Thermal spotters: essential kit for today’s hunter

A thermal spotter has become an essential part of the hunter’s kit, says Warren Broad of ATN Europe. “Whether you’re deerstalking, foxshooting, or just ratting around the farmyard, a pocket-sized thermal monocular is awesome to scan the area, day or night.” He also finds it useful when he has shot an animal, and is looking for a blood trail.

The monocular he uses is the OTS XLT, ATN’s entry level thermal spotter. “It’s great because it’s so small you can just slip it in your pocket and you forget it’s there until you need it,” he says.

“It’s useful that it can take photos and video as well. I’ll often take a photo if, say, I find a group of wild boar. Then I can study the photo later and see how many males, females and young there are.”

The ATN OTS XLT range includes a 2-8x and a 2.5-10x model, with prices starting at £599. They have a 160 x 120 pixel, 17μm sensor with a 50Hz refresh rate. Detection range is 670m in the 8x model, and battery life is more than 10 hours. You can select between white hot, black hot, red hot or colour display, and the unit comes with a 2 year warranty.

For more information visit ATNeu.com.