Predator hunting is a challenge. Despite populations of foxes, bobcats, and coyotes, in most environments across the country, luring one of these crafty critters into rifle or shotgun range is difficult. Planning is the key and these five tips from Bryon South will get you started and can act as a checklist when you head out.
Back in the day, I bought a portable recorder and some predator calling cassette tapes and took a college coed on a hunt. I set up the caller, turned it on, and a big grey fox came bounding into sight. I shot the critter at 20 yards, a feat that impressed my date so much that she married me. (At least that’s how I see it.) Point being that predator calling, like a big buck suddenly appearing, can seem easy, yet that was my only fox called that year.
Great Calling Gear
Compact, quality gear is the good news about predator calling today. Calling devices have become so compact that you can put some in your pocket and even the largest units fit easily into a back pack or can be carried by one hand. Aside from more calls that you knew existed, some come with an attractant that provides not only an auditory lure but a visual one as well. Coyotes and foxes that have been previously hunted will become call-shy, yet when they see a flash of “rabbit fur” they are more apt to come directly toward the easy meal. Additionally, utilizing a motion lure allows you to pinpoint the approach of the predator. South’s first point is “check the wind.” Predators, like mature bucks, usually approach into the wind, but you can mitigate this behavior with cover. Wary predators will stick to cover, so keep your opening down wind of the call so that foxes or coyotes are forced to circle with a cross wind and not detect you.
Larry Weishuhn authored this post on the North American Hunters website and who knows more about predators than a biologist from Texas:
No sooner had I begun blowing my mouth blown jackrabbit in distress call than a coyote erupted out of the underbrush running directly toward me! I was not prepared for what was happening.
I jerked my father’s .30-30 lever action to my shoulder, pointed it toward the charging coyote and rapidly fired seven rounds in the predator’s general direction!
Walking home a few minutes later I had my hunting knife in my right hand, just in case the “wolf” I called in decided to attack, and my empty rifle in my left hand. Back home, an excited a 10-year old told his story.
