In the early 1980s trapping fox, coyotes, badgers, muskrat and a bonus mink did more than just pay for gas. Fur prices were strong and fox outnumbered coyotes to the point where a coyote pelt brought a nice reward, and the intense hunting and trapping effort helped keep numbers in check as well.

ND predator hunting is growing in popularity and for good reason, there's a lot of coyotes around

My dad was one of those guys who jumped in his old blue Ford and ran a trap line every night after work. I often tagged along, as I never knew what the 20 or so traps would hold. A coyote was a prize, a raccoon showed up once in awhile, and the occasional skunk was a necessary evil, but it was all part of the trap line.

And that was part of the draw – similar to just about any hunting or fishing outing for that matter – you just never knew what might lie around the next bend.

I can count on one hand, maybe two, the number of trappers I know who are keeping the heritage alive. But where trapping with the dedication required for checking a trapline daily has fallen off, a lot of it because of a depressed fur market and high price for gas, I know many others who have joined the ranks of predator hunters. Whether it’s with calls, or by spotting and stalking, predator hunting has become much more popular than it once was.

Part of that has to do with opportunity, as coyote numbers are higher than they were 30 years ago, and their primary range has expanded. While the state’s coyote population has grown, the fox population is smaller, partly because of the presence of mange, and partly because coyotes don’t like fox and force them out of their territories.

With the rising popularity of predator hunting in North Dakota, there are also a few reminders, ethical and legal, that need to be considered in the realm of enhancing landowner-hunter relations.

I’d venture that many landowners would welcome coyote or fox hunters who ask permission for walking or snowshoeing access. As with all types of hunting, however, there’s no guarantee.

Don’t forget that with the excessive early snow and drifts around the rural areas, some posted signs are snowed in and it’s better to seek out permission in most cases, rather than assuming land is not posted.

While I’m on the subject of “posted” signs, I’ve taken a few calls from landowners asking for a reminder that “no trespassing” isn’t exclusive to hunting. “No trespassing” is all-inclusive, on foot, snowmobile, ATV or other form of transportation. No matter what the activity, if land is posted the landowner wants people to ask before the enter.
When it comes to furbearer hunting and snowmobiles, it’s illegal to chase and harass wildlife. Anyone who witnesses such activity should report it immediately.

One last legal reminder for predator hunting – the use of spotlights, the same as for viewing big game at night. While night hunting for predators is legal during the winter, you must be on foot, and you can’t use a spotlight. So, use the spotlight for finding calves or lost pets, and when you set out to call fox and coyotes at night, leave the light at home or and bring the snowshoes along.

While my participation as a predator hunting isn’t on the same level as many other active coyote or fox caller, I still enjoy strapping on the snowshoes and hiking across the in pursuit of fox, coyotes … or rabbits. You never know what you might find when you spend the day on the other side of the window.

Leier is a biologist with the Game and Fish Department. He can be reached by email:dleier@nd.gov

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I’m often asked at tournaments and seminars what I think contributes to my success over the next guy. My answer always gets funny looks like I’m trying to dodge the question and give a generic answer but it’s the truth plain and simple. You can’t call predators where they don’t exist. I contribute a lot of it to Homework.

I understand that not everyone is going to take predator calling as serious as me or go so die-hard, that’s why they call it a passion. On the same token, I know guys that don’t eat meat for two weeks before deer season because they believe that it helps keep down the “predator scent” that their bodies release. What I don’t understand is that the same guys that handle their deer hunting or duck hunting in that matter expect to just stop on a county road throw on a little camo and an electronic caller and call in predators. Scouting is no less important for predator hunting then it is for any other game you like to pursue. I’ve spent countless hours in the “dog days of summer” amongst the skeeters and ticks trying to locate dens. I’ve even drug the wife with on occasion to show her that I wasn’t lying about where I was when she thought it was an alibi.

Spring and summer are great times to look at terrain in new areas. If you have a good understanding of the lay of the land before you even get to the stand it will save you a lot of frustration. There is nothing worse then watching a coyote turn on the afterburners after you spooked him out by standing on the hillside surveying the stand. When you should have been wondering how much gas money he’s going to bring on the market. I understand that it is impossible to have all of your stands scouted for the fur season beforehand, but if you can have a good jump start it’s going to help you take advantage of the juveniles in the fall.

One of the best chores to get done in the spring and summer is land access. I’ve found (as expected) that talking to land owners about gaining access to their pastures as soon as calving and lambing season have finished or are drawing to an end the best time. If they have a predator problem that is when it is the most noticeable and they might have a sour taste in their mouth about those four-legged, mutton lovers we love to chase. I can then assess the situation and see if some spring control work is needed to help the rancher out or if the predators can be left until fur season, which is what I prefer.

Use the sun to your advantage when scouting in the summer

Summer can also be great for the fact that the hay meadows have most likely been cut and the coyotes and fox see that as a smorgasbord and the ranchers have had plenty of sighting to help me narrow down my search. The short growth in the meadows also makes den identification easier at a longer distance, cutting down on the walking. Rural postman and school bus drivers (in the spring) can be very helpful also. Remember they cover a lot of miles every morning when the predators are trying to scramble up that last nugget of food before napping and taking care of young for the day.

Then the fun begins. If coyotes are the most prevalent predator in your area they make the next step a lot easier then say, fox or bobcat. I like to spend the hour before daylight and last the hour of daylight driving in the most likely den location areas and seeing if I can get the parents to let a out a howl or two. Later in the summer it’s possible to get the pups to light off. Your favorite howler and a good knowledge of the basic howls is all you need to accomplish this.

I  do recommend wearing camo for this step when you are out howling and walking around in the denning area. The last thing you want to do is give your location away and make the connection of a coyote’s howl with a human being. Obviously bobcats and fox aren’t going to howl and give their location away, however, I have heard fox bark when threatened or frustrated. If you can get a good location on a den, it’s a great time to take some photos if your not going to have to do any control work. It is a real benefit if you know where the coyotes denned come fur season. That location is somewhere they feel very safe and sheltered with a good food source and water supply. That is a real good bet come fur season. Although, they won’t be using the actual den, they will tend to hang out in that area during the daylight hours. If you can get a reasonable location on the den you need to start scouting the terrain like I mentioned earlier. That way, you can slip into the area unseen and set up at a location that gives you the elevation advantage when possible. That gives you the advantage of the sun at your back whenever possible. If you can find six locations like this in a summer and the average litter size is four to six pups then you have 24 to 30 coyotes to hunt come fall. That will keep the average hunter plenty busy in the fur shack if he or she does things right. However, don’t set your goal at harvesting all the coyotes you’ve located. I’ve come to the humbling realization that unless you are doing denning work in the spring it just isn’t going to happen. I consider myself very successful if I can harvest half of the coyotes out of a pack I’ve located if I get the proper time to hunt that area.

If you consider yourself a serious predator caller then you can take it to the next level by doing your research during these months also. I don’t expect everyone that likes to call predators to take this step but to be consistent it is a must with coyotes. There is a plethora of text including books, masters thesis’s, PhD studies and Internet chat rooms (www.nodakoutdoors.com is a good one) to read up on. The biggest topic to study is the different language of the coyotes and getting a good understanding of howls they use and why they use them. Habits and biology are also always good things to have under your belt.

Getting all of your legwork done in the spring and summer will leave all of your time during fur season to the job at hand, putting fur on your stretchers. You wouldn’t expect to shoot a 160-class whitetail every year by just jumping up in a tree stand in a random location without locating the deer in the summer. So why expect to call predators without doing the same? I’ve seen a lot of guys get frustrated and give up on calling predators because they think they don’t know how to use a call or that they don’t have the patience to do it. When I start asking them some questions about their area, they can’t tell me much about it and in some cases don’t even know if there is predators in the area! If you take the same attitude in the pre-season toward predators as you do for your other game I can guarantee you more fur in the shack.

Happy Howling and may your stretchers always are full!

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The increasing presence of mountain lions in North Dakota has received a lot of attention over the past few years, but during the same time, a couple other native species are also perhaps returning to the state after long absences.

The swift fox was once abundant across the prairies of North Dakota, but preferred the shortgrass prairies in the southwestern corner of the state. The shorter grass allowed them to search for prey and better detect their main predator, the coyote.

In the early 1900s, poisoning efforts aimed at removing coyotes and wolves from the prairie took their toll on swift foxes as well. Swift foxes, curious by nature, were easily drawn into poisoning stations.

By the end of the 1920s, the swift fox no longer existed in North Dakota.

The swift fox is the smallest member of the canine family in North America. Measuring less than 3 feet from nose to the tip of its tail, they are roughly the size of a large house cat. Their fur is yellowish-tan, with gray along the back with some white mixed in on the belly and throat. Its most distinct color feature is the black tip on the end of its bushy tail, distinguishing it from the red fox, which has a white-tipped tail. Its large ears are also conspicuous on its diminutive body.

Swift foxes make their home underground, using existing animal burrows. They spend most daylight hours in the safety of their burrows, emerging to hunt as the sun goes down. Swift foxes feed mainly on small mammals and birds, but are opportunistic and will eat what they can catch. At some times of the year insects make up a majority of their diet.

In 1990, biologists in Saskatchewan reintroduced swift foxes to the Canadian prairies bordering Montana. Since then, swift fox populations have been established in Montana and South Dakota. South Dakota currently has three reintroduction sites, including Badlands National Park.

Last year, three swift foxes were documented in North Dakota. While unfortunately they were all discovered as road kills, all three had radio-collars used by researchers in South Dakota to track their movements. These movements into the state give researchers hope that swift foxes will one day reestablish a presence in North Dakota.

Another pioneering species is coming back into the state from another direction. The American marten – also sometimes called a pine marten, though the pine marten is a separate species found in Europe – is establishing a renewed presence in the Turtle Mountains.

The American marten is a member of the weasel family. It is much larger in size and darker in color than another occasional woodland visitor to North Dakota, the fisher. The marten has soft, dark-reddish brown fur with a lighter cream patch on the throat. It has a long, bushy tail that is about one-third of its total body length.

The marten’s diet consists primarily of small rodents and mice, but occasionally includes wild fruit. The American marten’s habitat preference is dense conifer forests. In the late 1980s these animals were reintroduced on the Canadian side of the Turtle Mountains and the population has since slowly spread southward.

Martens and swift fox are considered a furbearer with a closed season and state law requires any incidentally taken animals be turned over to the North Dakota Game and Fish Department.

Add in the river otter, which also has an expanding population with the Red River drainage, and North Dakota has a nice variety of native species that are returning to the state. It is an interesting phenomenon that tells us we humans have learned a lot about wildlife in the past 100 years, but there is still much to discover.

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Recently, I asked the Predator Hunting forum here at Nodak Outdoors to pass on some of the most overlooked predator hunting tips. Within the day, there was a wide variety of responses. Here are some predator hunting tips that will hopefully bag more fur!

(There has been a second article in the series, check out more at Predator Hunting Tactics.)

Predator Calling Tips

Never under-estimate the hearing, vision, or scent of a coyote

“The use of e-callers can really hurt your success when played too long. Should keep the calling brief, and the waiting and watching more played out. I like to say about 8-15 seconds calling, 2 minutes watching and waiting.” – wigglesworth

“When using an e-caller don’t blow them out with too much volume.Very little volume the first 5 mins.” – 1lessdog

“I am a firm believer in starting out with a hurt pup or hurt coyote especially after all the young ones have been shot or when their numbers have been reduced. I can’t tell why it works as good as it does. It might be that when they hear that sound it gets those adults aroused enough to come and investigate. I don’t think a lot of the callers are taking advantage of that call. As the season goes on the predators have heard all kinds of distress sounds and are pretty well wised up especially the one that have been called and shot at. Of course I am Partial to the howling aspect all year round. Next time out give it a try. You might be surprised.” – jerry hunsley

“This is a trick I learned here in West Virginia. Try using a crow call every 15 minutes or so for about 30 seconds. It is normal for crows to follow coyotes and will put them at ease. There are other birds that do the same in other parts of the country. I think they’re magpies… Anyway it will help to coax the call shy dogs in to you. If you call in a hawk try mimicking a crow fighting with the hawk. I probably call in about 25-30% more coyotes now that I added the crow call to my arsenal. Also if you see crows coming your way, get ready. They’re usually following or leading a crow. Just make sure you don’t spook the crows. They’re like extra eyes for the coyotes…” – price403

“Howling has become very importats in my hunting strategies. During early and late fall it seems to work quite well. There are still alot of young of the year dogs around looking for company. Dec and Jan I primarily stick with distress calls. In late Feb and March breeding pairs are establishing territories and challenging can bring some explosive results. If you want to be sucessful howling use a good howler stay away from electronics. They just don’t have the emotion!” – yooperyotebuster

“It has been my experience if a coyote howls quite some distance away, he will not come. Two reasons: You may be in another coyotes territory and there is a territorial line, or it simply to far to come. In those cases I try to move closer by quite a bit and give him the hurt pup or hurt coyote sound. That will work a lot of the times. Don’t be too quick to leave. Give him another howl and glass the area. There may be other coyotes that didn’t howl coming. Once in awhile when you howl and another one answers you start a chain reaction and all hell breaks loose.” – jerry hunsley

“What you should always do is call into the wind.The cover scent doesnt work.If they smell that they are going to smell you. When you get to a spot to call.Take your sqeeker out and use that for a min. or so.Alot of times when you blow a hard call if a Fox or Coyote is close you will spook them .If after a couple of mins nothing comes in go to a hard call.And blow it like I said.I like to call from the top of hills or fence lines,drainage ditchs.creeks. If you see tracks theres anaimals around.And just find a good spot to call and go at it.” – 1lessdog

“My advice would be to sound different. Now days with electronic callers, a lot of different callers are sounding the same. Even the same guy sounds the same the next time he returns to the same spot. You should sound unique and different every time you call the same spot twice. Especially the later in the year when they have heard most calling scenarios.” – papapete

Jamie Olson taking fur in Arizona - there's always more predator hunting tips to learn

Predator Hunting Setups

“The use of cover scents. I am convinced that they increase my success.” – coyote204

“Set up so downwind doesn’t have heavy cover. If the yote wants to get downwind this will force him into the open. They don’t like that and many times will quarter with the wind to you, or they present a wide open shot.” – Plainsman

Predator Hunting Shooting Tips

“Don’t miss, they get educated real fast.” – north14

“Don’t get hung up with rifles and calibers. For 99% of your predator hunting(unless you shoot pararie dogs) a standard sporter weight rifle in .223 or .22-250 is plenty.” – Remington 7400

“Shoot a rifle designed to kill Coyotes.Dont shot a little pop gun at them.They deserve more.” – 1lessdog

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Recently, I asked the Predator Hunting forum here at Nodak Outdoors to pass on some of the most common and overlooked predator hunting tactics. There was a wide variety of responses, so much so that this is the 2nd article in the series. Check out last month’s article on Predator Hunting Tips. Here are some predator hunting tactics that will hopefully bag more predators!

Predator Calling Tactics

Share your predator hunting tactics with others at Nodak Outdoors

“Don’t forget to put as much emotion into your predator calling as you possilbly can. Imagine a jack rabbit being caught by a fox and fighting for it’s life. The more emotion you put in your calling, the more confidence you will have that something is going to come and investigate the sound. The more confidence you have, the more patience you will have. The more patience you have, the more dogs you will kill.” – TheDogSlayer

“My advice is if you hear coyotes, don’t think that they will be there when you call at them every time. Coyotes cover alot of area. Many think that when they hear coyotes that there are alot of them like deer. They are not there all the time and they do not always have a pattern.” – Haakon Johnson

Predator Hunting Setups

“If your looking specifically for one predator hunting tactic you should look into this, I call it the “hook shot”. This is where you take a route around the backside of where they normally hang out around the den. The wind is a concern but not necessary if you’re above them. The key is to approach them straight into their territory minding the wind at this point where they seldom, if ever, heard a predator call before. They’re so busy guarding the front yard they forget about the backyard. A wide, low hook if you don’t mind hiking. I hunt foot hill canyons and it’s alot of work for one stand but worth it for those big smart adults.” – RedRabbit

Predator hunting is challenging but very rewarding

“Look for tracks and make SURE coyotes and/or foxes are in that area before you hunt them. That is the number one mistake I’ve been making. I spend a lot of time calling behind my house but there’s been no tracks at all and I’ve had zero sucess.” - John M

“…Remember, that animal is coming to an injured animal. It is not always going to charge in. Be patient and be willing to wait it out up to 45 minutes or even an hour, especially during the late season. You may get tired of watching and calling but they have their own time schedule, we watch a clock. I have waited an hour before, then still looked back on the way out and FINALLY saw something coming in. Coyotes don’t punch a time clock, and certainly don’t wear a watch.” – cya_coyote

Predator Shooting Tactics

“It’s important to practice uphill and downhill shots as a lot of coyotes are missed in those situations.” - jerry hunsley

“Wait for the coyote to get close enough. If you can see him at 400 yards, but think you can call him to 200 or even 100…go for it. I’ve had partners get too excited and blow shots at animals that are still running in towards the call. That means an educated coyote and one less fur on the stretcher…” – price403

A unique-colored fox

”

Practice shooting!!! Know what yardage your gun is zeroed in at. That means, know what two distances your bullet crosses your line of sight. Also know what yardage your bullet is at when it’s at the top of its arch. Always consider wind drift, these light bullets don’t need much cross wind to move them around. Practice shooting at different yardages with a 10 mile/hour cross wind. When a fox or coyote is coming into a call, alot of times you will be looking at a front-on shoot and they aren’t very wide after you take the fur off.” – TheDogSlayer

“I would say that when your calling predators and more then one coyote comes in, people have a tendency to get greedy. I will now always take the first one that presents a shot. If you have one guy with a shotgun and one with a rifle, your chances are a little better if they boil in on you . Then when you got one down with the shotgun, get on the hurt pup and THEN get the other one for a rifle shot. That doesn’t work in tournaments because you can’t use shotguns however. I used to get caught up in numbers. As I am older now that doesn’t mean as much and If I get a double that’s just bread and butter. So take my advice, shoot the first one you can.” – jerry hunsley

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My long time calling teammate Jim Benson and myself awoke and wiped the long sleep from our eyes. We instantly both looked at each other and smiled. We smiled because unlike ten hours ago when we called it a night, the wind was no longer shaking the windows in our motel room. The forecast had been for a cold front to move in and stay for the next few days, it was not a normal cold front but an extreme cold front! The forecast for the day was little to no wind and a low of 44 below zero!

We both had big grins on our face as we put on our clothes for breakfast. We stumbled out of the motel to make the short walk across the street to the diner in “the middle of nowhere, Montana” and had the breath sucked from our lungs by the cold air. These were the sensations that only the few crazy, die hard predator callers in this world actually like. The only reason anyone would like the feeling of your lungs slowly freezing from the inside out is because a predator caller knows that it also means that the coyotes are very hard up for dinner. That means a day out of the dreams of anyone that chases fur like myself. We swallowed our breakfast without chewing most of it like we were in an eating contest. But this was because we were so excited to get out into the vast land of white hills and brush choked ravines that were as we were told, “still plum full of coyotes”. The locals coming in for their morning coffee looked at us like we were a side show (besides the ones that remembered us from last year). Slamming down the french toast and giggling like two kids in a cafeteria snickering over a dirty joke, we paid the check and got the truck loaded up.

The first spot of the morning had on us on a bare knob without cover, but good camouflage was able to keep us hidden in the few rocks and small sage that was present. Four minutes into the stand I had a coyote at 600 yards held up on the hilltop! I couldn’t believe with the temperature that the song dog was blazing through the snow on a dead run towards me. He took his time coming to a hill 200 yards closer only to sit down again. Finally, he made the move to come down the hill and I figured that he was committed. All the time not knowing that Jim had one coming on his side that was having trouble in the deep snow in the CRP. My coyote reached the bottom of the draw and decided that it wasn’t worth the trouble to get to me. I found this hard to believe. He did this multiple times only to go back up the hill and sit down to watch over everything. The coyote had spent 10 minutes making fruitless tries at getting across the deep snow and I was starting to feel the sting of 44 below temps. I could not see Jim to know that his coyote was still trying to make it across the CRP and my patience in the extreme cold just couldn’t take anymore. I got my breathing controlled and took a guess at the yardage. I don’t boast being a very good shot so I knew I was wishing on a star with this one. I raised what I thought to be nine inches over the coyote’s head and tried to squeeze the trigger. I knew something was wrong when I touched the trigger and felt a sting! The cold metal was giving my trigger finger a good deal of frostbite just as the gun went off. The coyote ran 20 yards, just long enough for me to send a hail mary shot just in case the first one didn’t make its mark and crumpled into the deep snow. To my amazement, the first shot had hit the coyote right in the boiler room. I was going to start bragging about the shot when I heard Jim letting the .223 fly. I found out later about his coyote that was coming in. When I retrieved the coyote I found out why he was so weary about crossing the deep snow. He was missing a back leg all the way up at the hip. There was no battle wounds or infested sores. It almost (even though I find it very hard to believe) looked as though the coyote was born without one of his back legs.
 
The next stand had us on a ranch that has been real good to us producing coyotes the last two times we had set up. We crept out to the knob we have learned is the best spot to call the area and got ready. Jim started letting out the most pitiful jackrabbit screams and I told myself if there is any coyotes out in the large snow covered bowl they’re coming. I immediately spotted a coyote sitting on a large knob in the center of the bowl. I tucked the gun into my shoulder and got ready for the excitement. The coyote however wasn’t coming at a sprint like we had imagined. The coyote sat like a stone for five minutes and I was starting to get very frustrated. Then suddenly, I noticed another pair of coyotes headed for the knob and a single coming from the other direction headed for the same location! Jim kept sending out those pitiful “dying rabbit blues” and the coyotes all licked and sniffed each other and got acquainted. However, we had been calling for 20 minutes and the coyotes were still at 500yds and not coming any closer. The arctic air was starting to find its way into every small crack in my hunting outfit and the hand warmer bags were starting to lose heat in a hurry. I started to wonder if all the wheels were spinning upstairs. Here I am lying out in the snow in 44 below temps, chasing fur that was hardly worth a can of Copenhagen anymore. Finally, two of the coyotes started down the knob and were coming like they were on a string and I remembered why I was out there. When they got to 300 yards, they lost interest and started back for the knob. That was the straw that broke the camels back. Right then and there I made the decision that at least one of those coyotes was going to end up in the truck no matter how long it took. I started to let out a few howls to see if I could get the Alpha male to come and play. Jim was still working the call as I mixed in some challenge howls and ki-yi’s. I was hoping this would give the pack a little confidence that a coyote had something that it couldn’t handle by itself. A magpie flew in and I noticed a coyote coming from the down wind side but a long ways out. The pack of coyotes (in my theory) either seen the other coyote coming or the magpie, and it was enough to close the deal. Two coyotes started coming in at a trot and the rest came slowly behind. The coyote coming from the downwind side caught our wind at 300 yards and bugged out but the pack was still coming as if being reeled in. The two leaders (most likely the Alpha pair) broke the 200-yard mark and I knew that it was looking good. They had us picked out but the Snow Ghost camo that I was wearing kept them from picking me out and made the difference to get them in that last hundred yards. At that point the coyotes were in the place that I had already determined as my kill zone. I gave a single bark and centered the crosshairs on the large male. My already raw trigger finger took more abuse when it touched the metal trigger and I knew that the frostbite was set and I was going to be in pain after the excitement. The crack of my rifle was followed by the report of Jims rifle anchoring the female 10 yards behind the male marking number two and three for the trip. The rest of the pack had heard enough and headed for the next section line as fast as their cold legs would carry them. We collected the nice pale, white-bellied canines and headed for the truck and the warmth that it offered. While taking pictures I noticed that I had developed a large blister on my trigger finger that had to be tended to later.

We hunted for two and a half more days and were able to collect a total of 14 nice pale Montana coyotes. This ranked second highest in three years of hunting in Montana. The extreme temperatures that the upper Midwest bring can be very dangerous if you don’t watch what your doing. If you wake up and the thermometer tells you to stay home, by all means stay home. But just remember, that I will be out there, with tape covering my blistered trigger finger, shooting the coyotes that just can’t resist the sound of a warm rabbit dinner in this cold barren tundra we call home.

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Jamie sighting in the first dog out coyote hunting

It’s Thursday night and I am packing up for an early Saturday morning hunt (of course I am packing Thursday night so I can get some sleep Friday night). I call my hunting partner Jayson Deziel of Artistic Wildlife Taxidermy several times that night going over everything twice. The third time his wife answers the phone you can tell she is starting to think I am out of my mind. Friday, work drags on like a North Dakota winter and I can’t believe a 10-hour day seems like a whole damn week. Friday night comes around and I can’t sleep, I just toss and turn and watch the clock. Finally at 3:30 am the alarm goes off and it is time to get going. Jayson gets to my house at 4:00 am and we are off and running. We have a three-hour drive to get to our first calling area.

Well, this is going to be hard to believe but its 6:40 am and we’re there (we might have been speeding a little bit) and its blowing like there is a hurricane coming. North Dakota and wind go hand in hand- if its blowing less than 15 miles an hour, you are usually at work on a Wednesday with no chance at all of getting out. So, now what? Go home? Not a chance.

Spotting and stalking can be effective on days like this. I have found that if you start thinking about what a coyote would be doing on a completely horrible day like this, it would make sense that given the choice any sane animal or man would be home in bed. A sleeping coyote is usely a dead coyote if you see him before he sees you. I have found coyotes sound asleep in the middle of stubble fields but when it starts to really blow, I try to look for big wooded draws that would offer some protection from the wind.

Jamie testing his coyote hunting skills in Arizona

Coyote’s thoughts are usually not too far from food. Keep this in mind when you are looking for these little dogs. Coyotes want to know what is going on with their food source 24/7. They do this with their eyes, ears and nose. You will tend to find coyotes down wind of the herd, be it cows, sheep, or deer. When I am out looking for coyotes on a less than perfect day, I first find cattle and sheep ranches. Then I talk to the rancher and find out where he has been seeing coyotes and ask if he can show me the area around his winter-feed lot or spring calving barn. Look down wind of this food source. Start about a mile or so down wind and look for anything that could hold a coyote. Start marking some structure that looks promising and decide what would be the best set-up for each spot. The wind will dictate how close you will need to be at each stand. Realize that if you are going to call coyotes you better plan on lacing up your boots doing some walking. Nothing will ruin a well thought- out plan faster than having a coyote spot your vehicle. Start down wind and move towards your first calling spot. I like to glass the area I am going to call before moving into it. You should always expect to see coyotes- after all, that’s why you picked this spot to begin with, right? Remember to hunt into each stand because you never know what is around the next corner. Stay low and keep your head up, always watching for movement. Use your binoculars to scan every inch of terrain in hopes of catching a coyote on the move, or, better yet, find one bedded down. When you try spotting coyotes, just remember to look for things that look out of place. One way to do this is with a good pair of optics-and I do mean good. Inexpensive, good optics do not exist. I spend a lot of time looking at odd shaped rocks. At a mile, coyotes don’t always look like coyotes.

Call your first stand. If you have a lot of wind, get in close to the structure you are calling to. Remember that you will probably only call each set up for 10 – 15 minutes. In heavy wind if they are going to hear you they will be fairly close. After going through your calling sequence, start walking to your next stand, always moving towards the cattle or whatever you have determined to be the food source in your area.

If you do catch a coyote sleeping and you are in full whites (or whatever camo you’re using during the season at hand), stalking a bedded coyote can be very intense. Expect some close action. Coyotes do not sit still for long but at times you can find them curled up in a ball out of the wind taking a snooze in the middle of the afternoon. Pay close attention to the South side of hills during midday when you can catch a coyote sunning himself. If you watch them they will look up often and even get up to stretch. They may walk in a small circle just like the family dog before lying down again. When they do put their head down, you will have the opportunity to move in closer. Set up and try calling them in, but don’t be afraid of going in and shooting them right in their bed. Coyotes will not always come to a call no matter who is blowing on it or what tape you are using. Just because he doesn’t jump up and come tearing in there doesn’t mean you are doing something wrong. Sometimes they just have other things on their mind. If you have one bedded down out there and he looks like he is going to stay put, get the wind in your face, move slow, keep the noise down and you’ll be surprised at how close you can get.

Jamie & Knight-Hale pro team member Matt Barnard out coyote hunting

As you are working a pasture, I have found it hard calling close to livestock- especially horses. They get pretty wild when you start calling and will usually come running to see what’s going on. This is typically not good, so try to keep this in mind as you are picking a spot to call from. At times I have had cattle get aggressive to a call, but for the most part, they will not bother you. My father and I had been working a pasture when we came across a small herd with four coyotes moving among the cattle. The rancher was unaware of the day-old calf that was more than a little early. The coyotes had been trying to push that calf away from the herd. One of the coyotes spotted us coming around the corner and he headed out. The other three did not see us, but they followed after the first one.

Make sure you hunt from stand to stand and don’t get too caught up in just getting to the next spot to call. When you get up towards the livestock, feed lot, haystacks or calving barn, set up and call this area like you would any other terrain. Talk with ranchers and they will tell you that they see coyotes in with the livestock, and sleeping in the hay bales.

There are no guarantees in life, and there are certainly none in hunting. Unfortunately, I am unable to get out and hunt coyotes as much as I would like. That’s why I have learned to make the best of even the worst days. Spotting and stalking coyotes can be another tactic you can put in your bag of tricks for hunting coyotes.

—

Jamie P. Olson is an avid predator hunter from Mayville, ND and currently resides in Laporte, MN. Jamie promotes several coyote hunting tournaments with the biggest being the North Dakota Coyote Classic held in Dickinson, ND. Jamie uses Crit’R-Calls, and Desert Shadow camouflage.

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Skunks are responsible for a high percentage of nest loss

Researching how predators effect game population can be difficult and time consuming. These days, it appears that everyone has an agenda and the Sportsman is the loser. This is not apparent at first. It seems like the first excuse is always the cycle of the prey species. While it’s true that all species experience a cycle of peaks and valleys, there will be constants. What that means is that the low end of the cycle will fall within a certain range. Add predators to the equation and new low cycles will appear. Here is a prime example of how predators like red fox effect pheasant population

Predation accounted for 80.8 percent of all classified deaths among a radio-tagged sample of 244 ring-necked pheasant hens on the Waterlow Wildlife Area in Wisconsin. More than 60 percent of the losses due to predation were attributed to mammalian predators. The red fox (Vulpes vulpes) was implicated in 80% of these deaths. It as also found that raccoons, skunks, coyotes, and opossums also eat of lot of eggs and kill ground nesting birds such as ducks and pheasants.

Here is a prime example of how predators like red fox effect duck populations. In a study conducted between 1968 and 1973 in Iowa, Nebraska, Minnesota, Wisconsin, the Dakotas and Manitoba; Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center biologist Alan Sargeant and colleagues found that foxes annually consumed about 900,000 common ducks such as mallards. Yep, you read that right; almost 1 million ducks are consumed by foxes each year! So with this data it’s not hard to figure out that effective trapping of red fox will increase duck numbers. I mean come on, this isn’t rocket science! Guess what? Predators are very effective hunters. They have to be because that’s how they make their living. Fewer predators equal more ducks and pheasants. Period

Coyotes are very effective predators and they’re also quite smart. It was documented in Massachusetts that the coyotes waited until most people left home for work before they came in to kill pet dogs and cats. This was in a suburban area. The normal excuse for this one is that urban sprawl is taking over, and besides, the animals were there first. Oh yes, to be young and naive again. The truth is that the coyote population in this case is exploding to the extent that the surplus animals are moving into new territory. Again this isn’t rocket science. Trapping was banned and coyote numbers exploded. Any area will support “X” amount of predators. When the surplus comes every year the excess numbers have to find a place to live and will eventually leave, searching for new territory.

Predators are flourishing with the abundance of food

The coyote is one of the top predators because they work in packs and are very effective at adapting to new environments. One of the nature shows back in the 80′s showed a video of a coyote pack attacking a black bear and her cubs. Guess who won? The mother black bear with all her ferocious strength, agility and power was not able to save her cubs from the pack. Deer and antelope fawn kills from coyotes are quite high. Two coyotes working as a team will consistently kill one or both fawns from the same mother. Survival of pronghorn fawns was 22.2% in 2002 and 41.7% in 2003. Coyotes (Canis latrans) accounted for 50% of documented fawn deaths. If most deer hunters really understood how many deer and antelope fawns were being wiped out by coyotes they would be screaming for a bounty! And more would likely be doing something about it in their area in the way of trapping and hunting them.

Here is a statement from the Maryland DNR web site.

Coyotes + Pet loss is similar to biological impacts in that no management scheme is available to address general, widespread problems. However, localized situations involving livestock loss can be addressed and problems either alleviated or resolved. After depredations have occurred, studies document that spot removal of offending animals is the most efficient solution.

That one isn’t too hard to understand. Again, this isn’t rocket science. The coyotes are killing pets and there is no management scheme that works. Livestock problems can be solved by removing the offending animals. But you have to ask yourself one question; who is removing the offending coyotes that are killing the deer and antelope fawns?

Wolves: Wow, what a subject!

From the Alaskan Fish and Game department we find this quote:

Alaskans are fortunate to have an estimated 7,700-11,200 wolves in our state. In Alaska’s Interior, predators kill more than 80 percent of the moose and caribou that die during an average year, while humans kill less than 10 percent. The average pack size is 5-7 wolves. A pack may kill a deer or moose every few days during the winter.

Did you see that a pack may kill a deer every few days in the winter? That means a pack of 6 can kill 15 deer a month in the winter! Again, this is not rocket science. Wolves are killing 80% of the moose and caribou, while hunters are only taking 10%. What about fawns? Fawns are the most under-reported wolf kills. (Kunkel et al., 1999) When wolves kill a fawn, they consume the entire carcass, leaving no evidence for scientific observation. Because of this, fawn kills are very hard to identify or define.

Here is an interesting interview I uncovered during my research.

Q. Bill R. wrote. “I have hunted elk in the area around Yellowstone Park for several years. The area that we hunt has fewer and fewer elk each year. The outfitters that I hunted with said the wolves are responsible for the rapid decline of the elk population. Last year we saw no elk for the first time in many years. Is it true that wolves are the problem, and if so, why would the government introduce wolves?”

A. Your outfitter is correct. The introduction of the wolf has been a disaster for the elk populations. We were led to believe the wolves would control the buffalo population. Not so. Any person with common sense would know a wolf would find it easier to hunt an elk than a buffalo. The wolves are now in many of the states surrounding Yellowstone and causing problems for ranchers and hunters alike. Why would the government introduce a predator when legal hunting would do a better, more humane, and less expensive job.

Wow! Let’s look at that again: “The introduction of the wolf has been a disaster for the elk populations.”

Here is a letter from South Dakota.

Now, all of the magazines I read have articles telling about the steady decline of the Mule Deer since the 70′s, calling the 50′s & 60′s the “good old days of Mule Deer hunting” or the Mule Deer Heyday. This is no doubt true; there were a lot of Mule Deer in the 50′s, 60′s and 70′s all across our western land. It is also true that there are a lot less Mule Deer now and these educated biologists can’t figure out why! They say because of loss of habitat, drought or because of winter kill. They absolutely don’t want to admit that the predators, meaning coyotes, are killing and eating the fawns each and every spring. Sorry gentlemen and women-but coyotes do eat meat and they kill a lot of babies every year.

- Tom Trask- South Dakota Outfitter and Guide.

P.S. It doesn’t take a PHD to figure out what has happened to our Mule Deer on public land or what’s happening to the elk in Yellowstone National Park. Jackson Hole usually winters 11,000- 13,000 elk, they are down to 2500-3000 a year ago.

Predators are flourishing with the abundance of food

Did you see that the Jackson Hole elk population is down from an average of 12,000 to an average 2750? That is over a 75% decline. Why? One word: wolves. Alaskan studies reveal wolf population increases of 34% each and every year, and Alaska even allows hunting of wolves. Data from the first few years of our Tri-state wolf experiment also verify this same 34% annual increase.

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist or PHD to understand the devastating effect on the deer herd in the U.P. of Michigan. A friend of mine pointed out after the snow came that every deer track he saw had wolves or coyote tracks following it. You think they were following the deer for fun or to kill them? Many more hunters are reporting the same thing. I see doe’s with one or no fawns. I wonder what is eating all the fawns? Can it be predators?

Most folks can’t understand the difference between keeping predators in check and wiping them out. Maybe it comes from watching “Dances with Wolves” too many times. I will never understand a hunter that justify hunting by saying to keep the animals in check but can’t see the value of keeping predators in check. The America sportsman has done an outstanding job protecting and paying for wildlife improvement. But now the great comeback of the elk is in danger where the wolves are being released. The Canadian trapper that live traps the wolves to be imported down in the lower 48 warned that the wolves would have to be kept in check or it would be a disaster for the elk herds. Nobody listened to him. Looks like the elk around Yellowstone could have benefited from some selective wolf harvest. There is a balance between having the wolves around and still having game to hunt. The only way this can be accomplished is to get the Federal Government out of it and turn control over to the states. The state can do a selective harvest of wolves to keep the number in check. There will still be wolves in the wild but there will also be elk and deer to hunt.

The 70′s started the green movement in America, and with it came the ‘hug a predator’ attitude. After 30 years of massive brainwashing from all the TV shows, it’s going to take another 20 years before everyone takes off their rose colored glasses and sees the problem for what it is. Meanwhile, excuses will be handed out like candy to the gullible. It’s the weather, it’s a bad crop year, it’s a low cycle period, it’s the winter kill, etc. It’s human nature to believe you’re right and it’s also human nature that most people hate admitting they were and are wrong about predators. It’s up to you to see the truth and do something about it.

Wonder where all the elk hunting guides went for work. Hope they don’t all come to North Dakota and become waterfowl guides.

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There are mixed feelings throughout the country regarding trapping

There probably isn’t an outdoor activity that has fallen under more scrutiny than trapping.

That’s not necessarily a bad thing, because over the past decade, people in the wildlife management field have done a lot of research to evaluate traps and trapping. The intent has been to find ways to improve and refine methods for capturing furbearing animals, as well as maintain support for trapping as part of scientific wildlife management.

Rick Tischaefer is a North Dakota trapper and beyond that he has worked extensively with the International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, the umbrella organization encompassing the world’s fish and wildlife managers, top research biologists and scientists. His work with IAFWA and others has helped develop recommendations and education programs relating to trapping called Best Management Practices, based on the most extensive study of animal traps ever conducted in the United States.

Tischaefer points out, “Roughly 10 percent of our population are either trappers or strongly support trapping; and another 10 percent oppose any kind of trapping in most situations. The 80 percent in the middle are more or less neutral but may lean one way or the other depending on the circumstances.”

It’s important to understand that trapping is a highly regulated activity. Not only have the tools and techniques improved over the years, but furbearer harvest is closely monitored to ensure that populations remain healthy. Any one who traps must also follow strict rules established and enforced by state fish and wildlife agencies.

For example, in North Dakota, the carcasses of bobcats taken by hunting or trapping must be turned over to the Game and Fish Department for research purposes. In addition, the types of traps that can be used, and when, where and how they can be used, are also spelled out in law.

Getting into trapping isn't as hard as many think, just follow the signs and learnd from them

Many people probably associate trapping with taking animals solely for their fur, but there’s a much broader scope. In North Dakota, most of us have heard of someone, or have ourselves had to deal with beavers plugging waterways or destroying trees. Trapping is one of the effective and efficient means for addressing such a situation.

Another example on a large scale is dealing with nutria, a non-native muskrat-like furbearer that escaped into the wild in the southern United States. Nutria have destroyed critical wetland vegetation, and trapping is making a difference in dealing with the problem.

In Florida, raccoons like to feast on eggs deposited on beaches by endangered sea turtles. When the need to protect these eggs became apparent, citizens at first guarded the nests. However, as human interest waned, trapping became a more efficient and effective method to assist these rare species.

Trapping is also a way to capture animals for research purposes. In Chicago, metropolitan coyote are caught and fitted with a radio-collar so their movements can be tracked.

Closer to home, trapping helps deal with conflicts caused by raccoons, coyotes, skunks and other animals. In a way, it’s a standard similar to trapping mice, but on a bigger scale.

Animals that are trapped also provide benefits besides their fur. Beaver castor is an ingredient in many high end perfumes. Believe it or not, muskrat is served in some of the finest restaurants on the east coast.

IAFWA and its state and private conservation partners have been developing the Best Management Practices for years, with heavy emphasis on research and testing parameters. These guidelines include technical recommendations from experts, and suggestions for equipment and techniques that ensure the welfare of animals and avoid unintended captures.

The BMPs provide wildlife professionals with information to help them manage and conserve furbearers and improve animal welfare in trapping programs. They can also help people understand that managed trapping doesn’t threaten wildlife populations, and can in some situations even help improve wildlife populations.

The Best Management Practices for Trapping can be found at “www.furbearermgmt.org” or “www.ndfhta.org”.

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