Coyote Hunting Took A Nose Dive

[Hunter Customs]

I'm not sure what's going on but my coyote calling has taken a nose dive.
I've been hunting hard the last few days, making a lot of sets, and I've not seen one coyote.
I'm not even seeing coyotes out in the fields on my way to and from calling; this is unusual.

One thing that's taken place is we have had some major snow, which to me always makes it harder to hunt coyotes.
It seems to make the coyotes more wary an less like to come out in open country, it also makes it much harder on an old man to get around.

Yesterday afternoon it warmed to about 50 degrees so on my way home from calling I drove around and did not even see one coyote balled up in the middle of a section suning themselves, again this is very unusual.

I'm thinking I might have to change tactics, get out the old shotgun and try to do some night calling.
Anyone have any suggestions?

Best Regards
Bob Hunter
www.huntercustoms.com

 

[Saltydog235]

Do you guys target them around any woods? We have thick sets of planted pines varying in age, usually boardered by logging roads or power line right of ways. We've had ever increasing numbers of trash dogs but few people will target them. Studies are showing that they are beginning to have adverse effects on the fawn mortality rates.

We are trying to learn to hunt them and control the problem but they are a pretty wiley animal.

 

[sway]

I would try baiting your sets a day or two before calling. Here in NM snow on the ground is usually the best time to call them in. I ve also had areas that are hit hard with calling and it seem to make the coyotes more wary of comming into calls, associating the call with humans. This usually happens when there is more that one hunter calling an area. Or one hunter calling the area consistently. I would bait ur calling sets and switch ur calls up. Let us know how it goes, hoping u have better luck!

 

[Huntergirl]

Try coyote pup distress call.

 

[langenc]

Should be getting close to the rut and that should pick up the movement.

 

[603Country]

I just got into using an electronic call (which was a good decision), and the last coyote I shot was lured in by the Fawn Distress Call. That coyote shot out of the woods at 30 miles an hour about 5 minutes after I started the call. Since I read that coyotes are the biggest predator of deer fawns in Texas, it seemed reasonable that the fawn distress call would bring them in. You'd think that any intelligent coyote would know that there aren't any new fawns on the ground just yet, but maybe he was just hoping.

 

[Hunter Customs]

First I want to thank everyone for the responses and suggestions.

I will say that I am a little perplexed by the fact that I'm not seeing any coyotes at all.
It's getting close to coyote breeding season around here so it's not unusual to see packs of three or more, however I'm not even seeing any singles.
The snow is good for tracking and I'm finding a lot of tracks. However I've not found any estrus signs from the females in the snow.

I'm still camoflaging myself well, sneeking in and out of sets like I always do and I have switched up on the calls.
I've used coyote female howls,yelps and barks, pups in distress, several different types of rabbit sounds, kid goat in distress and some bird distress sounds, all to no avail.
I've used both electronic and mouth blown calls.
I'm certainly no pro at coyote calling but I usually kill at least 25 or more in a season, I've killed 22 so far this year.

I have access to a lot of private land to hunt so I'll call a place and let it rest for 10 to 14 days before I go back to call it again. I don't believe anyone else is calling, as a matter of fact the only tracks I'm seeing are mine and animal tracks.
No one has been using running dogs in the area's I'm hunting so I don't think that's a problem.
I'm seeing fresh coyote tracks and scat in the areas I hunt so I know they are there.

As for the type of country I'm hunting in it's everything from crop fields bordered by hedge rows, hay fields that has ditches with brush and weeds, wooded thickets, creek beds & draws and some CRP ground with a lot of good cover.

I've hunted all times of day and have even started staying at my sets for at least an hour.

The only thing I can think is that I may need to change my tactics and start calling at night and use a shotgun.
Unfortunately in Missouri you can not use an atrifical light for night hunting of coyotes like you can in some states, so that rules out using my rifles.

Again I want to thank everyone for your suggestions.

Best Regards
Bob Hunter
www.huntercustoms.com

 

[Daryl]

It's getting close to coyote breeding season

Yep, and breeding season dictates a change in tactics.

I've experienced a "slow down" in responses this time of year many times. By now, the coyotes that haven't been shot have mostly been shot at. When every bunny they hear and try to find takes a shot at them, they lose interest almighty fast.

With the territorial behavior of the breeding season, February brings another chance to get in some final days of success before the coyotes turn to raising their young. It does require different tactics. Once the young are born, they mostly stay quiet, and avoid other coyotes. They'll hide their den at all costs, and if it's discovered, they'll often move it elsewhere to protect the pups.

Go fishin' after February, and take up coyote shootin' again next fall.

DAryl

 

[hooligan1]

Deep snow goofs em up! However if you can track, you should be busier-n-acat.Also alot of yotes take a deep snow like this and sleep in for a few. Don't get discouraged, keep hunting it'll turn soon and all of a sudden you'll be busy!!!! Tip my hat to the Automatics very nice man!

 

[Hunter Customs]

Daryl,
Yes, I agree about the breeding season.
My coyote hunting seaon usually starts around mid to late October and ends late Feburary, however there has been some years that I hunted to mid March.
I lose out on a lot of good November coyote hunting because of the length of our firearms deer season and its regulations pertaining to other hunting during the deer season.
However next year during deer season I'll try some coyote hunting with a rimfire rifle, I have an old Remington 5mm magnum that may work well for that.


hooligan1,
I also thought the reason I wasn't seeing them was the deeper snow but every day I went out I found fresh tracks. The only other thing I could think of for not seeing them in the daytime was, that the full moon ended and we started a new moon cycle.
I've heard it claimed that coyotes will move more at night when in the dark phase of a new moon.
As for tracking I really only have two issues with that. One is the deeper snow wears me out much faster then it did when I was a younger man. The other is, more then once I've tracked coyotes to where they crossed a fence over to property that I don't have permission to hunt, that's always a bummer after a good long walk through deep snow.
I have considered saddling my horse and hunting coyotes from horseback, I'll have to check on the regulations on that.
Thanks for the kind words on the automatics.

Again I want to thank everyone that responded. I have no intentions of giving up, I'll keep trying until the end of the season.
Regards
Bob Hunter
www.huntercustoms.com

 

[hooligan1]

Ya they went nocturnal, this happens to every yote shooter, The best callers with the best setups usually stay busy but there are times when mother nature just won't cooperate. good luck and happy shootin dude!!

 

[Hunter Customs]

Well it looks like we are going to get some nasty weather, freezing rain, more snow and high winds.
I guess I'll just plan on taking the next few days off.
Good luck to all you predator shooters.
Best Regards
Bob Hunter
www.huntercustoms.com

 

[Doodlebugger45]

I'm not sure about the reason, but I have also noticed that coyote hunting becomes tougher in February for me. It's pretty good in November, great in December, January, but then it starts tapering off pretty fast about the first part of February. Like someone said, maybe they are getting wise by then. Maybe the breeding season means they are less interested in feeding, more interested in ... other things. You take what you get I guess.

 

[Scorch]

Breeding season? My guess is that they are just not that interested in you. Maybe if you pinned a tail on and yipped around at night you might get some action . . .

 

[Fat White Boy]

Global Warming?

 

[A_Gamehog]

The area you are in , the coyotes are "educated" to your calling style. For me I use a mouth call and try to go into different areas each time. I learned the hard way during Elk season, some city boys were calling from their trucks and then just driving down the road. All they did was educate the Bulls in that area. They will be "denning up" soon and that also poses a problem in your success. The males will be your target during that time, feb-april here. So the numbers will be low for a while. The food source in the area? deer? Find where the location/elevation of deer are and you find the predators. Quail here are my indicators, when I find them I have found the deer, and the predators.

 

[Hunter Customs]

A_Gamehog, thanks for your thoughts on this.
I don't believe the coyotes are that educated to my calling as I don't go to the same areas that often and when I do hunt them I change up on my calls.
Even though I've been shut down because of the recent blizzard we just had I am getting out on the roads and seeing them moving again.

I went to one of my calling spots that I could get to, done some calling and scored #23.

It looks like we may be in for some warmer weather by the end of the week which will help melt a lot of the snow. If it does I'll be back to coyote calling in a lot of my areas that I can't get to now.

Best Regards
Bob Hunter
www.huntercustoms.com

 

[A_Gamehog]

My best luck in the winter is calling in fresh powder or directly after a major storm. They are hungry and not able to resist a free meal. I use an Old P.S. OLT
Fawn call. It works on everything here but fox. I got the call 35+ years ago... Tried to find another on EBay but no luck. I call in Muledeer country but it works well in Blacktail country the best. (Left coast) Ca.-Or-Wa.

Sounds like you got it figured out, nothing is more rewarding to a hunter than tricking an animal into shooting range and then killing it. Be it an Elk or Coyote.

Keep up the good work.

 

[Hunter Customs]

"Sounds like you got it figured out, nothing is more rewarding to a hunter than tricking an animal into shooting range and then killing it. Be it an Elk or Coyote."

A-Gamehog,
I agreewith your words above, I've called coyotes for years and still get that good feeling every time one comes to the call. I know then that I did everything right that it takes to trick a pretty smart animal to within range to get the shot.

I have not got to go out and call as much as I wanted, but I'm up to #26 now.
I actually used #24 to help get #26.

After I shot #24 I tied him in a sitting position to a sappling knowing we were going to get some hard freezing weather.
I'm pleased to say my ideal worked well, as I could set old #24 out in a field and he would sit there in a perfect sitting position.
So late one afternoon about an hour before dark I set up old #24 and then started with some coyote talk.
About 15 minutes into calling and a coyote appears on top of the ridge east of me, I can see the coyote is eye balling old #24 sitting in the field.
I'm facing to the south, hid very well, a couple of soft barks and the coyote on the ridge is heading to #24 on a dead run with a look in it's eyes like the fight is on.
When the coyote from the ridge crosses in front of me not more then 40 yards out I squeeze the trigger on my rifle and #26 is laying dead in front of me.
I gave old #24 a pat on the head for a job well done, gathered up both coyotes and headed home.

I may try to get out another time or two before the end of March gets here.
But if not I know I had a good season and will be ready to go next October.

Best of luck to everyone that's still out there hunting.

Best Regards
Bob Hunter
www.huntercustoms.com