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Shooting between one hour after dusk until one hour before dawn is prohibited for game in the UK but vermin are exempt. This opens up the wonderful pastime of bunny bashing to anyone with a rifle and a bright light.
I have seen that Mark Wilson has a lamp mounted on his scope and I have a couple of similar ones, also a de focused laser emitter that gives a small bright circle of light. Anything that illuminates the area in front of your scope will work, even a companion with a bright hand held torch.
Night shooting does raise some safety issues about backstops and target identification. It's important to walk the land that you intend to shoot over during daylight first so that you have the lay of the land in mind when actually shooting. It's also important to stay calm and not take rash shots, at night there will always be more bunnies so it's ok to wait until you see the target clearly and can get that perfect head shot. This avoids spoiling the meat and gives a clean kill.
Talking about spoiling the meat it's best to paunch the rabbits immediately. Gut them after giving them a little squeeze to empty their lower bowel and bladder. Cleaning them immediately makes the meat a whole lot more palatable and less stinky while cooking. Leaving the job of cleaning them until next morning makes a noticeable difference to the quality of the meat.
I have seen that Mark Wilson has a lamp mounted on his scope and I have a couple of similar ones, also a de focused laser emitter that gives a small bright circle of light. Anything that illuminates the area in front of your scope will work, even a companion with a bright hand held torch.
Night shooting does raise some safety issues about backstops and target identification. It's important to walk the land that you intend to shoot over during daylight first so that you have the lay of the land in mind when actually shooting. It's also important to stay calm and not take rash shots, at night there will always be more bunnies so it's ok to wait until you see the target clearly and can get that perfect head shot. This avoids spoiling the meat and gives a clean kill.
Talking about spoiling the meat it's best to paunch the rabbits immediately. Gut them after giving them a little squeeze to empty their lower bowel and bladder. Cleaning them immediately makes the meat a whole lot more palatable and less stinky while cooking. Leaving the job of cleaning them until next morning makes a noticeable difference to the quality of the meat.