My First Coypu or "Nutria"

[paul87250]

I got invited on a day's hunt for coypu with ACA87 the departments bowhunting club, and here's my first ever coypu!! I'm sooooo happy I saved the day with the end result ENGLAND 1 - FRANCE 0.          http://i1220.photobucket.com/albums/dd453/paul87250/f704f5be.jpg  
  http://i1220.photobucket.com/albums/dd453/paul87250/1856d51a.jpg

[bowslinger]

Paul,

Looks like fun.  That is a new one for me.  Didn't recognize "coypu" but now know it is the same as nutria. How about a little more info on the hunt.  Where do you find these things(rivers, marshes, canals)?  How far was your shot?  How do you hunt them (spot and stalk, stand hunt, etc). How about equipment such as bow, broadhead, etc.?  May be small game but it is still fun to read about!

Also, do people across the pond eat this things?  We don't have them where I live (Nebraska), but I don't think there are too many people along gulf coast of US where they are mainly found that eat them.

[KentuckyTJ]

Nice going!

[jcar315]

[doug77]

Nice    

[Lucas K]

Good Shooting!

[OrTrail]

Hmmm, those varmints look very similar to our Oregon variety. Someone raised them and they got away.  I counted twelve of those rascals in the back yard one evening. (can't shoot-inside city limits)
   
Good shooting by the way.  Do you fry them?

[paul87250]

Thanks for the reply Bowslinger,

The day started at 9am we all met up then set off in pairs to hunt the small streams in the area, we were invited to hunt before the trappers set up.

In our area the coypu or ragondin (in French)are classed as pests and there are plenty, they are great fun to hunt as they are quite hard to approach, the area we were hunting is cattle pasture, so very little cover and there was a stiff breeze. We pulled our lots and set off to hunt, working the wind as best we could while following the stream.

As for gear it's a mixed bag of trad and compound shooters, my team mate shoots wheels but at least finger release. There is a no broadhead rule on these streams as the trappers use dogs later so no sharp points, I use dulled and rounded magnus stingers (old heads)some guy's use skipper stoppers or plastic blades.

So the day started well we were working upstream when we spotted a big "Rag" sunning itself, back to us, so we stalked up to about 12m took aim and missed!! It's small game but the pressure is huge, so we waited a moment for them to surface, take two, we both dropped the sring and missed again from about 3m clean over the top.

We finnished our stretch then stopped for lunch, and believe me the French can do a great lunch!!

After a long lunch we set off again on a different stretch of river, amongst a herd of cattle I saw a  ragondin, he saw us too as we had the wind behind us, he ducked back into the water and hid in the reeds we got within 10m I took aim, dropped the string then heard the thud of a good solid hit, my blunted h/head did the job well, then the fun began...wading the stream to recover the prize!! a great day with my good friends.

[AngelDeVille]

I love it, I almost wish they were a problem here!

[Brianlocal3]

Good days fun there. And yes they can be eaten much the same a beaver or ground hog. Remove the scet glands , parboil and barbecue , or just slow cook all day. They can have a gameyness ( made up word I think) about them. But good eats if your used to eating varmints

[Dave Bowers]

That my friend is one big rat...nice shootin

[sore fingers]

Man those things can get big! Ive heard they can do alot of damage. Get em.

[Frenchy]

Sounds like it was a lot of fun !

Congratulations on a nice "ragondin"      

Don't forget to keep the teeth as a war trophy

[Friend]

Boyh sounds and looks like great entertainment.

[KOOK68]

There was a bounty placed on 'em here in South Louisiana. I believe it was 2 dollars for turning in the tail?? They burrow through the water control levees. The taste is comparable to rabbit.
My small town's claim to fame is Tabasco brand hot sauce. The plant is on a small privately owned island. It has been said the owners had nutria imported and they escaped the cages during a hurricane.

[bowslinger]

Paul,

Thanks for sharing! It is fun to visualize stalking through a cattle pasture in France with a bow!  How hard is it to get permission to hunt them?  Are landowners open to bowhunting?  Just curious about bowhunting across the pond.

[paul87250]

Originally posted by bowslinger:
Paul,

Thanks for sharing! It is fun to visualize stalking through a cattle pasture in France with a bow!  How hard is it to get permission to hunt them?  Are landowners open to bowhunting?  Just curious about bowhunting across the pond.

Bowslinger,

It's not too hard to get permission to hunt vermin here, although like everything here there is quite a pile of paperwork first!!

1, you need a hunting permit, thats a one off like a driving test.
2, each year you need to validate that permit, in my department that costs about 160€ (200$)even to shoot vermin!
3, you then need landowners written permission which you have to carry with you.
4, last thing insurance!!

easy really, the landowners around me are quite open to vermin shooting, and the bow is seen as equal to a gun, some actually prefer the bow as it causes less problems with noise and safety.