Out beyond the tall line of trees, gray dawn was already showing, and I could hear the first loud talk of birds preparing to take wing. I’d come early and was ready for them. My decoys were out, my low, natural blind blending in perfectly with the surrounding cover. Three calls hung on lanyards around my neck, ready to draw those early flyers in close for a dose of shot from my 12-gauge shotgun. Moments later, I saw the birds rising beyond the trees, coming my way. 

Morning mallards, you ask? No. Canada honkers departing a refuge? Uh-uh. How about rising flocks of pintails exiting rice stubble? Nope. The birds in question are America’s smartest game bird: the American crow. Crows are one of the most prolific and wary flyers ever to take wing. Most state game departments today understand their value and have placed daily bag limits and seasons on them. That wasn't always the case when they were thought of mostly as vermin, robbing other popular game birds’ nests and killing their young. 

Now, it’s understood they do great more service to man by eating insects, worms, grubs and bugs that destroy. They are also the “clean up crew,” along roadsides where car kills have left carrion to rot. Ever notice morning crows out early patrolling roads and highways? That’s exactly what they are doing. 

Crows are found in every state, and their current overall population number stands at a staggering 326.7 million birds. Wherever man has gone, crows have prospered by following him. Their intelligence, adaptability and endless food choices are the reason why. 

Here’s a lesson on how to successfully hunt them. 

Flight Line Pass Shooting  

During the day, crows — either singles, pairs or small groups of three to five birds — can be seen almost anywhere out foraging for food. But that is not the best time or way to locate them for hunting. The key to success comes at the two most important times of the day — early dawn and late evening. This is when crows gather in huge roosts for communal protection from predators such as hawks, owls and racoons. The racket they make can be heard a mile away. Tall, leafy trees are their favorite roost sites. 

Shotgunners who discover these roosts can set up for steady pass shooting at dawn when birds leave in mass. The trick is to not shoot at the roosts themselves, for that will only run birds off to find a new site somewhere far away. Choose ambush locations well out from the roost where birds will pass at dawn, and also return at day’s end.

Daytime crows are wide-ranging feeders. Agricultural fields under harvest or right after harvest attract crows in large numbers, and tractors turning up the soil reveal a smorgasbord of insects and grubs and scattered seed grains. You can set up on flight lines the birds use coming to popular feeding spots such as these. Ripening fruit in orchards and nut crops such as almonds and peanuts, also attract these wise birds in big numbers. Crows regularly patrol along creeks and streams for frogs, fish and carrion. These gatherings lead to one of the finest and most exciting ways to hunt crows — using decoys. 

Eye Candy for Crows

The major reason crow decoying can be so successful is because of the birds’ 

innate curiosity and endless search for food. No crow can pass by when they see other crows on the ground that appear to be feeding. Unlike waterfowl hunting, where three or four dozen decoys is an average spread, a handful of crow decoys works its magic just as well. 

For that added, extra touch of life-like realism, commercial crow decoys come in many varieties — standard, upright ground decoys, heads down feeding, birds looking back over their shoulder and open-mouth calling. For a real clincher, there are even flying crow decoys. These can be tethered to a tall stake or hung from a cord on tree branches so they appear to be coasting over the decoys. With a breeze or a bit of wind, these “flyers” move and swing, adding even more natural movement. 

Here are three popular decoys you might want to consider for your crow hunting arsenal.

The Mojo Crow decoy has a pair of slide-on wings for easy carrying afield, and is deployed by connecting it to a tall ground stake. Its fluttering wings are driven by six AA batteries with an on-off timer. It can also be hung from a tree with the same action. The Bujiatang Flying Crow can be hung from a cord, wings extended, from limbs and branches over or near ground decoys. A pair, wind driven, close together, offers even more drawing power. The GHG Fully Flocked Crow is a ground decoy with an oversized body that shows more color, always a plus for decoy sets. 

Or you can make your own. I use a sheet of ⅜-inch exterior grade plywood, cutting out the silhouette decoy shapes I want. I make them magnum size, a full 20 to 22 inches head to tail. After cutting out the first one, you have a pattern to trace out as many as you like. Spray paint them flat black, and you’re good to go — for pennies on the dollar. 

Calling Crows

Crows make as many as 100 different calls or vocalizations to communicate with each other. Domesticated crows have even been taught to mimic human words. They normally caw, screech, rattle and coo like a dove. But to repeatedly call in crows, you need to learn only a handful of basic calls and at what level of volume and speed to deliver them. To achieve this, a wise approach is to carry several different calls afield. I use three. Each sounds like a crow calling, but no two sound exactly alike. One has a raspy, loud delivery. A second is smoother at slightly lower volume. The third is tuned at a high, but thinner pitch. Here’s how to apply them. 

Opening calls are for distance, and the Hail Call is delivered with the loudest call. It sounds like this: Cawwww-Cawwww-Cawwww. It can be repeated until birds hear it and start coming your way. Continue to use this call to keep them coming. When they are close enough to see the decoys, switch to a Feeding Call. This is a lower-pitched call blown slower and drawn out at the end with less volume — Caw—www, Caw—www, Caw—wwww. You can also achieve this by muting the call by placing your hand over the end as you deliver it. If the birds turn away and do not commit, change to a Fighting Crow call. This is a higher-pitched almost frantic call and can be blown nearly non-stop to get their attention and turn them back. It sounds like this: Cawcaw-caw-caw-caw, Cawcaw-caw-caw-caw, Cawcaw-caw-caw-caww! 

Some hunters might choose to use electronic callers for field use. Their strong point is that you don’t have the associated movement that you do with mouth calls, which could give your position away. But the nuances of mouth calls and being able to quickly change from one to another as circumstance demands is lost with electronic callers. Digital callers put out a steady, loud, non-stop stream of excited crow calls that can bring the sky bandits in, but they are considerably more expensive. The choice is yours, and they are readily available at major outdoor sporting stores or on the Internet. 

Here are three excellent mouth calls I’ve used. The first is Faulk’s C-50 crow call. This small, all wooden call has a plastic reed that produces a loud, raspy pitch sound. It’s a solid choice for openers. It can be toned down to make feeding calls, but its small size produces big sounds.  

Second, Hunter’s Specialties Hammerin’ Crow has a clear, plastic body with a black plastic reed housing that’s adjustable to change pitch. It’s another loud call that can be used for openers, or to keep birds coming by muting the volume with your hand for closer work. 

Third in my arsenal is the Primos Power Crow — another clear plastic body call but with a black rubber reed housing. The beauty of this call is that the rubber mouthpiece can be lightly bitten down on to change both volume and sound pitch while calling. It’s actually several calls in one. This trio of calls covers all hunting situations afield, and all three are moderately priced from only $15 to $25.  

Crow hunting is perfectly tailored to anyone who loves to swing a shotgun and pull a trigger, and pull it often. No expensive, full magnum loads are needed. Low base 2.75-inch field or trap loads in small shot sizes such as Nos. 7.5 or 8 are a perfect choice for dense patterns at ranges of 30 to 35 yards. These commonly sell for $10 to $11 per box of 25.

Crows on the wing look large, but they’re mostly just beak, wings, feet and feathers. A plucked crow (yep, they’re good to eat) actually looks like it’s been on a strict diet. That’s why you want those solid patterns for one-shot kills. I consider the American Crow to be the smartest game bird ever to take wing. They will give you a run for your money like no other feathered game. I dearly love to hunt doves, quail, pheasants, ducks and geese, but I’ve yet to see any of these five that have learned to speak a human word, or accurately count the number of hunters going in and out of field blinds. Crows can. And that, my friend, is what makes hunting them the great challenge and thrilling sport it is.