Originally Posted by
Muley70
As far as bulls being vocal only at night, thats absurd, we are hearing and calling them constantly. I have heard many bulls bugling all the while wolves are howling in the area. They bugle as much today as 15 years ago.
Apparently I'm absurd, but that has been my observation time and again. Obviously it doesn't apply everywhere because elk act differently everywhere based on hunting pressure, natural predation levels, bull to cow ratio, moon phase, weather conditions, habitat type, blah, blah, blah.
If you really want to call elk then it's best to get proficient with both cows calls and bugles and then use appropriate restraint in their use. More often than not people call too much when they'd be better off keeping their trap shut, and that holds true more often than not for calling any type of wildlife. One thing I have noticed over the years is that it elicits much more of a response if you bugle at a bull the same way he sounds. If he has a high pitched squeal with three chirps at the end, then do the same back at him. If he has a raspy growl with no chirps, then it's best to follow suit. If anybody tells you they can judge a bull by his bugle alone they're completely full of it. I've simultaneously watched a dinky raghorn let out the nastiest red stag roar, while in the adjacent valley a 380 bull was throwing out the highest pitch squeal I've ever heard out of a bull. Voice is certainly no indication of size. I intend to stick to my original statement though. If I'm going out after wapiti I'll probably have both calls with me, but I probably won't use them unless it's an absolute last resort. That's just my two cents.