New to predator hunting?
 

I have never hunted predator but it looks very interesting and exciting. My area is starting to get a very large population of them since no one hunts them. My question is what is the most preferred call the electronic calls or the standard mouth call. It seems like they develop and sell both types. Are there certain circumstances or pros and cons for using one over the other and does the typical hunter carry and use both types?
Thanks you for any advice getting into this

Both have their advantages and disadvantages. Electronic calls cost more (so far I like Foxpro) but they enable you to position the call away from you so the predator isn't looking directly at you when they look at the source of the sound (they're really good at that). Mouth calls cost less and you can change the call intensity, sequence, etc. more easily and they're easier to carry with you if you're moving a lot. You can use decoys with both and they give the predators something to look at and hopefully rush towards to get their free meal. You can use both with hides, etc. A lot of it just depends upon your personal preferences and style.

What predators is the op referring to? I think he is mistaken abut no one hunting them, they mostly hunt them at night when they aren't seen.

I am referring to Coyotes. Well, I am assuming that out of the sportsmen s club and fellow hunters that I know and chat with no one that I know of hunts them

I don't live in PA so didn't respond to whether people hunt predators (now we know it's coyotes) or not and at day or night time. I left that for somebody who lives there to comment on. I also gave some generalized info on electronic versus mouth calls as there are a lot of variables in one's hunting style (and animal hunted) that could make one or the other preferred.

PA has a ton of coyote hunters all over the state, there are also organized coyote hunts in the state. If it wasn't against the rues I would give you a website of a PA hunters message board so you could talk to PA hunters. If Cal gives me the nod I will pm that info to you.

OT, you can PM that stuff anytime. PM's are not against the rules. :D

OK, thanks, will do.

I think you'd be surprised how many people hunt them in the Portage area....


That being said, there's still allot of coyote around. And most farms, even ones being leased by deer hunters, will allow you to hunt them at night. No deer hunter likes coyotes.


-Jake

For a newbie, I recommend hand calls, but not for the reasons most guys might (tradition, heritage, enhanced skill, blah...)

Here's something real - you're new to calling coyotes, so you ARE going to alert a lot of coyotes when you travel in the field. Yes, it's an advantage for a hunter to be able to place his caller away from their shooting location to keep the coyotes attention elsewhere. But - that only works if you don't let every coyote in the county see and hear you while you are placing your call then finding your shooting position. Once a hunter has a grasp on how to travel in and out without blowing every hunt, an electronic caller can be an advantage, especially for the solo hunter.

Having a good set of hand calls is a good idea, and a low cost investment. Someday, you WILL be in the field and your batteries will die or you'll misjudge your remote range or some other problem will befall your electronic caller. Having about $100 worth of hand calls around your neck when that happens will keep you in the hunt, instead of leaving you with no option but to pack up and head home.

Very true and a good point, thanks for the info

I've given up deer hunting and taken on predator hunting as my primary hobby. We called in a triple on foxes this past weekend along with a bobcat.

The setup I run and recommend to others:
- fox pro call
- mojo critter decoy
- outrigger outdoors red eye predator hunting light

That predator hunting light is unreal, foxes/bobcats/coyotes don't pay any attention to it when I mount it to a tree and its all remote control.

I hope this helps!!

One property I hunt has a unusually large number of coyotes due to nearby pig farms. I've had them run in on me calling for turkey in spring, using deer calls in fall, and hunting them in winter with electronic calls. Your going to want to use calls to get them excited and running. Someone else can recommend the type. They are very attuned to their surroundings when stalking around. Calls will even the playing field.

Calling seems to be working for a lot of hunters, I use another strategy.

I pick out a likely area, lots of Rabbits or Hare, lots of grain fields which draws Mice, Chickens and Rats seem to go together, nesting area for water fowl etc. I go out after a rain and make a map of any tracks I see. I might walk a couple of miles in hundred yard grids. Once you get the hot spots mapped out you can use that maps for years. Another Yote or Fox will replace the one you eliminated and will scent trail the last one that occupied that area and hit the same food hot spots.

I set up early morning before sunup on a good spot and ambush them.

The thing about Fox or Yotes is you hunt them where they have already been. They are territorial and make the rounds inside their territory. Might not be every day in the same spot, but I rarely have to sit for more than three mornings before I bag my Fox or Yote.

I can see where calling can be more pro active, just sitting can be boring.