I learned the hard way that hunting coyotes where there is a lot of ground cover like we have here in NW Florida is almost impossible with any kind of caller. They will almost always circle around downwind without even once revealing themselves and once they get your wind will often challenge bark at you to let you know how smart they are and how stupid you are.
Having said all that I DO have a couple of buddies that call several nights a week with moderate success but they're VERY accomplished and have access to many many hunting leases and are constantly on the move and rarely hunt the same area more than 2 or 3 times a year.
Frankly I gave it up. I found that I killed more coyotes sitting in a deer stand while having no idea any where near than with a concerted effort.
Something else I've found is that wherever we hunt deer with our deer hounds there seem to be fewer coyotes based on tracks. They vocalize a lot less but we found that tracks are more reliable and of course, we track a lot. looking for fresh big tracks to cast the hounds on. After deer hunting season, when the hounds are out of the woods, they move back onto our deer leases.
If you haven't learned to tell a coyote track from a domestic dog, especially a hound dog, then there are several experts that google can find that will give you good pictures. I've found that basically the coyote track is more elongated than a hound's track and you can draw an X through the track without cutting through a pad print. Once again be sure to google this and get some good pics.
I have come to the conclusion that since poisoning became illegal it's really impossible to control coyote populations effectively and I agree that poisoning should be illegal because it kills so many non targeted species.
Trapping seems to be the most effective legal deterrent here and I'm not going to get involved in trapping. That's better left to people that do a LOT of it and are well versed in it and the incredibly involved scent control that goes with it.
Bait piles are somewhat effective in the short run but coyotes learn faster than you can modify your methods. LOL
Running them with hounds could be effective but coyotes quickly learn where the hounds aren't supposed to go and head for those areas quickly and you'd need HUGE tracts of land where there were no private lands that you weren't allowed to hunt. You'd also need big tough hounds that would stick together because coyotes cooperate with each other very well and will easily kill one or two small hounds once they outnumber them.
Are coyotes here to stay? Yup.... Are they incredibly efficient, relentless and smart predators? Yup
Get over it.... LOL
The only plus I see is that in many states they provide year round hunting opportunities for people that have the patience, time and inclination to hunt them and love to hunt. If I ever retire I may start hunting them full time but for now I still work and cherish the few days each year I can afford to hunt whitetails and fill my freezer with the healthiest and tastiest red meat there is.
Long live the eastern whitetail deer!!!
