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One photo in particular shows an unnamed hiker kneeling next to a doe with a pocketknife in their hand. What that photograph doesn’t show is the hiker rock-hopping across the boulder field, mercifully slitting the throats of the mortally wounded deer. (This anecdote was shared by several users across multiple online forums.)

Mass mortality events like the one that occurred in the John Muir Wilderness aren’t all that uncommon. Every year, landslides, floods, avalanches, wildfires, and other natural disasters kill countless critters throughout North America. We’re just not always there to watch it happen.

Still, seeing the photos from 2017 resurfacing on social media makes us wonder: How often do large groups of wildlife fall to their death in the mountains? And what really happened that November in the Sierra Nevada?

Ice + Gravity = 122 dead mule deer

Concrete information about the 2017 mass mule deer death is limited. If there ever were any official reports in national news outlets, they’re buried somewhere deep in the bowels of the internet. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife didn’t put out a press release that year, and the acting information officer for the region says he was not working for CDFW in 2017 and has no knowledge of the event.

There was, however, a story published in The Sheet, a local alt-weekly paper based in Mammoth Lakes, California. There’s also a well-reported article in the Sierra Nevada Bighorn Blog, along with a handful of informative posts in a forum dedicated to outdoor recreation in the Sierras. Pieced together, these sources give a pretty good account of what happened in early November of that year.

According to these reports, the group of mule deer was making its annual migration from their high-elevation summer range on the west side of the Sierra Crest to their winter range on the eastern side of the mountains. The deer were part of two large herds in the area: the Round Valley herd, which had an estimated population of 2,800 at that time; and the Goodale herd, which was closer to 5,500 strong. The deer were following their traditional migration route through Inyo National Forest. This route took them across a pair of notoriously dangerous stretches known as Bishop and Shepherd Passes, both of which are at elevations of around 12,000 feet.

Most of the mature bucks and does had made this trek before, but that didn’t mean they were prepared for the conditions they would face that fall. Calling the winter of 2016-17 a big snow year in the Sierras would be an understatement. It was actually the wettest winter on record at the time, according to the Weather Channel. This meant that even though the deer had waited until fall to cross the passes, there was still plenty of snow on the ground in November. And after months of high-elevation temperature swings, which create what’s known as a freeze-thaw cycle, the snowfields were coated with a bulletproof sheet of ice.

What happened next requires little imagination.

“The deer were following their migration trail and because of the heavy snow we got last year, there were big fields of it left unmelted. When it got cold it turned to ice and the deer just slipped to their death,” CDFW wildlife biologist Mike Morrison told the Sheet. “[Mule deer] are like lemmings. They could go around it, but their mama brought them that way and that’s the way they’re going. They step on the ice not recognizing it’s going to be slippery. When they get to the point where gravity takes over, it’s too late.”

In addition to being well-worn game trails, both Bishop and Shepherd passes are popular mountaineering routes. If they weren’t, CDFW officials likely never would have heard about the mass mortality event.

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Lindsey Jackson is one of the hikers who witnessed the immediate aftermath at Bishop Pass. After stumbling upon the 78 dead deer that littered the bottom of the pass, Jackson notified the agency on Nov. 11. (It’s unclear if Jackson is the hiker pictured in the unattributed photograph that the Sheet published on Nov. 22.)

“When I first walked up on it, I was horrified,” she said in an interview with the Sheet.

The next day, another mountaineer called CDFW to report the dead deer they’d seen at Shepherd Pass. The agency’s investigation determined that another 44 mule deer had died at that location, making a grand total of 122 deer that fell to their deaths in both passes.

Morrison also explained to the Sheet that while these mass mortality events might not happen every year, other mass mule deer deaths have been documented before in the exact same location.

History Repeats Itself

A scientific paper entitled “Accidental Mass Mortality of Migrating Mule Deer” was published in the Western North American Naturalist in 2001. In that report, authors Vernon C. Bleich and Becky M. Pierce detail two separate mass mortality events that occurred at Bishop Pass in 1954 and 1995.

The two authors personally investigated the 1995 event after receiving a report of “numerous dead deer” at the bottom of Bishop Pass on Nov. 25. They found a total of 16 dead mule deer (12 bucks and four does) there.

“The carcasses were on a talus slope at the bottom of a steep, ice-covered hillside,” they write. “The deer apparently lost their footing on the ice, which had repeatedly thawed and frozen in the summer sun, and slid to their deaths on the sharp rocks below.”

Bleich and Pierce also mention the 1954 event, which involved approximately 26 mule deer falling to their death during their fall migration. That event was investigated by a wildlife biologist named F.L. Jones.

“Jones speculated that fresh snow, which can mask glare ice, contributed to the mortalities he reported,” they write, adding that both events followed winters with above-average snowfall. They explain that the snowpack would have been around 131 percent of the long-term mean in 1954, while it was closer to 176 percent in 1995.

Bleich and Pierce also say they were concerned about population-level impacts on the local herds after their 1995 investigation. With these concerns in mind, they brought up a trail-improvement plan with the Forest Service, which involved using hand tools and covering the trail with sand to make it safer for migrating mule deer. Their proposal was rejected.

“Permission to implement this strategy was denied by wilderness staff from the Inyo National Forest because it would conflict with ‘natural processes’ in wilderness,” they write.

Which, to be fair, is a hard truth. Nobody ever wants to stumble across a pile of 78 dead deer in the mountains. But wildlife managers know that it’s not our responsibility to prevent these things from happening. They also recognize that humans should accept the brutal side of nature, even if we aren’t always there to witness it.

Meet the Nile Crocodile

The Nile crocodile has remained virtually unchanged since the Cretaceous period. Amazingly, its prehistoric characteristics still give it an advantage for hunting ungulates, even the less dangerous ones. The Nile crocodile is also feared by many animals (you can see how nervous they get when approaching river banks to drink or cross) but they are also feared by the locals, and for good reason. Everyone here knows someone who has been killed by a croc. Crocodiles have an incredible sensory system in their skin called integumentary sense organs, or ISOs. ISOs allows them to easily detect even the tiniest movements and vibrations in the water.

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The top of a crocodile’s head, back, and tail are rock hard, like a thick turtle shell. This armor is not only protective, but it also absorbs heat when they are out sunning themselves. The rest of the skin, from about mid-body down, loses its rigidity. It turns into a tough leathery hide with big scales, but to the touch it’s almost like smooth, wet rubber. A croc’s legs are short but muscular, with five webbed toes and long claws. The head is long, wide, and very flat. This positions their eyes, ears, and nostrils above the water while submerging their body, which allows them to hunt while staying extremely hidden. The jaw is packed with teeth that continuously regrow and replace themselves over a croc’s lifetime The head and teeth are probably what most people fear the most, but for me it’s the tail—It’s pure muscle, and the source of all their power.

Crocodile Conflicts

Human-wildlife conflict is a reality for the local villagers. Whenever one of these 13-foot (or larger) dinosaurs is removed from the river, the locals are thrilled. It can be difficult for locals to get excited about crocodile conservation—and why the predator is important to the ecosystem—when a large crocodile is a known killer of humans. When you don’t live every day in croc country, you simply cannot understand what they brave constantly. Think about it like this: Most Americans are separated from predators like mountain lions or grizzly bears when we leave the backcountry and return to town. Locals here live among the crocodiles, and are at risk from crocodile attacks every time they go to the river to fish, get water, and wash. At the same time, humans are the only natural threat that a mature crocodile faces.

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Crocodiles are also known for killing lots of cattle in Zambia. The locals will poison cow carcasses to kill the crocs that are preying upon their herds. The local fisherman will also spear any crocodile they see. The professional hunter, or PH, in the area told me they have hunted crocodiles with spears stuck in them before. It takes decades for crocodiles to grow to 13 and 16 feet in length. No one wants to see these prehistoric beasts go extinct at the hands of humans. The hunting areas help protect crocodiles by providing funding for anti-poaching measures, and by protecting wild areas so there’s more room for wildlife, which means less conflict with humans.

Hunting Crocs

When I decided to hunt the Luangwa River with Backcountry Africa, it was specifically to target a hippo. But I knew if I was presented the opportunity to take a large Nile crocodile, I was going jump on it.

I had hunted alligators before in the swamps of Florida, so I was familiar with the precise shot placement required and adrenaline rush that comes with hunting a big reptile. In Florida we snagged the alligator by throwing a treble hook over his back and sinking the hooks into his skin. With this tactic, the alligator swims off through the canals and you hold onto the fishing rod while he pulls you around in a small john boat. Once he gets tired, he will sink to the bottom and you slowly reel him up. When you get him to the surface, you usually try to harpoon him so he can’t get away, and then use a bangstick to kill them. It’s a rodeo at times, and exhilarating. It was one of my most memorable hunts to date, so I was excited to experience something similar again in Africa.

Except this time, I would be spot-and-stalk hunting the crocodile and shooting one at a distance with a rifle. (The other way to hunt Nile crocs is over bait, but stalking was more appealing to me.) This is one of the most difficult shots to execute on an African game animal because their vital zone is so small: you must shoot them in the brain. Your point of aim is about the size of a golf ball and on the side of the croc’s head. If you miss a croc or wound it, you will probably never see it again.

In the Hunt

We were looking for hippos when we walked up on a large crocodile sunning himself on the water’s edge. We dropped down immediately so that the crocodile couldn’t see us, and we crawled in quietly to get a better look at him. Surprisingly, crocodiles are not easy to field judge. They are often spotted at a distance without any natural features nearby for a size reference. Their tails are usually curled or hanging in the water.

Luckily I was with Russell De La Harpe, one of the founders of Backcountry Africa and my PH in Zambia. He also happens to be a crocodile farmer who supplies the skins for high-end designer brands around the world. For field judging crocodiles he looks at the size of the teeth, how much the spiked the ridges stick up on its back, and the nose—a rounded nose is always a good indicator of an old croc. But by the time we determined our croc was a good one, the reptile had already winded us and slipped abruptly into the water.

Crocodiles are hyper-sensitive animals and always on high alert. Stalking them can be quite the challenge. After he had slipped away, we walked up to where he was laying to get a good look at the tracks his body and head had left in the wet sand. Russ measured the sandy head imprint of its head: 13 inches long. A good rule of thumb, he says, is that every inch of the head corresponds to a foot of body length. In other words, this croc was probably 13 feet long, at least. It had left lots of tracks on that sandy bank and Russell said we didn’t spook him too badly. He expected the croc would be back.

The next day we spotted him again, but this time he was lying in the middle of the Luangwa, on a sandbar. A different PH, Thor, and I crawled to the water’s edge to set up for a 120-yard shot. Before I took it, we decided I would take two shots in quick succession. The first would be to the brain. This was the most important, and would hopefully kill the croc immediately. The second shot would be to the lungs so that if the croc were to slip into the water, he wouldn’t be able to breathe and would pop right back up.

When were all set up for the shot, I loaded the bipod and gently squeezed the back sandbag until I found the sweet spot where my gun wouldn’t budge.

Thor said, “Make sure you are 100 percent steady,” and I knew I was. Safety off. Breathe in. And, just before the exhale, squeeze the trigger.

The shot broke and a Hornady .375 DGX hit home. The croc’s tail started shaking, thrashing back and forth uncontrollably like they seem to do after a proper head shot.

I heard Thor say, “Ok! Again, on his shoulder! Quick! Quick! Quick!”

So, I ran the bolt, squeezed, and hit the croc in the shoulder.

“Ok! Again, on his shoulder or back hip.”

I chambered a third round, squeezed, and sent a final shot into its hip. With that, Thor was satisfied. Multiple shots are wise to ensure a wounded croc doesn’t disappear into the water, but in this case they were just precautionary. The second and third hadn’t been necessary.

After the shot, Thor radioed to the recovery team to bring a boat to our location. The rest of the hunting party heard the call and probably had some questions as to why we needed a boat. They all showed up to help in the recovery and see this Nile croc in person.

Thor, one of the trackers, and I were the first to canoe out to the sandbar. As I walked up to the crocodile through ankle-deep water, I was in awe. He was an absolutely amazing animal. The crocodile looked like he didn’t even belong on this planet, though his kind had been living here for millions of years. I was overcome, grateful for the opportunity to see and touch such an impressive creature in person.

After taking some photos, we loaded the croc into the canoe. The trackers took him ashore and then returned for us. From there, he was loaded onto the truck and taken to the skinning shed. The locals wanted to come see him, too. You can tell how much it means to them when one of these predators is killed. He measured 13 feet, 5 inches. I kept only the hide and the skull. All its meat was smoked, dried, and eaten by the anti-poaching team and camp staff. Some of the animals taken by hunters also get donated to local villages and schools. Nothing, it seems, goes to waste here.

So, if you have ever considered hunting African game, I highly recommend adding the Nile crocodile to your list. It’s a memorable, action-packed hunt that boosts the local economy—and village security. And, like I did, you will learn a ton along the way.

Circumstance is what can make moose dangerous, and there are two primary causes for aggressive behavior. First, cow moose will protect their calves with utter savageness. If they feel you are a threat to their young, they’ll come after you. Second, in the winter moose can become aggressive in deep snow, or if they feel like they’re being chased. Bull and cow moose can both be very aggressive in late winter. In fact, the winter of 2021-2022 brought high levels of snow here in Fairbanks, Alaska, and a big icing event in late December made conditions tough for moose. According to the Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game, multiple people were attacked, stomped, and kicked by moose in the Fairbanks area last winter. Most of the victims never saw it coming.

Dogs often draw the ire of agitated moose, too. A moose’s only four-legged predator in many areas is the wolf, and they don’t care for any canines. As you can see in this compilation, stressed moose will often attack dogs that they feel threatened by. Last year we covered an attack on a whole team of sled dogs in interior Alaska.

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You don’t need to fear moose, but you should respect them and be aware of potential stressors that can cause them to attack. If you live in moose country, keep an eye out, and never feed moose. If you ever have a moose lay its ears back and look at you like the moose in clip number 15 of the compilation, get ready to run!

Along with the advent of dam-building and flood control, which blocked off their migration routes in the Mississippi and suppressed their ability to spawn, the excessive harvesting of gar had serious impacts on their populations. As their range shrank—from up into the middle Mississippi as far north as Ohio to the lower Mississippi and Gulf Coast drainages—this overharvesting continued. At certain points throughout the last century, some state agencies even got involved with efforts to eradicate them.

This was certainly the case in Texas, which was (and still is) home to the healthiest populations of alligator gar in the country. A complete lack of harvest regulations there led to a gar-killing free-for-all that lasted until 2009, when the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department established a statewide bag limit of one fish per day and implemented a mandatory harvest reporting program. (There are a couple of exceptions to this rule, but more on that later.)

In the time since, biologists have finally taken the time to study this massive, ancient fish species that has been long misunderstood, and there is now a growing effort to conserve alligator gar in the Lone Star State.

Gathering Data and Debunking Misconceptions

The state agency began to study alligator gar around the same time that it implemented the first-ever regulations for the species in 2009. Around that time, TPWD had begun to see gar populations crashing in neighboring states like Louisiana and Mississippi, and the agency didn’t want to lose the largest and longest-lived freshwater fish species in the state.

As Daugherty explains it, they’re still in the process of gathering baseline data on the species.

“You’re talking about a fish that lives 50 to 100 years, so you need a long history of data,” he says. But research in Texas has already revealed plenty about the species. More importantly, it has helped debunk previous misconceptions about the fish.

For starters, researchers now have a better understanding of the long lifespan of alligator gar. They’ve learned that the fish grow quickly, but only spawn when seasonal floods push water up into the floodplains—which helps explain why flood control efforts and the subsequent channelization of rivers have been so detrimental to the species.

They’ve gotten better at aging alligator gar by looking at a fish’s otolith and validating their estimations in the lab using more advanced techniques. The oldest fish ever caught by researchers in Texas was 63 years old, Daugherty says. But in 2011, TPWD received the otolith from an 8-and-a-half-foot gar caught in Mississippi and biologists estimated its age around 95.

“One other thing we’ve learned that is hypercritical is that virtually all the big fish in these populations are females,” Daugherty says. “The males don’t live as long or get nearly as big. And even though everyone wants that big 7- or 8-foot alligator gar, we’ve learned how important these bigger, older female fish are.”

Still, he says that some of the most important research from a management perspective has been related to the feeding habits of alligator gar.

“Historically, the thought was that alligator gar were bad for more desirable species like crappie and bass. People just assumed that’s what they ate,” Daugherty says. “But alligator gar are actually opportunistic feeders. They eat primarily what is most available, and in most systems that’s species like carp, suckers, and buffalo—things like that. You occasionally find a largemouth bass or other sportfish [in one of their stomachs], but these are by no means a primary component of their diet. No study has ever suggested that.”

He goes on to explain that if you made a list of the best bass fishing lakes in Texas, you’d have to include Toledo Bend Reservoir, Choke Canyon Reservoir, Falcon Reservoir, and Lake Amistad. These man-made lakes are some of the most well-known stops on the Bassmaster tour, and they’ve held large populations of alligator gar ever since they were formed.

“When you think about it that way,” Daugherty says, “alligator gar can’t be bad for largemouth. Most diehard bass anglers still have a distaste for them, but they’ve had great bass fishing on these lakes for years, and there’s been alligator gar there the whole time.”

Falcon Reservoir, which is located on the border and co-managed by Mexico, makes an especially interesting case study for this long-misunderstood fish species. In 2012, Bassmaster Magazine rated Falcon as the number-one bass lake in the country. But the reservoir also has one of the most abundant gar populations in the state.

“The Last Free Bastion of Gar-Killing Heaven”

Falcon Reservoir is the only water body in Texas where the one-fish-per-day harvest regulation doesn’t apply. TPWD allows anglers to kill up to five alligator garfish a day on Falcon, and there are no slots or length limits. It’s also the only place in the state where anglers don’t have to report every gar they harvest.

Randy Myers, TPWD’s district fisheries biologist for southwest Texas, explains that even though creel surveys have consistently shown that largemouth bass comprise a very small portion of most gar’s diets, the bass fishing community still views the apex predators as a threat to their fishery. He says the feedback from this community—which pulls a lot of weight—was a big part of why bag limits were liberalized on the lake.

There’s also a cultural component to the regulations at Falcon, as alligator gar meat is popular in many Hispanic cultures along the border. And even though Daugherty doesn’t recommend eating trophy-sized gar—mainly because they live so long that contaminants bioaccumulate in their flesh—he realizes that there are plenty of people who will go on eating them anyway.

Even with these liberal bag limits, though, Myers says there are still plenty of gar swimming in Falcon. So many, he says, that a local tackle store owner still hangs up a sign in the shop that reads:

So why don’t you come down to Falcon, the last free bastion of gar-killin’ heaven. Where the gar are as thick as hair on a dog’s back, and where you can kill five a day if you want to. And you don’t have to tell mommy about it either.

The Future of Alligator Gar Management in Texas

On the other end of Texas’ management spectrum is the Trinity River, which is arguably the best place in the world to target trophy-sized alligator gar. It’s where Jeremy Wade came to film an episode of River Monsters in 2009, and it is now subject to the most stringent harvest regulations in the state.

In addition to a daily bag limit of one fish per day, Trinity River anglers have to draw a permit in order to harvest an alligator gar longer than 48 inches. The state also closes certain areas of the river to fishing during spawning season.

“Our concerns on the Trinity are more related to the strength of that fishery,” Daugherty says. “The fact is the Trinity supports a vibrant fishery for trophy alligator gar and we want to keep it that way.”

As Daugherty has learned more about gator gar in Texas’ major river systems, he’s also found that the makeup of their populations changes depending on where you are in the river. He says they usually find limited concentrations of giant female gar higher up in the rivers, while the lower reaches and bays along the coast tend to hold a lot more smaller fish.

“We’ve really been managing these rivers as a whole,” he explains, “but we are now seeing opportunities to manage on a more localized or regional scale. So, you might have different regs with more liberal harvest rules down at the coast. But if you’re further upriver, where there just aren’t as many and they’re more confined, maybe we don’t allow that as much.”

Bowfishing for Alligator Gar

Bowfishing for alligator gar has also become highly popularized. Recently, a bowfisherman shot a massive 7-foot, 8-inch gator gar in Falcon, but caught criticism for killing the fish when the catch was posted on social media.

“[There have been] a lot of good comments [on the post] and some bad,” the bowfisherman’s brother, Gerardo Benitez wrote. “When you go bow hunting for gar…you have 1 or 2 seconds at the most to get a shot, and it’s hard to tell how big [the fish] is. We don’t waste the meat; we actually share it with friends and family. Nothing goes to waste. The gar was measured a couple of times and several witnesses were present. The final measurement was 7 feet, 8 inches.”

In terms of how anglers target alligator gar in Texas, Daugherty acknowledges that some bowfishermen are frowned upon because “once you release an arrow, that fish is essentially dead.” But he adds that TPWD has never taken a position on one type of angler over another, and he personally believes that bowfishing has its place if it’s done sustainably, and so long as harvest regulations are based on the best available science.

“Really, the premise of what I’m saying is that the more data we get, the more we’re seeing opportunities for tailored management, which would help us meet the needs of a diverse angling community.”

The verb “ricochet” is defined as the occurrence of a bullet rebounding off a surface. As a noun, the term ricochet describes a projectile that has rebounded off a surface. In other words, a bullet can ricochet, and a bullet can be a ricochet. And ricochets are much more common than you think. They happen frequently on shooting ranges, while hunting, and when you’re plinking at the farm. But what causes ricochets, and how can you avoid them?

Bullets Want to Keep Moving

Because of their high velocity, and because of Newton’s First Law—a body in motion tends to remain in motion—bullets want to keep moving even after hitting something. Maybe the best illustration of a ricochet is a bounce pass in basketball. The ball strikes the gym floor or driveway at an angle and is deflected away from that hard surface in a very similar angle. Though some people believe a ricochet can travel further than a bullet fired at maximum elevation for range, this is a myth; impact substantially reduces bullet velocity.

Also, the surface causing the ricochet does not have to be harder than the bullet. For example, depending on the angle of incidence, a tree could cause a ricochet. If the angle is acute enough, and if the tree does not absorb all the bullet’s energy, the bullet will ricochet or deflect.

While hunting in Newfoundland, I shot at a bull moose at about 65 yards. The bullet first ricocheted off a small limb only a few yards from the bull and altered the point of impact by about 15 inches. I also have a friend in Africa who shot at a baboon in his yard. The bullet hit a rock, arced high for about 300 yards, and then landed in a neighbor’s yard only a few feet from where he and his wife were taking their evening tea. Both shots were essentially bounce passes gone bad.

This is the problem with trying to predict bullet ricochets. You can skip a rock across a concrete parking lot with predictably. But with a bullet traveling at extreme velocity, you have no way of knowing the level of damage the bullet will sustain from impact, or how that damage and loss of gyroscopic stability will influence the resulting ricochet. Where will it land? Nobody knows.

One of the reasons you hear the whining whirl of ricochets is due to the bullet impacting a rock or rocks at or just under the surface; even small rocks can cause the ricochet. That odd sound is the result of the bullet’s loss of stability as it continues to fly through the air.

Steel Doesn’t Always Stop a Ricochet

Steel targets can also cause ricochets, sometimes with the angle of incidence and critical angle near 180 degrees apart and the bullet rebounds back towards the shooter. This happens when the surface of a steel target becomes cratered, and a high-velocity bullet impacts the crater. The steel stops forward motion, but due to the velocity and construction of the bullet, the steel is unable to fully disintegrate the projectile and absorb all its energy. The bullet has to go somewhere, so the cratered steel sends it in the path of least resistance.

Good, well-made, and smooth-faced steel targets actually use ricochet to their advantage by safely deflecting bullets towards the ground. Given the right angle of incidence, the right bullet, and right velocity, almost anything can cause a ricochet. This includes water, an animal’s skull, an Army helmet (which is designed to increase the incidence of ricochet), trees, twigs, concrete, asphalt, hard-packed soil, and rocks. The list is endless.

In fact, ricochets can occur once a bullet enters the body cavity of a game animal. Have you ever field-dressed a deer and found the bullet somewhere way off the track it should have followed? This is because it impacted bone or cartilage, altered its shape and changed direction, and essentially ricocheted inside the animal.

The fourth rule of firearms safety is generally stated as, “Always be sure of your target and what is beyond.” This is really the best guidance available for avoiding ricochets. Don’t shoot anything but a shotgun onto water and don’t shoot at targets resting on concrete or a paved surface. Don’t shoot steel targets in poor condition, and don’t shoot rocks, pieces of steel, or any hard surface at extreme acute angles. Another way to avoid ricochets is to use ammunition loaded with frangible bullets. Though not suitable for hunting, they can add safety to your practice.

During those early days of our website, we were never able to fully verify, or discredit the story that went with the images. A few smaller websites did pick up the story years later and the series of images even popped up on a Reddit thread almost a decade later.

Consider this a bit of a cold case from the first years of OutdoorLife.com, but also a truly remarkable reminder of how brutal the predator-and-prey relationship can be.

None of us buy a pair of shoes without first trying them on. But when you are in the market for a new shotgun that’s precisely the predicament you face. You can’t leave the store with the gun and drive to the skeet range to see if it’s a good fit until you pay for it. So, how do you know if an off-the-shelf shotgun is the right one? Fortunately, there are many ways to check gun fit without ever firing a shotshell. And there are even more ways of adjusting gun fit after your purchase.

But first, if you are a new shooter and this is your first shotgun, it’s best if you don’t buy right away. Take some shooting lessons first. Borrow guns from friends or at the range, if possible. You don’t know if a gun is right for you until you learn the basics of shooting. That said, if you must have a new gun now, know that your shooting style and body will partially adapt to the gun. It is different once you have learned to shoot. Then you will want a gun that fits you so you can continue to shoot in the manner you’re accustomed.

Find Your Proper Sight Alignment

The usual approach to testing gun fit when you can’t shoot a smoothbore is to mount the unloaded gun and see if it lines up correctly under your dominant eye. This is best done by starting with your eyes closed. Shut your eyes and mount the gun so that it feels comfortable. Snuggle in a bit. Then open your eyes. Does your dominant eye look straight down the rib? If it is to either side, that means that the cast, or lateral bending of the stock, isn’t quite right for you. As to correct stock height, the store manager or a shooting friend can help you by looking down from the front of the mounted empty gun towards your eye and noting where your iris aligns with the rib. You can also check eye alignment yourself by mounting the gun in front of a mirror.

How Much Rib Do You See?

Although this is very personal, I don’t like to look flat down the rib when the stock is against my cheek with moderate pressure. That’s because when I need to shoot a dropping bird, I tend to cheek a little tighter and that causes my eye to go under the rib, which obscures the target. I like to see a little bit of rib when I cheek normally. This allows me to keep the target in full view and slightly float the target instead of covering it up with the muzzle.

If the gun has a center bead in addition to the front bead, many shooters like to line them up to create a figure eight with the center bead just touching the bottom of the front bead. If there is no center bead, a trick that I have found useful is to lay a penny flat on the rear-most part of the rib and cheek the gun normally. Doing that, usually I can still see the front bead, but not the front part of the rib. That gives me just about the amount of height that I need in my field guns, which come with flat ribs. You may want a different sight picture than I do, depending on the game, clay target presentations, or your shooting style.

Some Shotguns Fit Better Than Others

If you are considering an automatic or pump shotgun, they often have fitting advantages. Many of today’s semi-autos are shim adjustable. They come with different shims which you can place between the head of the stock and the rear of the action to change the height and cast of the stock to suit the shooter. This basically allows you to easily alter the stock for an ideal fit. Most pump guns do not come with this feature, but a good gunsmith should be able to make and insert shims in a pump.

Unfortunately, over/unders and side-by-sides don’t have this feature due to the way the stocks fit into the receivers. If the stock is too high or doesn’t have enough cast off, one of the options is to sand it down to fit and then refinish it. The problem is when you want to increase height or reduce cast wood must be added. A highly skilled gunsmith may be able to bend the stock to fit you using heat lamps or moisture, but it is expensive and sometimes the wood doesn’t stay bent. Some modern target guns are built with an adjustable cheek piece. This allows for easy adjustment of cast and height. Unfortunately, an adjustable cheek piece is a bit cumbersome on a field gun, so you don’t find them on those. You can also have a gunsmith make a stock that fits your body type, but it can be a pricey endeavor.  A cheap DIY alternative is just to add some moleskin to the comb of the shotgun.

Length of Pull Is a Key Component to Gun Fit

You also need to check stock length. While there are different preferences, a good rule of thumb is to have about 1½ inches between the back of your trigger-hand thumb and your shooting glasses when mounted. Make sure that you are wearing your shooting clothing when you are trying a new gun out in the store, so that your reach will be consistent. If you are a duck hunter, don’t test the gun in a T-shirt. Note that a short stock will often increase felt recoil. One that is too long will inhibit gun mount and make control more difficult. Too short or long stocks can also hinder accuracy. However, stock length isn’t a deal breaker because changes in length are generally very simple to make by using a recoil pad of different lengths. You can also add spacers to some stocks by unscrewing the butt plate. Longer stocks can be cut to fit smaller shooters as well.

One Size Does Not Fit All

What are the chances of finding a gun that fits perfectly? Are there any brands and models which seem to fit most people? The answer to that is maybe. The problem is that there is no such thing as a standard gun measurement. Standard Remington 1100s—arguably the most popular semi-auto for target shooters in the 1970s—measured 1½ inches (drop at comb) x 2½ inches (drop at heel) x 14 inches (length of pull) through most of their production run. With a thin comb, they often suit the average American male. But then look at some European guns. The Fausti Class over/unders are slightly longer, measuring 1½ x 2¼ x 14½ inches as is the Beretta Silver Pigeon I 20-gauge, listed as measuring 1⅜ x 2¼ x 14¾ inches. Remember that a gun stock for pre-mounted target shooting can be a little longer than the stock of a field gun, which must be mounted under many different conditions.

In addition to stock height, cast, and length for proper gun fit you will want to make sure that the pitch of the stock suits you. Pitch is the angle of the butt plate where it fits your sloping shoulder. Four degrees is standard. You want to make sure that the toe of the stock doesn’t dig into your chest. Pitch, like length, is easily adjusted. You can use a tapered recoil pad spacer to get the pitch right.

While you are at it, make sure that the grip suits your hand and that the trigger is comfortably within reach. Some target guns have triggers which can be moved back-and-forth, but this is rare in field guns.

Read Next: The Best Duck Hunting Shotguns for Waterfowlers

Not All Shotguns Are Created Equal

Clearly, if you are buying a gun off the shelf, it makes sense to see if you can borrow one of the same make and model from a friend to shoot before committing. Or you may find the same gun as a rental at a shooting range. That way you should know how that model shoots and fits before you lay your money down. But even that process has its flaws. Mass production of shotguns can lead to differences in gun dimensions. The measurements of the same model gun may be slightly different depending on when each individual gun was produced. So, you should still follow the guidelines I’ve laid out even when you are looking to buy a shotgun you believe is already the right fit.

@fishcabo Im gonna Ride her down! #fishprotocol #fishcabo #sinkingboat #liferaft #cabo #surrender #protocolsportfishing #winslowliferaft ♬ Surrender – Natalie Taylor

To get the full story behind the videos, Outdoor Life caught up with Rogers over the phone. From his home base in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, the 52-year-old charter captain shared the story of how his boat went down, and how he and his crew survived 12 hours in a life raft before they were rescued by one of his fishing buddies.

A Sinking Feeling

It all started the morning of July 18 with a 500-pound marlin, says Rogers, a California native who moved south to Cabo several years ago and started running offshore trips from a 33-foot Rampage he named the Protocol.

Read Next: Hard-Fighting Marlin Punches Hole in Boat Engine, Strands Anglers in Open Ocean

He says this is something that all bluewater captains do when trying to land a huge fish like a marlin. And he’d backed down on other billfish in the Protocol countless times before. But unknown to Rogers, his first mate Cristian Balderas, and the four paying anglers on board, one of the through-hull fittings for the motor’s exhaust pipe had failed, which opened a giant hole in the boat’s stern.

“I noticed water was still on the stern deck and we hadn’t been backing down on the fish and taking water over the transom for awhile,” he explains. “That didn’t make sense. Then my starboard engine went dead.”

@fishcabo My guys stayed focused! #fishprotocol #fishcabo #cabo #sinkingboat #liferaft #billfish #lostatsea #yousay @Pure Okie ♬ You Say – Lauren Daigle

At that point, around 10 a.m., Rogers climbed down from the tuna tower and opened the engine compartment. It was overflowing with water. His clients were still hooked up with the marlin and trying to land it, but Rogers had to pull them off the rod as the boat kept sinking lower.

“We got a bucket brigade working with the anglers, trying to pitch water out of the cockpit, but to no avail. At that point the scupper holes were underwater, and the boat was filling faster with water,” Rogers says. “I knew something bad was happening.”

Mayday

Now realizing that the Protocol was beyond saving, Rogers climbed back in the tuna tower and used his radio to call in a mayday.

“I was on the radio broadcasting our location when my electronics died,” Rogers says. “I was clueless the boat would sink that fast, [but] when I realized we were going down, I tossed down the life raft box. By that time my boat was really going under, and I just stepped off the bridge and into the warm Pacific.”

@fishcabo Replying to @walnutcafe8 #fishprotocol #sinkingboat #liferaft #cabo #billfish #winslowliferaft #jacksparrow #captainjacksparrow #fishcabo ♬ Addicted – KING COLE

His crew had already grabbed life jackets, and they swam away from the sinking boat to deploy the life raft. Rogers, meanwhile, kept filming as he watched his boat sink down in 10,000 feet of clear blue water.

“That’s when I realized the real challenge was ahead of us.”

12 Hours in a Raft

The Winslow life raft had a roof, along with basic emergency gear like water, flares, and fishing tackle. But it was rated for five people, and they had six adult men on board.

“The guys were distressed,” Rogers recalls. “We were cramped inside the raft with our legs entangled. It was pretty bad for the long hours we spent bobbing on the ocean.”

@fishcabo Sorry! Here is the sound! #fishprotocol #sinkingboat #fishcabo #winslowliferaft #billfish #protocolsportfishing #survival #aftco #jacksparrow #lostatsea ♬ original sound – Alex Rogers

With a hurricane brewing 200 miles away, the waves were rough and most of the men got seasick. Some puked over the side of the raft. Even going to the bathroom was difficult as they had to jump into the ocean to relieve themselves.

“It’s traumatic to be adrift in a raft on the open water. We had a range of emotions. Despair, hope, anger, frustration. I prayed to God. Apologized to God. Made promises to God.”

In between prayers, Rogers tried to stay positive. He says he was confident that one of his friends from Cabo’s close-knit fishing community would come save them.

What he didn’t realize at the time was that his GPS coordinates weren’t accurately received when he called in the mayday. This meant that some of his friends were searching more than 25 miles away from where the Protocol actually sank. High waves and strong currents made it harder to pinpoint their location, and even the Mexican Navy was unable to find them.

Read Next: Hawaiian Angler Missing at Sea After Being Pulled Overboard by a Giant Tuna

“The Navy quit looking for us at 7 p.m., and they closed the harbor down for boats because the hurricane was bearing down on us,” says Rogers, who credits his wife Brandi for coordinating with the U.S. Coast Guard, the American Consulate, and the charter captains they knew in Cabo. “But the offshore fishing community headed out anyways [and looked] for us long after sundown.”

Finally, around 11 p.m., after 12 hours adrift in the Pacific, someone in the raft said they thought they heard a boat engine.

“I could see a boat’s running lights almost a mile away, and I started jumping and signaling to it,” Rogers says. “I watched the boat turn, then spotted its red-and-green navigation lights coming to us.”

Pancho Bojorquez, a local charter captain and one of Rogers’ friends, was at the wheel of the 35-foot Viking. He was joined by eight or 10 others, who were almost as happy to see the anglers as the anglers were to be rescued.

“I knew then we were going to be saved,” Rogers says. “And all of us just started going nuts in the raft.”

@fishcabo Replying to @gecko.rau #fishcabo #fishprotocol #survival #lostatsea #protocolsportfishing #pro2col #billfish #winslowliferaft ♬ original sound – Alex Rogers

Back on shore, the fishermen reunited with their friends and families. And within two months’ time, Rogers bought a new 38-foot Egg Harbor boat, which he named the Right Rigger. He’s since replaced the roughly $60,000 worth of offshore tackle that sunk along with the Protocol. But he says the most important item on the new boat is a brand-new life raft.

“Those rafts are pricey, some up to about $5,000, but that’s the best money anyone can spend who fishes open water,” Rogers says. “When I bought the Protocol, my friend the late Ted Barta told me to buy a good Winslow raft for the boat because one day it might save my life. “Best advice I ever got from a legend in the offshore fishing world. That raft saved all our lives.”

The first fatal great white shark attack of 2023 took place only five days into the new year. On Jan. 5, a 50-year-old fisherman went diving for scallops in the Gulf of California off the coast of Mexico. He was swimming along the seafloor collecting shellfish when a great white shark bit down around his shoulders and decapitated him.

With real-life stories like these, it’s easy to see why great white sharks have such a fearsome reputation. They’re one of the most powerful hunters in the ocean, after all. And if you were to look at the list of shark attacks that have taken place globally over the last 400-plus years, you’d see that great white sharks are responsible for more attacks on humans (both fatal and nonfatal) than any other shark species.

Still, 351 documented attacks in 443 years doesn’t seem like much when you consider the number of people who regularly swim in waters inhabited by great whites. Not to mention the fact that dogs kill far more people every year than great whites do. Between 30 and 50 people die from dog bites each year in the U.S. alone, according to the National Library of Medicine. By comparison, sharks killed nine people around the world in 2022 — and that includes all species of sharks. (At least two of those deaths were believed to be caused by great whites.)

The fact is: Great white shark attacks are rare. But that doesn’t make these marine killing machines any less terrifying. Let’s take a closer look at the facts around great white shark attacks, including how and why they occasionally attack humans.

Table of Contents

Great White Shark Attacks by the Numbers
How Great White Sharks Hunt and Attack Their Prey
Why Do Great White Sharks Attack Humans?
Do Great White Sharks Eat Humans?
Support for the “Mistaken Identity” Theory
Great White Shark Attack FAQS

Great White Shark Attacks by the Numbers

The University of Florida has been studying shark attacks around the world for more than 60 years. These investigations span from the present day to the late 16^th century, and the results have been combined into the ultimate resource for shark attack statistics, known as the International Shark Attack File. Importantly, these figures only include “unprovoked” shark attacks or bites — as opposed to “provoked” incidents that are initiated by humans (feeding, harassing, or unhooking a great white shark caught from the beach, for example).

This map gives an idea of shark attack hotspots around the world. Infographic via International Shark Attack FileHere are those numbers at a glance:

• Since 1580, there have been 949 unprovoked shark attacks documented around the world
• 351, or 37 percent of those, involved great white sharks; of those attacks, 59 were fatal
• Tiger sharks have been linked to 142 attacks over that same period of time, while bull sharks have been linked to 119 attacks

ISAF curators emphasize that these numbers should be taken with a grain of salt because attacking sharks are sometimes misidentified by victims and bystanders. Still, bull sharks, tiger sharks, and great white sharks are considered “The Big Three” because they are more than capable of inflicting serious injury, and they often hunt in areas frequented by humans. These three species account for roughly 65 percent of shark attacks around the world and are the most likely suspects when an attack occurs.

How Great White Sharks Hunt and Attack Their Prey

Growing up to 20 feet long and topping out at more than 6,000 pounds, great white sharks are the largest predatory fish on the planet. They have only two natural predators: humans and killer whales. Orcas hunt great white sharks, but they only succeed in taking down the apex predators by teaming up on them. As shown in a recent video, a pod of whales will work together to herd a great white to the surface, where they bite into the shark and feast on its organs.

Great white sharks, however, are solitary predators. They rely primarily on their noses, ears, and ultra-sensitive mouths to hunt. Their ears are tuned to pick up on the low-frequency sounds of struggling critters, and they can smell blood in the water from up to three miles away. Great whites then use tiny sensory organs around their mouths to home in on their prey. Known as ampullae of Lorenzini, these organs function like lateral lines in other fish species, detecting changes in electromagnetic fields and helping them track their prey with precision. Research shows they can detect the impulses given off by an accelerated heartbeat, which means they can literally sense fear.

A great white shark breaches before biting into a seal. Photograph by Uryadnikov Sergey / Adobe stockGreat white sharks also use their eyes when hunting, but their eyesight isn’t quite as strong as their other senses, which can sometimes lead to cases of mistaken identity. (More on this below.) They do a lot of their hunting in shallower waters near the coastlines. This is for a couple reasons: It’s where many of their favorite prey sources congregate, and it’s easier to ambush prey there.

When these sleek torpedoes move in for the kill, they use their speed and sheer power to blindside their prey, typically attacking from below. Great whites will, at times, launch completely out of the water as they bite down with tremendous force, using their hundreds of razor-sharp teeth to tear into their prey.

Not all bites are this savage, though. Like many shark species, great whites also use their mouths to explore their environment and investigate unfamiliar objects — similar to how we use our own hands — and their taste buds help them identify whether the object is edible or not. This helps explain why attacking great white sharks don’t always kill people even though they’re more than capable of doing so with a single bite.

“Everyone wants to think sharks just search out seals, but they bite a lot of things that don’t resemble any of their known prey,” shark expert and author A. Peter Klimley explained to National Geographic years ago. “They don’t tear these things to pieces. They take a bite, feel them over, then move on.”

Why Do Great White Sharks Attack Humans?

It’s widely understood that great white sharks don’t consider humans to be food since we’re not part of the marine ecosystem. We’re also much bonier and offer far fewer calories compared to their all-time favorite prey: seals and other marine mammals, which are covered in thick layers of fat. So, why would a great white shark go out of its way to attack a human in the first place?

Great white sharks are solitary predators and masterful hunters. Photograph by willyam / Adobe stockKlimley’s line of thinking touches on one potential explanation: curiosity. Because they’re at the tip-top of the food chain, great whites aren’t afraid to use their mouths to check out something that looks vulnerable, such as a buoy, a kayak, or a boogie boarder.

The other predominant theory is that most great white shark attacks on humans are cases of mistaken identity. A shark senses a person in the water, thinks they’re a seal or another marine mammal, and chomps down on them. Sometimes these initial bites are severe (or ill-placed) enough to make a person bleed out and die. But most of the time, the shark tastes its mistake and swims away from the person.

Do Great White Sharks Eat Humans?

It’s hard to find any confirmed reports of a great white shark actually eating a human after an attack, although in some rare cases, the victim’s body is never recovered. The closest shred of evidence supporting this possibility dates back more than 100 years.

Peter Benchley, who wrote the novel that inspired the classic movie Jaws, has said in past interviews that the bloodthirsty great white shark at the center of the story was pure fiction. But in one introduction to his book, Benchley alludes to the “Matawan Man-Eater,” which reportedly attacked five people, killing four, along the Jersey Shore during the summer of 1916.

Read Next: Great White Shark Tales from Cape Cod’s Charter Boat Captains

The attacks set off mass hysteria that even caught the attention of then-president Woodrow Wilson. They also fueled a shark-killing frenzy that July, and several local fishermen caught and killed sharks in the area that they claimed were the man-eater. This included other species besides great whites, including bull sharks, and there’s still some debate as to what species the man-eater was — or whether there were multiple sharks involved. Some experts still lean toward a bull shark because two of the attacks occurred in fresh- or brackish water along Matawan Creek, and bull sharks can tolerate freshwater while great whites cannot.

Regardless, one of the people who claimed to have killed the Matawan Man-Eater was a taxidermist from New York, who killed a 7.5-foot great white while fishing in Raritan Bay. The shark allegedly attacked his rowboat and he killed it with his oar. When the taxidermist cut open the shark’s belly, he found part of a leg bone and other human remains inside, according to the author of Twelve Days of Terror.

Support for the “Mistaken Identity” Theory

More recently, in 2007, an Australian scuba diver claimed he was swallowed head-first by a great white that tried to eat him alive. (He said he survived by punching and gouging the shark’s eye socket while inside its gullet.) Just like the Mexican diver who was killed by a great white in January, the Aussie diver was collecting shellfish along the seafloor when he was attacked in 2007.

This commonality between the two attacks reinforces the “mistaken identity” theory. Referring to the recent attack in Mexico, one expert told LiveScience that the fishy smell around the diver and the vibrations caused by prying shellfish off the seafloor “could have lured the shark” to the area.

“It is also possible that [due to his position on the seafloor] he resembled a sea lion foraging,” another expert said.

A shark’s eye view of a seal on the ocean’s surface. Photograph by Brett Monroe Garner / Getty

A 2017 paper out of Stanford University found that the highest risk group for great white shark attacks in California is surfers. And judging by the attacks that have occurred in other places around the world, the same could be said for surfers in other great white hotspots, such as South Africa and Western Australia. This adds up, since surfers typically wear dark-colored neoprene wetsuits that can resemble the sleek hide of a seal when they’re splashing, diving, and shredding in the waves.

A separate 2021 study that took a “shark’s-eye view” of humans swimming and paddling surfboards drew the same connection between surfers and seals. Its authors concluded that it’s impossible for a great white shark to unequivocally tell a pinniped from a human paddling a surfboard.

But out of all the studies that have looked at great white shark attacks — and there are many — one of the most revealing was published earlier this year. In the study, published in PLOS ONE, researchers at California State University, Long Beach, flew drones over 26 beaches in southern California one day a month for two years. As they surveyed the nearshore waters, they looked at where people and great white sharks were swimming in close proximity to each other.

The researchers found that the vast majority (91 percent) of these 1,204 “human-shark-co-occurrences” were at two locations in particular: Carpinteria Beach and Del Mar Beach. They saw great whites swimming close to humans on 97 percent of the days they flew their drone over the two beaches. They also noted that surfers and paddle boarders were the people most likely to find themselves near great white sharks because they often ventured beyond the wave break.

During this same stretch of time, there was only one unconfirmed report of a shark bite along the two beaches, one of the study’s co-authors Chris Lowe told LiveScience.

“This study provides evidence that high human-shark spatio-temporal overlap does not lead to an increased bite frequency in southern California,” the authors write, “and there are a number of possible explanations as to why [juvenile great white sharks] are not biting water users despite daily encounters.”

In other words, people swim near great white sharks nearly every day. But it seems we’re far more interested in them than they are in us.

Great White Shark Attacks FAQS

Final Thoughts

A sign in Hawaii warns surfers and other beachgoers of sharks in the area. Photograph by Matthew Micah Wright / Getty

Great white shark attacks on humans are rare, especially when you consider that people swim in waters inhabited by great whites nearly every day. When these attacks do happen, however, they can be grisly and sometimes deadly. Most experts have theorized that great white sharks attack humans out of curiosity or due to cases of mistaken identity. One recent study found that most of the time, even when humans are easy prey, great white sharks want nothing to do with us.

If you want to be a real duck hunter, you must be a tough son of a gun. Along with your bushy, duck commander beard and lifted truck, you must possess a hefty 12-gauge shotgun. It must have a 3.5-inch chamber and should be loaded with the heaviest BB payloads available. Afterall, the ducks you’ll be hunting are tough, and they require maximum firepower to bring down. This is at least what a lot of marketing around duck hunting would have you believe—until recently. Happily, the introduction of the 28-gauge Benelli Super Black Eagle 3 is a clear indicator that duck hunters are getting smarter about their gun, gauge, and shotshell selection—if not necessarily facial hair grooming.

The 28-gauge version of the SBE 3—which is one of the best duck hunting shotguns of modern times—is a light (5.5 pounds) and lovely gun. When I ran the first few loads through one on a clays range in South Dakota, the word that sprung to mind was not “tough” but rather “joyful.” The gun swung nimbly from target to target, cycled shells enthusiastically, and soaked up the recoil of the 3-inch, ¾-ounce loads so effectively that I’d burned through a box of ammo in no time, and promptly asked for another. As I would find out later in the week, with the right hunting loads the shotgun also flat-out crushes ducks. It’s no wonder that more and more hardcore duck hunters are putting up their 12-gauges and switching to svelte 28-gauges like the new SBE 3.

28 Gauge Benelli Super Black Eagle Key Features

• Gauge: 28
• Action: Semi-auto, Inertia Driven
• Capacity: 2+1
• Chamber: 3-inch
• Barrel type: Steel (cryogenically treated), carbon fiber vent rib
• Barrel length: 26-inch, 28-inch (tested)
• Chokes: IM, M (Ciro)
• Front sight: Red bar
• Length: 47.5 inches
• LOP: 14.38 inches
• Trigger pull: 4 pounds, 3 ounces (measured average)
• Weight: 5.5 pounds
• MSRP: $1,799 to $1,899

About the SBE 3 in 28 Gauge

Think of this shotgun as the little brother to the 12-gauge SBE 3, which was introduced in 2017 with a 3.5-inch chamber It uses the same simple inertia-driven design, which employs the recoil from the shell in conjunction with the mass of the bolt to compress a powerful spring that then cycles the action, tossing the spent hull and loading a new shell. This has proven to be an incredibly reliable and clean-running system that duck hunters love. In the 28-gauge version, Benelli says the SBE 3 will cycle everything from light 3/4-oz., 2¾-inch target loads to magnum 3-inch duck loads. Like all SBE 3s this gun is also very easy to field strip and clean.

Also like its big brother, the 28-gauge Super Black Eagle uses the Comfort Tech 3 system in the stock to minimize recoil. Since recoil mitigation systems are boring in general, I’ll keep the summation short: there’s a series of chevrons in the stock that flex to absorb felt recoil, plus there’s a nice cushy pad on the comb to keep your cheek from being bruised.

Overall, the recoil from this little gun is less than mild, like a good friend giving you a pat on the shoulder. This, of course makes the gun fun to shoot but I think it also helps add to the mystique of why the 28-gauge is so “deadly.” More on this later.

The shotgun has a steel barrel with Benelli’s proprietary cryogenic treatment, which the company says improves patterning. The trigger guard and trigger assembly contain a lot of molded plastic, which old-timers will grumble at but hasn’t hurt the SBE’s durability. The rib is made of carbon fiber, for lightness and cool factor, but mine wobbled ever so slightly against the barrel. A small miss, but still a miss for a gun that costs $1,800.

The trigger had an average pull weight of 4 pounds, 3 ounces on my Wheeler digital gauge. Like most shotgun triggers, there was plenty of creep, but it was unnoticeable in the field or on the range.

Fit and finish on the gun are typical of Benelli, which is to say as good as it gets in the duck gun category.

Pattering the 28 Gauge Benelli SBE 3

Benelli Super Black Eagles are known to hit high. My go-to duck gun is an SBE 3 12 gauge and with some loads and the standard Z shim, it patterns almost 100 percent high. So before doing any pattern work with the 28 gauge version, I swapped in a different drop shim to lower the stock and lower the point of impact. Benelli ships each SBE with a shim kit, which most hunters probably ignore, but they shouldn’t. Dropping in a new shim is incredibly easy. Simply pull the pad off the buttstock, unscrew one nut, slide off the stock and drop in a new shim.

The only tricky thing about Benelli’s shim kit is their labeling system (it’s a bit confusing). But if you watch the video above and spend five minutes with the owner’s manual, you’ll figure it out. I swapped in a D shim and then got to patterning. I shot Hevi-Shot’s Hevi XII, 3-inch, No. 4, 1 oz. loads. I used the standard modified choke that was screwed into the gun. I shot five patterns at 40 yards under classic duck hunting conditions: 20 degrees with a 15 mph crosswind.

I’ll admit, I had planned on also shooting 30-yard patterns because I didn’t think the little 28 would produce effective patterns at this range. I was wrong. The gun put plenty of pellets on target, averaging 107 hits inside a 30-inch circle (83 percent patterns).

As you can see from the pattern below (which was the best I shot) the gun hit a bit high and slightly to the left. Benelli promotes a 60/40 pattern, which means 60 percent of the pellets hit above the target, so we’re pretty close there. I could also easily adjust the cast of the shotgun (same process as swapping in drop shims) to shift the pattern to the right if I really wanted to get nitpicky.

What’s most interesting to me is the number of pellets the 28-gauge put on target. For reference, my 12-gauge SBE 3 put 121 steel No. 2 pellets on target from 35 yards in our test of the best duck guns.

The takeaway? With these Hevi XII 3-inch No. 4s the 28-gauge Benelli is an effective 40-yard duck gun.

Hunting with the 28 Gauge Benelli SBE 3

I hunted with two different 28-gauge SBE 3s on field hunts for ducks and geese in South Dakota earlier this fall (with Federal’s Black Cloud No. 3s) and also in my backyard duck marsh with the Hevi-Shot load. In all cases, the gun functioned flawlessly.

During the South Dakota field hunts we were mobbed by big flocks of mallards at close range. The light little gun helped me pop from of my layout blind faster than my partners (at least most of them) and the minimal recoil of the 28 allowed me to quickly transition from one crumpled greenhead to the next. The Federal Black Cloud No. 3s performed impressively. Along with our ducks, we also killed several snows and specks mostly at close ranges. However, in one case, I watched another hunter shooting the same 28-gauge gun and load drop a lesser Canada with a 40-plus-yard crossing shot.

Our guide on this hunt was very restrained with his shot calling. He let the birds work in close (20 yards or in) before calling the shot for our crew. With that discipline and our 28-gauges, loaded with No. 3 steel, the ducks we hit fell dead. There were very few cripples for my lab Otis to chase down.

On my home waters, I shot the Hevi XII No. 4s on late-season greenheads with excellent results. This was more close-range shooting, with headshots on greenheads backpedaling over the last open water in the pond—and more short retrieves for Otis. I especially liked the 28-gauge in this scenario because it’s noticeably quieter than my booming 12-gauge, meaning it’s a little less disruptive to my neighbors.

The only quibble I could find was that the bolt slid forward a bit sluggishly when I hit the bolt release to drive a shell into the chamber (this was even after cleaning). It never resulted in a malfunction (I’ve burned through about five boxes of ammo without a single jam). But I’d like to see the bolt snap home with authority the way it does with my 12-gauge SBE 3.

Everyone seemed to shoot the 28-gauge Benelli SBE 3 well. Though the gun was light, it did not feel whippy or jumpy. Fast transitions to secondary targets felt natural.

Pulling the trigger on a duck, watching it fall, swinging to another bird, and then watching that duck fold as well inspired confidence. Confidence breeds even better shooting. And I think this is one of the reasons that some hunters talk about the 28-gauge being somehow deadlier than it should be. It’s not, they just shoot it well. For me, it all comes back to the minimal recoil.

Getting rocked by 12-gauge magnum duck loads day after day degrades shooting. I’ve seen it in my own shooting and with other hunters. Maybe you stop getting your head all the way down on the gun, or you quit following through with your swing. Even the ducks you do hit, are hit marginally with the edges of your pattern. But recoil is not an issue with the mild 28. With less recoil, it’s easier to stay down on the gun and really focus on the target with follow up shots. Shooters end up maintaining their fundamentals and crushing birds with the core of their pattern, which makes the 28 feel extra effective, but really, it’s just good shooting at work.

So, forget about all talk over the ¾-ounce payload in a 28-gauge being “square,” and patterning better, like somehow there’s a magic formula packed into these little shells that makes the 28 punch above its weight class. Real shotshell experts will tell you this is not the case.

28 Gauge Effectiveness on Ducks and Geese

Shooting a 28-gauge for waterfowl is not some trendy stunt. With denser shot material, like bismuth or TSS, the 28-gauge is an incredibly effective gauge for ducks and even close-range geese.

Let’s look at those Hevi-Shot No. 4 pellets I pattern tested. They have an advertised density of 12 g/cc. Steel has a density of 7.86 g/cc. Because of their higher density, these No. 4 pellets have the same lethality (ability to penetrate) as steel No. 1s, according to the company (and to shotshell expert Tom Roster).

The key is understanding “penetration energy” says Adam Moser, a shotshell product engineer from Federal (whose parent company owns Hevi-Shot).

“Pellet energy density is a measure of pellet energy per cross sectional area. In other words, it is the kinetic energy of the pellet divided by the 2D area of the pellet,” Moser says. “This gives us a better idea of how well a pellet will penetrate a medium, better than just pellet energy and is particularly helpful when comparing shot made of different density materials.”

If you got lost in the math of that statement, the takeaway is this: Smaller, denser pellets penetrate better than larger, less dense pellets. Part of the reason is because they have less surface area to push through a medium (like a duck).

Now, if you’re used to shooting steel, look at that pattern board photo and imagine each hit was made by a No. 1 steel pellet. You’ll have an idea of true effectiveness of these 28-gauge loads.

Plus, there are more and more ammo options becoming available for duck hunters looking to shoot the 28-gauge. Some of the top choices include:

• Federal Black Cloud steel No. 3s
• Hevi-Shot Hevi XII No. 4s
• Boss bismuth No. 4s or No. 3/5 blended
• Apex Ammunition TSS No. 7.5s

Am I advocating for long range shots on big honkers or divers with the 28-gauge? Absolutely not. Waterfowl hunting at its best is about tricking birds in close and then killing them cleanly over the decoys. Deciding to shoot a 28-gauge should be a commitment to that style of hunting.

READ NEXT: The 28-Gauge Shotgun Can Kill Ducks as Effectively as a 12-Gauge (At Modest Ranges)

What the Benelli SBE 3 28 Gauge Does Best

This shotgun ramps up the fun factor in waterfowl shooting. I think it’s an ideal option for new hunters who don’t want to get rocked with recoil and develop poor shooting habits. It’s also perfect for veteran hunters who are looking to rekindle that romance of shooting greenheads up close. For SBE 3 fans, of which there are many, this is simply a scaled down version of the gun they already own—it’s just more enjoyable to shoot.

Where the Benelli SBE 3 28 Gauge Falls Short

I couldn’t find anything to not like about this gun except for the price. At almost $2,000, it’s spendy for a gun that probably won’t be your only duck gun (some days you’re just going to need that 12 gauge). Plus, living the 28-gauge lifestyle means buying pricier shells season after season. Those Hevi XII loads I keep pumping up? They cost $80 for a box of 25. The Black Cloud steel loads, which will start shipping this year, will be more affordable but still not cheap.

Final Thoughts on the 28 Gauge Benelli SBE 3

This shotgun (plus the shells I shot through it) made me a believer in the 28-gauge as a duck gun. Is it the best choice for all waterfowl hunting applications across the four flyways? Probably not. But it is a serious shotgun for serious waterfowl hunters who don’t mind buying premium ammo and want to mix up their shooting a little. If you spend some time shooting the 28-gauge Benelli SBE 3, you’ll become a believer too.