When I had to take the pups before getting both of the adults I used high pitched puppy sounding short howls and barks . The two short howls and two barks the next morning and with a longer wait between the series so that I could hear the adults answer my calls . Maybe up to a minute between the calling series . That would let me know where they were and what direction they would be coming from . After they talked to me I would then answer them once and then not talk again while they came to me . This also worked when I needed to get the pups if they were older and I had taken the adults but then I needed to go to the pups . When I took any coyote I carried them away with me so that the survivors didn't find them and then I put them at a place for the rancher to find them so that I could get paid for them .
Coyote hunting tips
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geo4061
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Great places to set up include the head of drains, creeks, and draws.
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The country I work in has mostly flat terrain and the elevation difference between the bottom of a draw and the surrounding area is frequently no more than 4 or 5 feet and be dozens or hundreds of feet wide.
These "draws" will have thicker vegetation such as mesquite and greasewood as well as denser grasses and this time of year, even with no leaves, give coyotes a very secure travel path.
Ed
Ed are there two tracks running up and down these draws or crossing them or are they mostly pasture lands with animal trails mostly ? Here where I've seen this type of draw , which is rare here , there is normally a dyke and stock pond near the bottom end of them so there will be a two track road to go and check the water levels and dyke's condition .
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There will be two-tracks crossing them occasionally, but the majority are in a pasture type setting with animal trails through them.
Coyotes are lazy at times, particularly when traveling. They like to travel in well established trails with smooth surfaces if possible, rather than taking to the rougher terrain.
You can tell a well used trail not only by the frequency of footprints, but buy the amount if scat along it. Both male and female coyotes will mark territory, particularly during this time of year when they start to pair up for breeding.
Kinda like a coyote dating site.
These trails are a good place to make a stand as the coyotes are already comfortable with the path.
I have identified one such trail on a ranch I'm currently working and am not only trapping that trail, but will be calling on it, too.
Ed
So many times I have watched coyote from afar and as you set and watch not calling or trying to stalk them , just let them being coyote to learn about them , I have noticed that they do so many things that our domestic dogs will do when they are allowed to be dogs and not obeying their humans . They are after all relatives to each other . Some dog breeds seem to be closer in looks as well as actions then others . Me being curious and wanting to learn better how to hunt them has led me to watch them often as well as listen to them and to try to put together the reasons that they are doing what they are at different times and under different conditions as well as to hear what they are saying at these times .
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Ed , I am glad that you mentioned that aspect of coyote behavior . Coyote do act very different this time of the year then at other times . With it being breeding season and them wanting to set up house keeping in an area the old areas that they had pups in , not only this pair but other pairs from the past generations , will be gravitating to those areas so if you have been lucky enough to have learned where some of these areas are they will become the hot spots of coyote activity at this time . This is the time that I really enjoyed using my coyote howlers the most . Paying attention to what they were saying to each other and doing my best to imitate them at other locations . then at this time when they answered saying the same things back to them . I enjoyed setting out in the mornings and evenings so that they would tell me where their areas were so that I could invade their home range and give them a little bit of my own coyote talk . I too have noticed that they , like livestock and the other animals , tend to take the path of least resistance .
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Well, my stand on that draw paid off this morning. It was a little chilly, just above freezing with a light, steady wind. The sun came up above the horizon just after 7:00AM, and started to warm things up a bit. There were roughly 60-70 heifers and probably 20 calves less than a week old grazing that long, wide, shallow "draw".
I was glassing the herd for coyotes and I saw a big one easing along the center trail, stalking towards a couple of heifers and their newborn calves. He stopped near a mesquite bush (there are no trees out there) and sat down, just watching. I had the sun to my back, and the wind was blowing from him to me.
I ranged him at 414 yards.
I was carrying an AR15 that I had built with an 18" BHW barrel and a Rugged Razor suppressor.
It wears a 2x7x33 Leupold Firedot scope. It's sighted in at 200 yards with my handloads using CFE223 and Hornady 53gr match hp bullets.
I held right between his eyes and pulled the trigger.
Much go my surprise, instead of hitting him in the lower throat or upper chest, the bullet went straight up his nose!
He's now known as a "blew-eyed" coyote
He's also one of the heavier coyotes I have taken on this ranch, weighing in around 25lbs. Roughly 3 1/2 years old, a prime breeding male with no outward signs of parasites, this is one that won't be killing anymore calves or teaching pups how to!
Ed
I was glassing the herd for coyotes and I saw a big one easing along the center trail, stalking towards a couple of heifers and their newborn calves. He stopped near a mesquite bush (there are no trees out there) and sat down, just watching. I had the sun to my back, and the wind was blowing from him to me.
I ranged him at 414 yards.
I was carrying an AR15 that I had built with an 18" BHW barrel and a Rugged Razor suppressor.
It wears a 2x7x33 Leupold Firedot scope. It's sighted in at 200 yards with my handloads using CFE223 and Hornady 53gr match hp bullets.
I held right between his eyes and pulled the trigger.
Much go my surprise, instead of hitting him in the lower throat or upper chest, the bullet went straight up his nose!
He's now known as a "blew-eyed" coyote
He's also one of the heavier coyotes I have taken on this ranch, weighing in around 25lbs. Roughly 3 1/2 years old, a prime breeding male with no outward signs of parasites, this is one that won't be killing anymore calves or teaching pups how to!
Ed
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The birthing smell is the draw for them, but then they hang around the herd and will attack the heifer while she is on the ground and drag the calf out of her.
Quite often, they won't stop with the calf and start eating the heifer from the backside while she's trying to give birth.
This kills her and the calf, providing a feast for days and drawing even more coyotes.
Nature isn't mean, or any other human characteristic, it's simply life...short and uncertain, as the coyote found out this morning.
Ed
geo4061
Well-Known Member
Ed that was an outstanding shot. What shooting position were you in? What supports were you using? Thanks for sharing with us.
I have seen them do that to Antelope here Ed . When they try that with cattle often they have a good fight on their paws , but the way that cows and heifers isolate themselves from the rest of the heard to calve lends it's self to the chance for the coyote to band together and work on her . When a heifer has a problem calving and the calf needs to be pulled by humans is where I have seen that the most often here as the heifer will get worn out and can't stand any longer , her and the calf will both die from this if we don't intervene . Here at this time of the year we seldom have large numbers of coyote running together a pair and possibly three due to the coyote's behavior during breeding season . Often it will be an older male and his mate with another female pup from last years litter running with each other when it's three . I have seen several times where there would be two of the same sex running together , mostly the young of last years litters . Here sometimes the young females won't cycle the first season , when we have lower food bases this often happens . I have taken dens with pups from both females more then once and normally you will see a very distinct age difference in the pups . Is that the case down in your part of the world as well . You are 100% right it is the way that life is and it has no human feelings attached to it for them . If we aren't taught to have these feelings they will often not be present in humans either , I have seen it in other parts of the world where humans acted the same as the rest of the animal world .
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Thank you for the kind words..
I was shooting from a short chair using an old BogPod bipod. There's no way to shoot from prone out here, so a tripod or bipod is a necessity.
It takes practice to maintain proficiency with any firearm platform and I'm fortunate to be able to shoot a lot.
I'm also intimately familiar with this rifle, having built it and carry it every day.
I also carry (in my truck) a customized Ruger American Predator in. 243Win and a custom 6.5x280AI when I'm working ranches with extreme range shots.
Ed
