Thread: Shooting Possums in trees

What are the rules on shooting possums in trees?. I know you need to check your back stop etc but seriously how does one check their back stop if you are shooting a possum in a tree. If you were to miss the tree that bullet depending on caliber could travel for miles... I was hoping to do some possum shooting with my .223 but worried I would miss some shots and my bullet could go anywhere. Any help here? Is tree shooting only restricted to .22?

My tuppence worth is that you are already fully aware of the dangers and the only "rules" being those you must comply with to keep Constable Plod happy.

I share your concern which I why I generally shoot them with a 12 gauge as any stray lead has a far shorter range which is reduced even further by foliage etc. Bloody noisy but safer in areas where there are others. My only other point is to know the lay of the land by day over which you are shooting at night, so to be confident that there is nothing beyond the possum which could suffer from that line of fire.

I am sure others will have worthy points to add

Originally Posted by rs200nz

What are the rules on shooting possums in trees?. I know you need to check your back stop etc but seriously how does one check their back stop if you are shooting a possum in a tree. If you were to miss the tree that bullet depending on caliber could travel for miles... I was hoping to do some possum shooting with my .223 but worried I would miss some shots and my bullet could go anywhere. Any help here? Is tree shooting only restricted to .22?

I see you are located in Auckland...if you could do all your possum shooting in a northerly direction I would be most grateful.

hehe will be in Whangarei. Even though its on a farm with farm surroundings there are still houses around and it worries me. .22 LR wouldn't be as bad I guess but that little bullet will still travel a long way.

use a shotgun - problem solved. But yes 223 bounce, ricochet and fly a lot more than a .22 - need to be much more careful using them for all varmint shooting in trees or not.

You shouldn't fire any rifle at a possum in a tree unless you're confident of using the trunk or landscape as a backstop. Low probability of a falling bullet hitting anything but pretty bad consequences if it does.

The basic safety rules always apply. Pretty cut and dried really. If you can't meet the safety criteria, don't take the shot.

Originally Posted by Spook

I see you are located in Auckland...if you could do all your possum shooting in a northerly direction I would be most grateful.

Seeing a few spotlights bouncing round your way at night at the moment @Spook.. Keepin your head down I hope !!!

Agreed. Basic safety - where will YOUR bullet go if you miss. It's not about keeping Mr Plod happy - it's about being a responsible shooter.

Just grab a cheap .22, have shot oodles of the buggers up trees without a problem. And that was the upgrade after the air rifle (which is still fun in itself and v cheap to shoot).

+1 for the shotgun use, but the downside is the noise factor. So a suppressed .22 shooting subs, or an air rifle will do the job nice and quiet and safe.

Originally Posted by Happy

Seeing a few spotlights bouncing round your way at night at the moment @Spook.. Keepin your head down I hope !!!

They don't all ask either...can be a bit scary when you have the beam bouncing all over the yard and windows. I have been up putting reflective tape on the other side of the gully to try and get some direction to their shooting...spent half a day setting one up and they spent most of the night trying to recover their "kill"

.22 with silencer and sub sonics are my answer. First you need to ask yourself honestly if you're an accurate shot. If yes, consistently, then a subsonic projectile hitting a possum between the eyes at 10-20 metres isn't going to cause harm much beyond the possum. If you're a bit shaky, then please DO NOT use your .223 on possums EVER, as I have friends who live around Whangarei. As mentioned by ishoot10s... Apply the safety rules of any shooting and the risks are well mitigated. Apologies just won't cut it afterward

.223 is a massive overkill on possums, and never a good idea to be firing at elevated targets with no backstop.

was going to use my .303 for possums but though that might cause issues. Jokes!! all good guys. Just sold my 22 LR but will just borrow a mates and take that Thanks for the comments

Originally Posted by ishoot10s

The basic safety rules always apply. Pretty cut and dried really. If you can't meet the safety criteria, don't take the shot.

Yeah this one, if your not comfortable with what your doing or with the way you want to do it, don't do it at all... Better that now than to learn the hard way later...

@Dundee might hire his kids out for the night. They are both possum killers and they will clean up by taking the fur away as well. Seriously though do not use your .223 for shooting Possums up trees.