I spent a couple hours one spring day patterning several different buckshot loads at various distances. My conclusion - which is purely personal and not intended to change anyone's mind - is that buckshot should be very effective on soft targets, particularly of the human kind in defensive situations. However, at distances over five to ten yards I'd be reluctant to use it on anything big, nasty and bent on hurting me. What's more, at ten yards or less you can put MOST of a normal shot charge on the target - more of it than a sparse buckshot charge - which pours the full energy of the charge into the target creating a time buying staggering effect if nothing more deadly. What's more even the largest buckshot (individually) isn't all that big and shares it's power with a number of other pellets. That equates to pretty poor penetration and totally unpredictable wound path. Under the conditions Boddington relates I to would surely be more confident with a shotgun but if I could be sure my nerves would hold up, a big bore rifle or even an accurate slug shooting smoothbore would be more likely to put a killing shot in the right place. Plenty of leopard have certainly been killed with buckshot... and spears, knives and even rocks no doubt. Let's all hope none of us have to get THAT close though!