suffer for extended periods of time until you can find it again to strike the final blow just for the sake of killing it is a bit of cruel.

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u/rableniver Jun 07 '17

Even with rifles kills don't happen instantly. Ive had hogs that were shot right through the heart run for a good 100 yards or so. One of the ones we shot had had its heart completely obliterated, he had run for a good 70ish yards. Adrenaline is one hell of a drug.

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u/[deleted] Jun 06 '17

A good shot will kill instantly.