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Hunting => Predator Hunting => Topic started by: clubmkred on February 17, 2011, 08:49:48 AM

Title: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: clubmkred on February 17, 2011, 08:49:48 AM
Well, after a lot of video guidance and practice, I decided to make a couple stands this morning near my house using some newly acquired hand calls. This first stand didn't seem to produce, so I moved over to the top of a ridge that put the wind in my face. Tried a couple more mouth calls and it produced the largest coyote I have seen to date. Unfortunately I froze, and couldn't pull him in any closer to me. He was about 150 yards out and I only had a shotgun. Being new at this, I am sure that I will learn, over time, how to bring him closer to me. The question that I have, will the coyotes learn not to come into the call since they obviously did not find the source? He didn't bolt from the location that I am aware of. I actually lost sight of him in heavy brush on some power lines. I am thinking that maybe he eventually winded me. If he did wind me, will that affect the next time I try to call him in. Will he have learned not to come into that call?

Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: riverboss on February 17, 2011, 11:06:10 AM
It sound like to me he may of been called before at sometime you can still call them in but they usualy are very sneeky and go straight for your wind try calling quieter not so louad and try to block the back door with a field or cover that he wouldnt want to cross and force him into range a feather on a stick to hold his attention might be the trick.
Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: HaMeR on February 17, 2011, 06:59:10 PM
Setup 130yds closer next time. But give that area a couple weeks & try to make a little different sound.
Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: WldWldWest on February 17, 2011, 09:00:50 PM
Congratulation's on calling him in! Keep after him you'll get em!

WWW
Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: alscalls on February 17, 2011, 09:15:39 PM
It is important that you examine and learn all you can from what you did to get ready for your set right through your calling and seeing the coyote.....
Also learn from what happened...... what the wind was doing..... were you in the shade? ......
All we can do is speculate...... You were there....... Write it down if that helps..... But whatever ya do try and learn from it.... the coyote did..... I about bet you sometime after you left.... that spot was re-visited and examined.... So you do the same as best you can, to put all the odds ya can a little to your favor.  :wink:

Sounds like a good time!   :yoyo:
Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: markTNhunter on February 17, 2011, 11:03:35 PM
just stay after em you will conect and if you keep hunting that want be the last time thatll happen to ya ive had it happen i dont know the times everybody has.more than likely the was something just not right with your setup the wind might of swerald on ya,it may have spotted you,it may have been called to before and was just spooky  :shrug: wait 2 - 3 weeks and go back set up in a differant spot and use a differant sound.who knows if you got alot of coyotes in your area you might go back 2 days to the same spot and call in a differant one :shrug: never know but if theres not a big number i would probly stay out of there for awhile.never give up stay after em! some times even if everythings just right  you cant foolem some of them ole wise coyotes are like big buck deer they got that sixth sense and they know somthing ant right thats part of hunting.
Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: alscalls on February 18, 2011, 04:56:10 AM
Jim Champion...... PMed me to let me know I have only ever killed one coyote in my life....and should not give advice... so I guess I better retract my last....... Oh wait.......... Never mind......... Hes WRONG again........  :alscalls: :alscalls: :alscalls: :alscalls: :alscalls: :alscalls: :alscalls: :alscalls: :alscalls: :alscalls: :alscalls: :alscalls: :alscalls: :alscalls: :alscalls: :alscalls: :alscalls: :alscalls: :alscalls: :alscalls:
Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: FinsnFur on February 18, 2011, 05:38:16 AM
Consider yourself lucky I didnt say what I was RRRrrrealy thinking :innocentwhistle: :laf:
Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: alscalls on February 18, 2011, 06:07:25 AM
All ya gotta do is call.........  :innocentwhistle:
Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: clubmkred on February 18, 2011, 06:57:00 AM
I am 100 percent sure that my set up was wrong for that particular stand. I was getting to call it quits for the morning. I walked to the edge of a ridge overlooking a place where I WANTED to set up, but figured that I would just blow some calls for the practice. I never expected to call one in. I am guessing that was Mother Nature's way of laughing at me. My worry is now that I have exposed myself to the yote. I was standing when I first called, but was in the shadows of the tree line. I don't think he saw me, otherwise he would have bolted. When I saw him, I readily crouched down closer to the ground and was still able to watch him mosey around. It was only when he disappeared into the thick brush below me that I lost him for good. I continued to call, but had no idea how he reacted to it.

Oh, HaMeR, +1 on the 130 yards closer next time... LOL. The calls you sent obviously worked great...
Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: HaMeR on February 18, 2011, 07:06:45 AM
Glad they worked for you Ed.  :yoyo: :yoyo:

Another lesson learned here as well. If you're gonna go out into coyote territory & practice with hand calls you may as well do a setup & be ready. And there are some guys that like to do stands standing up so they can see better. Next time you're standing & you see a coyote that far out don't move at all. He could have seen you move & just left.

Speculation on my part here.  A coyote has very good vision. I doubt they fully understand exactly what they see if your outline is broken up. Movement on the other hand is just a killer. They will detect that as quick as a turkey will.
Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: clubmkred on February 18, 2011, 12:27:38 PM
Yeah, I am pretty much kicking myself for that bone head move. Should have positioned myself better in the first place. Maybe I would have had a shot.

Do you guys generally hunt with a partner? I have been hunting by myself lately and find it to be pretty dificult to cover all angles. Any tips for the lone hunter?

BTW, this is the rascal that I have been chasing... I am not positive, but I think this may have been the same one I saw the other morning.

(http://i842.photobucket.com/albums/zz344/egalicic/Picture4032.jpg)
Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: George Ackley on February 18, 2011, 12:52:48 PM
QuoteI have only ever killed one coyote in my life....and should not give advice


there is a hole lot of guys in PA that need that advice  :eyebrownod:
Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: clubmkred on February 18, 2011, 01:27:01 PM
Hey, I need all the advice I can get...  :eyebrownod:
Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: HaMeR on February 18, 2011, 01:54:10 PM
 :laf:  Me too!! I only hand out ideas. I haven't killed enough coyotes to even be considered a coyote hunter yet. On the other hand I do rely on actul experiences that I've had in the past with them & try to help that way as well.
Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: coyotehunter_1 on February 18, 2011, 06:34:09 PM
Sometimes we make this coyote hunting stuff a lot harder than what it really is.  :doh2:

Get in the field as often as possible, and like said before: scouting the area pays off. Watch the wind, pick the best available vantage spot to set up, always expect coyotes to come when calling and be ready to shoot as soon as you get out of the truck. 
Regardless of experience, everyone makes mistakes... I still do, you will too... try to learn from them.

And most importantly... Don't get discouraged.  :wink:

Yes, hunting with a good partner is not only a plus but a blessing at times  :yoyo:

Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: Bopeye on February 24, 2011, 12:22:46 AM
Quote from: coyotehunter_1 on February 18, 2011, 06:34:09 PM
Yes, hunting with a good partner is not only a plus but a blessing at times  :yoyo:

GOOD hunting partner is the key word here. I do have a good coyote hunting partner. Coyotehunter1 on the other hand does not. This poor guy gets stuck with a broken down fat man that has a hard time doing much of anything very good anymore.  :eyebrownod:
Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: KillerCaller! on March 06, 2011, 06:15:22 AM
IMO, if ya called him in, made visual contact and didn't scare him off, you pretty much did everything right except kill it. You, if possible, should have a shotgun and a rifle on stand.
Making the stand 130 yds? Odds are that the coyote won't respond the EXACT same way next time.
Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: clubmkred on March 07, 2011, 08:02:51 AM
Quote from: KillerCaller! on March 06, 2011, 06:15:22 AM
You, if possible, should have a shotgun and a rifle on stand.

Well, I finally pulled the trigger on a new rifle. After much debate as to what to get, I decided my best option was a Savage 220F, 20 ga. bolt action slug gun. I, unfortunately, am in a county in PA that only lets me hunt with shotgun or rimfire. The rimfire debate, especially the .17 HMR, does not have the ballistics that I am comfortable with to take a coyote consistently. It has the accuracy, don't get me wrong, but I think relying on the shot placement in my terrain would yield less than desirable results. I will not take a shot unless I am confident that I can make good contact. I have already passed up two opportunities to shoot at coyotes with my shotgun because I was not confident that I could make a kill. I would rather pass up the shot and leave it for another day, than take the chance of educating the coyotes.

I wanted something that I could reach out to 100 yards or better (if needed), and with sufficient knock down power. Now, some may think that the 20 ga. slug is overkill... but someone once told me that there is no such thing as "too dead". Shooting it for the first time last Thursday, yielded 1.5 inch groups at 100 yards. I am pretty pleased with those numbers. But the break process that I am using is not nearly complete. It is painstakingly slow. So, we will see what happens down the road.

I would have much preferred to have a .223 or .22-250, but my primary hunting grounds fall withing the gun restricted area of PA.

Hopefully, I will have some target pics to post soon (aka coyote).
Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: eleaf on March 08, 2011, 11:59:56 PM
Quote from: clubmkred on March 07, 2011, 08:02:51 AM
I, unfortunately, am in a county in PA that only lets me hunt with shotgun or rimfire.

That's bullshit.


QuoteThe rimfire debate, especially the .17 HMR, does not have the ballistics that I am comfortable with to take a coyote consistently. It has the accuracy, don't get me wrong, but I think relying on the shot placement in my terrain would yield less than desirable results.

I have this exact same thought about the 17 hmr.  Sure, you CAN kill a yote with a 17 hmr, but the stars have to align for it to happen. Distance, pin-point shot placement, angle, everything has to work perfectly. I'd rather not even chance it. For me, a groundhog is as big as I will kill with the hmr.


QuoteShooting it for the first time last Thursday, yielded 1.5 inch groups at 100 yards. I am pretty pleased with those numbers.

Sounds a whole lot like minute of coyote to me!

Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: clubmkred on March 09, 2011, 05:11:35 AM
Quote from: eleaf on March 08, 2011, 11:59:56 PM
Quote from: clubmkred on March 07, 2011, 08:02:51 AM
I, unfortunately, am in a county in PA that only lets me hunt with shotgun or rimfire.

That's bullshit.

I totally agree. It's hard enough to hunt coyotes to begin with, now you have to make it harder with gun selection? That's just crap.

I think I am going back to the range today to further break in the barrel. It's raining / snowing outside, should be a good day. Most of the idiots that you find at the public ranges should be home in this weather.
Title: Re: Eastern coyote behavior
Post by: hunter724 on May 01, 2011, 02:52:16 PM
Quote from: George Ackley on February 18, 2011, 12:52:48 PM
QuoteI have only ever killed one coyote in my life....and should not give advice


there is a hole lot of guys in PA that need that advice  :eyebrownod:

gotta agree there...where ya been George???