Body shots on iguanas

[pepi.gets.it.done]

I wanted to share my most recent findings on my last iguana hunt, but let me begin with my previous experiences.

The first time I went, I took a .30 cal and shot iguanas both in the head and in their vitals. On that trip I noted that body shots did not seem to phase the iguanas, even multi body shots just didn’t seem to put them down. I guess I expected them to react as mammals when they get hit in the vitals but I was getting totally different results. I concluded that iguanas HAD to be shot only between the eye and the ear.

On my following trips, I chose to test the most appropriate caliber for hunting iguanas. I knew that as tough as iguanas are, .30 caliber isn’t necessary and in fact intimidating to use given where most iguanas hunting takes place (in city limits). I tested .22 caliber in the 25-30FPE and of course that worked out well with headshots. However, I was still getting pass throughs and felt uneasy about their use. Next I tried .177 in sub 20FPE. Most shots were 30-40yds. I continued to have pass throughs on iguanas sub 3’ but I can tell that the pellets lost a lot of their energy after passing through. I wouldn’t get pass throughs on larger iguanas. After this trip, I concluded that a .177 sub 20FPE was the optimal caliber for iguana hunts due to:
1. Quietness of the caliber
2. High shot count
3. Size of the rifle (tend to have shorter barrels)
4. Their effectiveness on headshots

In my most recent trip, I wanted to test an old theory: can iguanas be harvested with shots in the vitals with a sub 20FPE? For this test, I used a HW110 that produces 40 shots per fill at 18FPE and I was surprised with my findings. The answer is YES! I harvested over ten iguanas that were strictly shot in the vitals (not all could be collected as some fell in the water). I will say that some large iguanas did require a second or third shot, and most iguanas ran about 10 yds before expiring.

Now the question to be answered is why? Why is it that a .177 body shot seem to be more effective than a .30 cal? My initial thoughts are that since there is no pass through, all the energy is dumped into the iguanas vitals, where pass throughs carry still a lot of its energy outside of the iguanas. Thoughts?

 

[Danman]

I've taken quite a range of critters with .177, 18-20fpe being the sweet spot for fur while 11-12fpe is better suited for the feathered pests i encouter here. Zero experience with .30 cal, but someday....
I'd imagine these Hades @ 900fps would be devastating. From all the iguana hunting I've seen i'd chose .177 and .22 for sure though for safety as you mentioned.
Did the .30cal body shots pass through at all? What fpe/ammo/airgun combo were you using? So many questions, sorry

 

[pan60]

I remember shooting tree rats with my .30 and although I knew it was to much I had to do it and it was to much because of the pass throughs it did drop em but WAY to much.
this is why we ALL NEED no MUST have more then one arm gun : )

 

[BBGunn]

I wanted to share my most recent findings on my last iguana hunt, but let me begin with my previous experiences.

The first time I went, I took a .30 cal and shot iguanas both in the head and in their vitals. On that trip I noted that body shots did not seem to phase the iguanas, even multi body shots just didn’t seem to put them down. I guess I expected them to react as mammals when they get hit in the vitals but I was getting totally different results. I concluded that iguanas HAD to be shot only between the eye and the ear.

On my following trips, I chose to test the most appropriate caliber for hunting iguanas. I knew that as tough as iguanas are, .30 caliber isn’t necessary and in fact intimidating to use given where most iguanas hunting takes place (in city limits). I tested .22 caliber in the 25-30FPE and of course that worked out well with headshots. However, I was still getting pass throughs and felt uneasy about their use. Next I tried .177 in sub 20FPE. Most shots were 30-40yds. I continued to have pass throughs on iguanas sub 3’ but I can tell that the pellets lost a lot of their energy after passing through. I wouldn’t get pass throughs on larger iguanas. After this trip, I concluded that a .177 sub 20FPE was the optimal caliber for iguana hunts due to:
1. Quietness of the caliber
2. High shot count
3. Size of the rifle (tend to have shorter barrels)
4. Their effectiveness on headshots

In my most recent trip, I wanted to test an old theory: can iguanas be harvested with shots in the vitals with a sub 20FPE? For this test, I used a HW110 that produces 40 shots per fill at 18FPE and I was surprised with my findings. The answer is YES! I harvested over ten iguanas that were strictly shot in the vitals (not all could be collected as some fell in the water). I will say that some large iguanas did require a second or third shot, and most iguanas ran about 10 yds before expiring.

Now the question to be answered is why? Why is it that a .177 body shot seem to be more effective than a .30 cal? My initial thoughts are that since there is no pass through, all the energy is dumped into the iguanas vitals, where pass throughs carry still a lot of its energy outside of the iguanas. Thoughts?

Great post, thanks for sharing it!

Considering that I live almost as far from Florida as an American can live, I doubt I'll ever hunt Iguanas. Though, I would love to hunt them!

To me, the caliber and energy performance differences you described doesn't seem logical??? I mean, a .30 caliber hole completely through an Iguana should be more lethal than a .177 caliber that stops inside the torso. Bigger hole and more penetration means more tissue damage. I sure don't 'get' how that isn't the case???

I will be interested to see what other Iguana hunters have experienced on this subject.

 

[pepi.gets.it.done]

Great post, thanks for sharing it!

Considering that I live almost as far from Florida as an American can live, I doubt I'll ever hunt Iguanas. Though, I would love to hunt them!

To me, the caliber and energy performance differences you described doesn't seem logical??? I mean, a .30 caliber hole completely through an Iguana should be more lethal than a .177 caliber that stops inside the torso. Bigger hole and more penetration means more tissue damage. I sure don't 'get' how that isn't the case???

I will be interested to see what other Iguana hunters have experienced on this subject.

It doesn't make sense to me either, so I'm trying to understand the terminal performance.

In firearm hunting articles I've read in the past, they talk about the energy that is wasted when a bullet passes through the animal vs when the bullet stays in. Such articles bring up many points to consider, and one being to match the appropriate caliber/bullet weight/speed to the game that is hunted. This is what I'm trying to figure out on the airgun side.

A couple of things to note as well:

1. Iguanas are cold-blodded, which makes me think their nervous/vitals system react differently than that of mammals and fowl. This could help us understand why a .30 caliber shot in the vitals to, let's say a jackrabbit, will lay it flat while an iguana will flinch and keep staring at you like it never got shot.

2. We as airgunners tend have different expectations when we hunt with airguns - I, of course, am including myself in this. When a hunter shoots big game animals with either a bow or firearm, we expect and accept a quarry run off after getting hit even when we are 100% confident that was a "perfect" shot. We know to wait 30mins to a few hours before we start blood trailing. This time allows the animal to bleed out and expire so we don't bump it. Why then are airgunners (as a whole) not ok with an animal running off after we shoot it in the vitals? We get this notion in our heads that the airgun caliber we chose is inadequate for the job because it did not "drop" the animal. From my firearm and archery hunting experience, I have very rarely "dropped" a big game animal after a shot. I can go on talking about this particular subject, testing I've done and their results, etc. but I'll stop for now.

 

[pepi.gets.it.done]

I've taken quite a range of critters with .177, 18-20fpe being the sweet spot for fur while 11-12fpe is better suited for the feathered pests i encouter here. Zero experience with .30 cal, but someday....
I'd imagine these Hades @ 900fps would be devastating. From all the iguana hunting I've seen i'd chose .177 and .22 for sure though for safety as you mentioned.
Did the .30cal body shots pass through at all? What fpe/ammo/airgun combo were you using? So many questions, sorry

Great questions. When I hunted iguanas with a .30 caliber, I used an FX Crown 500mm barrel with 44gr pellets at 80FPE. All body shots (and head shots) were pass throughs, distances were 5yds-60yds. I even shot them in different parts of their chest cavities thinking maybe I wasn't hitting their lungs or heart because their vitals placement may be in different locations... similar to how bears and hogs vitals are slightly different to lets say deer and elk. No matter where I hit them, they would just crawl to another branch and hide. This would make me doubt that I even hit the critter! But I could see blood dripping sometimes so I knew they were hit.

Shooting them with a .177 in the vitals, however, seemed different. After getting hit, sometimes they would puff up as if they were ready to fight. Other times, they would run off until their gas ran out, similar to what a cottontail would do. All ran about 10-15 yds, and expire. I would double tap, or triple tap anytime I saw an iguana stop running and have it's head up. Just, interesting results.

 

[FL22]

Great questions. When I hunted iguanas with a .30 caliber, I used an FX Crown 500mm barrel with 44gr pellets at 80FPE. All body shots (and head shots) were pass throughs, distances were 5yds-60yds. I even shot them in different parts of their chest cavities thinking maybe I wasn't hitting their lungs or heart because their vitals placement may be in different locations... similar to how bears and hogs vitals are slightly different to lets say deer and elk. No matter where I hit them, they would just crawl to another branch and hide. This would make me doubt that I even hit the critter! But I could see blood dripping sometimes so I knew they were hit.

Shooting them with a .177 in the vitals, however, seemed different. After getting hit, sometimes they would puff up as if they were ready to fight. Other times, they would run off until their gas ran out, similar to what a cottontail would do. All ran about 10-15 yds, and expire. I would double tap, or triple tap anytime I saw an iguana stop running and have it's head up. Just, interesting results.

The next time you hunt them, would try some JSB KO MKIII .177 I have had excellent results on squirrels, no pass throughs. They are starting to become my go to for that caliber when pesting.

 

[Hvacguy]

Do iguanas have leathery skin requiring more penetration power? They look bumpy and not soft but wasn't sure if their skin is actually tougher.