....better late than never...

[Marty]

I've recieved a plethora of requests......well....one actually.... to post something in the A&NZ forum. Youve probably seen this before but thats ok. Country has dried up now so should have new game pics in the next couple of months.



Shot with my Sako .375 H&H outside Darwin



Girl I know shot this one at night with her cut down Sabatti 7.62x39 in Arnhem Land. One shot kill. It was rooting round about 50 meters from camp at 11pm. My mate went for a dump and saw it. He was armed with a shovel and a roll of bum fodder so he came back to get the girly for her first pig.



A average buff I shot. Ammo box is for a competition in a magazine I didnt enter.



Couple of nice feral goats I got. There are not many wild goats in the Northern Territory, but on this island off Arnhem Land there are a lot and they are absolute beauties.

[Marty]

This guy went 100 points, both Douglas and SCI from memory. Good Bull. They do come bigger but 100 points seems to be the benchmark.



This young animal, and a smaller one not in photo, were shot to feed the mob. They were having a ceremony/corroberee and needed meat for them so we took them as chiller fillers (except they dont have chillers). The blackfellas in this region are pretty isolated. English is not spoken much. They were pleased to have a rifle along with them for this hunt......usually they use spears....!!!



Hookey pig I got a couple of years ago and still my best to date in the tusk department.



Me chopping up a dugong that the locals had caught.

[Marty]

Donkeys are a menace too, and always good for a good old fashioned "bomb up". They take a lot of badly (and well) placed lead. .270 would be a good starting calibre but I use 30/06 or the good old .303. I've also used my .300 Win Mag. Cant really be overgunned when shooting donkeys.







They bleed a fair bit too.

[Bushman]

Marty, ever get the idea that you were talking to yourself? Seriously, thanks for opening up this section. Those rams have some age on them it would appear. My taxidermist said that sheep grow a little ridge on their horns each year and that is how you can tell how old they are. One I got he said was 13 years old and I found out in a hurry that there is a world of difference between leg of ram and leg of lamb. One you have with mint jelly and one is dog meat and only then if the dog has good teeth.

I never got up into the Northern Territories because I had to stay in the people part down south, but I was reading in your paper that they were shooting the water buffalo from a helicopter with an M1 Gurand .30-06.

Those donkeys look more like something that you should have a saddle on. Do you still have the big kangaroo population there? Those Kangaroo hide shacks were all over around Sidney as I guess they were shipping the meat overseas I think for dog food. You sure have a lot of outback there. I flew from Adelaide to Perth and it looked pretty dry down there. You have some king sized crocs there too. Interesting country, but dry.

[Altjaeger]

Thanks for all the photos!

[Wismon]

Looks like a blast.

I have a couple of questions:

1. What caliber did you use on the buff?

2. What's a dugong?

3. What language do the aboriginies speak? A local tribal one, presumably?

[pepaw]

Thanks for the photos.

What's a "hooky" pig? Those are huge teeth if that's what you mean.

Donkey's meat used?

pepaw

[Smokey]

Dugongs are similar to the manatees in Florida.

[Marty]

Looks like a blast.

I have a couple of questions:

1. What caliber did you use on the buff?

2. What's a dugong?

3. What language do the aboriginies speak? A local tribal one, presumably?

Hi Wismon.Calibre on the Buff is the venerable .375 H&H. To my mind it makes a sensible minimum for Trophy Bull Buff on foot. Some folks swear by the .308, but there is a big difference shooting cows and younger animals from your car or helicopter, compared to the big solitary bulls in the thick stuff.

Dugong are as Smokey says, similar to the US Manatee. One species as I understand it har hair, the other doesnt, but more or less the same animal. The blackfellas here love them and it is a red letter day when they get one.

Where those Buff were taken the blackfellas speak tribal languages. English is the 3rd or 4th language for them. I dont know the name of the language but can find out. There are some folks in that part of the world who dont speak english at all. The region was only permanently settled by whites from the late 50's, and that was just missionaries. It is still very primitive country. I guess the nearest I can equate it to is the Inuit(sp?) in north Alaska etc. Tribal beliefs and ceremonies still run strong.

[Marty]

Thanks for the photos.

What's a "hooky" pig? Those are huge teeth if that's what you mean.

Donkey's meat used?

pepaw

Bullants have gotta eat too pepaw. Yes, hookey is refering to tusks. Quite often called hooks here. ie "That pig has good hooks" etc.

Donkey are an absolute menace on some properties. I've never felt i've outstayed my welcome by shooting too many.