No problem Sirrah. I wish someone would've told me these things when I first started hunting them. Mulie Mike probably has some good tips as well. He deals with these things more than I do. The link wouldnt work for some of you, so here is the meat of the entire post. Keep in mind I posted this a while back:
I was hoping for advice myself. I have done a lot of research on these things and have asked one of my buddies that does guide hunts pursuing them. Every time I go out I learn more though. Its personal with me now! I have successfully hunted pretty much everything native in Texas, but these damn things take the cake. I will admit it, they have kicked my butt up one side of the mountain and down the other. If hunting whitetail bucks tests your patience, you might as well not bother with aoudad.
I have shot one of them, but in no way am I an expert. I am actually wanting more advice on hunting these things. I went back to the drawing board after my first week of hunting them. I actually just got lucky I killed the one I did. Ill tell you what I do know though and save you the time of scouring the internet and killing yourself on the mountains to figure this out about them. Thats my disclaimer I guess.
The "aoudad" is the most difficult Texas trophy to acquire. Im serious. They are originally from the african deserts and were brought over in the 1950s after WWII. Their populations exploded once in Texas and you can now find them on SOME ranches that have the right terrain. They are available to hunt through outfitters though who keep them in high fences, etc. Or you can hunt them on ranches. Your options are wide open. If you DO hunt them on their natural terrain and not in high fences, youre gonna have a war on your hands. Getting one takes a lot of patience. I learned this the hard way before I got onto the internet and did some research. Here is what I know. (Just warning you, its a little long but pretty detailed)
1: They dont need water. They CAN survive without it. They get all of their needed moisture from vegetation. Occasionally (once every week or two) they may come in to water. They supposedly like alfalfa and protein blocks. This is probably your best bet. Especially during their rutt.
2: They usually always travel in herds. Varying from two to fifteen. Males stay in smaller bachelor herds and females usually travel in the 15+ herds.
The problem with this is their incredible senses. They can hear and smell really well. However, their eyesight is remarkable. Ive been spotted 400 yards away on a cliff right before they hauled butt over the mountain. The damn thing stared me straight down for a solid minute without blinking before he sounded the alarm. He was on the ground looking up at me while I was on a very high cliff by the way. I have never had game spot me from that far below before. They are like those damn meer cats you see on Tv. If only one of them sees you, they all run and ask questions later. However, if they don't definitely see you and only sense danger (yes..they do sense it), they will freeze and remain perfectly still. Sounds like a good thing, but unless you have already spotted them from a long ways away, they are hard to pick out.
You want to be sure to look at some pictures of some females and males before you hunt. They can look very similar at a distance. They both have large horns and longer hair on their chest. Males are just bigger all over. Usually the herd will be all females or all males though..again..unless their in rutt.
3: The terrain they usually stay in are the highest cliff faces and inhabitable terrain. That's where their eye sight comes in. You will be lucky to get a shot at 300 yards usually if they have their natural terrain around. Without baiting them somehow, I would expect a shot of 400+ usually. They can jump six feet straight up without running. I didn't believe it either until I saw one hop over a fence like nothing. In Africa, your hunting guides will usually track them for a couple days before you even get a 400 yard shot. Here, there are usually property lines that get in the way of that. Hence the high fence.
4: They are very tough to take down with a small caliber rifle. I would suggest a .308 or 300win for the power and range. Perhaps a BTHP bullet.
5: Their patterns to feed and activity are all over the place. I have had them come in to the game camera at all times of the day and night. However, I think they MAY socialize more in the morning during rut season. Their rutting season is in October and November I believe. They are supposedly easier to take then and not as paranoid. Here is another thing that I recently found out. If you come upon circular patches of soft dirt in the middle of the pasture, they are close by. The males somehow make these circular bare spots in the dirt on any type of terrain. I would say they are about five feet across in diameter. The males will lie down in it and use their horns to throw dirt on themselves. I believe they piss in the dirt too. Ive watched them do it. If you find a clear area with fifteen or so of these rubs around..post up somewhere high and remain very still all day.
Having said all that...here is what I do to hunt them. Like I said..I am still looking for advice. There could be a better way. I would appreciate anyone's input because I know I am not doing everything right.
Scout your area ahead of time! Its a must unless you have a guide. Find the high cliff faces. Thats where they will hang out alot of times. Also try to find the low terrain where they all socialize at. You will know it when you see a lot of those circular dirt rubs. They will be concentrated a lot more in one place. Perhaps by a body of water. They guys and girls have to come together at some point ya know. Throw out some alfalfa and a protein block. Then find a good high place you can snipe from that has enough cover to conceal yourself. Dont pick a spot thats TOO close to the feed or they will never come in. Preferably not along one of the many mountain trails they use to come off the cliffs. Ive had them walk up behind me and haul [censored] before I even knew they were there.(like i said..ive learned alot) They are really quiet on rocks somehow and can flat out sprint up cliff faces. Any irregular color or smell will keep them away. Pickup trucks, four wheelers, etc.. Try to use the wind. If you are sitting on the edge of a cliff, you may want it at your back blowing your scent over the cliff. I am not sure on this part. Would it be better for your scent to be blown behind you up into the moutain where they are likely to come from? Or would it be better to blow your scent away in front of you towards the open sky and the target area below? I would probably say the open sky is better.
By the way..also plan on how you will move this aoudad in case you get a 300lb one. And rarely will it be on some flat soft ground. More likely a freaking cliff. Being by yourself trying to gut it or transport it is tricky if you dont plan ahead. Learned a lesson there too.
Then come back the next morning before light and prepare yourself for a long long day of waiting and spotting. In fact, you may want to prepare yourself for several days. Like I said..patience. And dont be too picky on what comes in. I passed up a good size ram one time after the first twenty mins of sitting on the cliff to find out that it was the only thing I was going to see for two days. I am still kicking myself on that.
Sorry for the long post guys, but I have learned many lessons the hard way while hunting these things. If anyone has any advice, I would love to hear more. I still consider myself a rookie at this stuff.
The one thing that I am planning on doing that I have not tried yet is getting a corn feeder out in the sticks where they socialize at. Getting the feeder to the spot is going to be hard enough by itself. I know where they socialize at, but cant get them to be there at a consistent time. They show up at midnight as far as I know. I am thinking that a timer and corn may help out. But of course, with these things, everything is the exception. It may not make a difference at all. I just know that it works with everything else pretty well. Any of yall had any luck getting aoudad in to scheduled feedings?
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I'll add a couple of things I have learned.
- They have great eyesight...once they see you, it's over if you head their direction at all. The easiest way is to glass the mountains, find them and then get higher than them from teh backside or from the side, staying out of sight in arroyos or behind ledges. They climb away from trouble and usually are watching what goes on below them.
- They bed down at the base of cliffs high up. These cliffs or ledges protect them from above and they can see below. You'll often see all teh ground trampled and the ground will stink like a zoo as you walk along the bases where they bed.
Expect long shots. Occasionally, you'll come down on top of one and shoot from 50 yards or so but usually it is a couple hundred yards.
-with the exception of the young ones, they taste horrible so if you shoot a big ram (350 lbs), just cape it out and leave the rest for the coyotes. If you are so tempted to eat it, just take a backstrap...trust me. Even the Mexicans around here won't eat them.
-You can spotlight them legally in Texas. Their eyes light up better than deer. Often this can help you figure out where they bed down to get them the next morning...or shoot them at night.
- Most of the places that have deer leases will let you hunt aoudads seperately. Some of them charge, some don't. I've hunted a place adjacent to Cibolo Creek Ranch outside Shafter TX a couple of times.
www.elpasotexashunting.com You either have to camp or stay in Shafter 30 minutes south of there. It's cheap and there are lots of sheep. There are javelina too and coyotes if you get bored.
Once you get the bug, it's hard not to stop hunting them. Prepare to walk ALOT. If you do camp, camp on top and it will give you the advantage the entire next morning. When it is colder, they'll go to the sunny side in the morning to warm.
Rick
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One thing you may keep in mind in your stalk is the wind direction. Many types of spooky game travel/graze with the wind at their back. That way they can smell what comes up from behind and see what is out in front. Black buck antelope do the same I have found and are almost as hard as aoudad to hunt. I would consider your terrain and pick which one you want to try and defeat.(Scent or Sight) For instance, if the terrain is something like the picture above, I would try to mask my scent as much as I could and take a long shot from behind with the wind blowing my scent toward them 400-500 yards away. Or if the terrain/brush is really thick, you may try to SLOWLY stalk into the wind to a close enough position to shoot before they spot you. This will also cover some of the noise you will make. Always try to use the high ground to increase your distance and line of sight.
Keep in mind that the wind will more than likely be different in a canyon versus on top of a moutain range. It funnels.
