I curse at turkeys more than anything else I hunt...
*I have done everything wrong, and still killed a bird.
*I have done (what I consider) everything correct, and not killed the bird.
*I have killed birds while trying to contemplate how to kill the bird, by pure happenstance.
*I have had birds come in on a string, and had extraordinarily bad luck prevent me from killing a bird.
As far as what I would have done... Once a bird is hung up... If he cannot see me, I make a move (often away from or parallel to the bird, and occasionally/infrequently towards him). I figure about 50/50 that I will kill him or bump him, but once they are hung, I figure about 100% chance I will not kill him if I do not change the game.