Nighttime is the right time for January coyotes
Gene Wisnewski of Simpsonville, S.C., had just finished adjusting the third leg of the tripod that supported his 6.5 Grendel predator rifle when the first dog sounded off in response to his call.
Unlike most call and response hunting, be it deer, turkey, ducks or whatever, Wisnewski wasn’t surprised. He’d already scanned the area and saw, literally, that there was a pack of coyotes milling about down in the draw to his left.
What did surprise him was that only one responded. He flipped his wrist and depressed a button on the remote control of his electronic calling system while maneuvering the rifle on the pod. A series of estrous chirps erupted from the loudspeaker he’d placed between himself and the draw.
That did the trick. He both saw through his hand-held thermal scanner and heard what was at least two and possibly as many as five coyotes begin to file rapidly up the slight incline where he held the high ground.
The dogs weren’t going to like what they found at the top of the draw. But by then it would be too late. It was getting ready to go down.
Peak season for coyotes
Wisnewski said night hunting for predators, specifically coyotes, will be reaching its peak in the next two months as the mating season ramps up. Moreso than at any other time, coyote hunting will be most effective using only coyote vocalization calls. It’s also a time to drop the run-and-gun strategies that he uses most of the year and pick a spot and make the ‘yotes come to him.
“January is when I kill most of my coyotes,” said Wisnewski. “It’s easier to do if you understand the language of the coyotes. The females make a lot of sounds — calls, yips and chirps — and a guy who has a lot of the proper responses on his electronic caller and knows his remote
by feel can kill a bunch of them.”
Coyote hunting has become a very technologically advanced pursuit. Wisnewski employs the latest predator-hunting gear when pursuing coyotes after dark. At the heart of this gear is his electronic caller. He said the better systems will come pre-loaded with the basic calls and allow you to add vocalizations that meet your specific needs.
“I use a model made by ICOtec, which allows me to play two sounds at once and gets more responses from the coyotes,” he said. “Plus, any new sounds they come out with are free to download.”
Mating calls
Wisnewski relies on only mating calls in January. No prey calls are used because, similar to deer hunting during the rut, all attention is focused on mating rather than eating. He’ll also pick a spot to hunt, based on what he’s experienced in the past several days and what he already knows about the lands he’s hunting, and make his stand.
He picks his hunting areas based on location, where he can see long distances. If he sends out an invitation and gets a response from far away, he has the option of trying to get closer. But most nights, he’ll make a mental note and get closer on his next outing and move on to another property rather than trying to move in closer in turkey hunting fashion.
His effective killing range is out to 250 yards. But a normal shot will be in the 100- to 150-yard range. He’ll place the electronic caller about 50 yards in front of his setup and maybe to one side so he can get a good angle for the shot or shots when coyotes investigate.
Calling strategies
Wisnewski has a gamut of calling strategies but must be able to adapt, based on both the responses and the body language of the coyotes as seen through his thermal vision scanner.
“I use some howls with barks mixed in,” he said. “Challenge calls, and I’m talking about both males and females here, because the females will come in to protect their territory from another female. And the males will come in to breed or watch a female dog fight.”
Another strategy may involve the whole pack if he can identify and knows one pack’s territory from another. The right calls can spark a border war. Such a scenario will have the hunter switching pre-sets back and forth from mating calls to challenge calls to howls, which fill the night sky with sound.
“It’s important when you’re communicating with coyotes to vary the levels of aggression in your calling,” said Wisnewski. “Start with lower and move up, from double-dog dare to triple-dog dare you.”
Vary your timing
That said, hunting under the wrong conditions or making some critical mistakes can ruin a hunt. And the hunter may not even realize why.
“I hunt several properties for coyotes, but I try to vary the times of night that I hunt them,” said Wisnewski. “You don’t want the coyotes to pattern you at all. I may hit four or five properties in a night, and I always reverse order from the last time I hunted so I’m visiting that particular property at a different time of night.”
Wisnewski also pays close attention to the moon when he’s hunting. He wants to be in the dark as much as possible and never hunts when the moon is greater than 50% visible in the sky.
“On nights that have more than 50% moon, you can still hunt, but I look at the moonrise and moonset times and only hunt before the moon rises or after it sets for the night,” he said.
Tools of the trade
The tools that Gene Wisnewski uses for predator hunting at night are all top-of-the-line equipment, each with varying degrees of expense. In his opinion, it’s best to go with the best manufacturers and work your way up their product line as you get deeper into the sport, rather than starting with inferior equipment.
Thermal scanner:
ATN OTS Monocular
The ATN OTS-XLT Thermal Imaging Monocular was designed for observation, highest temperature target tracking and distance measurement.
The high-sensitivity, built-in thermal detector provides a clear view, even in total darkness. The OTS-XLT works well in many outdoor settings such as law enforcement, patrolling, hunting, hiking and traveling. More info at atncorp.com
Night Vision Scope:
ATN X-Sight Night Vision Scope
Increase the versatility of your rifle with an ATN X-Sight Day/Night Rifle Scope kit that enables you to shoot day or night. This advanced digital scope utilizes an advanced Obsidian IV Dual Core — a highly specialized computer, featuring a high-resolution sensor with distinct night vision capability. An integrated smart rangefinder estimates the distance to your target, and by taking just two readings on your target, the scope not only estimates the range but also adjusts your reticle’s point of impact instantaneously.
Some X-Sight models also take full HD video clips so you can share your hunting experiences with friends. The Recoil Activated Video (RAV) system automatically records video starting just before the trigger is pulled. Wi-Fi streaming allows you to use a smartphone/tablet as a viewfinder. It easily mounts to firearms using standard 30mm rings. More info at atncorp.com
Electronic Caller:
ICOtec Gen 2 Electric Game Call
The ICOtec Gen2 Electric Game Call offers outstanding remote technology with a 300-yard range, with no line-of-sight required between the remote and the speaker unit. The game call comes with up to 200 prerecorded sounds depending on the model. The remote features a large screen font, a backlit button on/off switch, decoy activation button and a pause-call button. Programmability is made easy as calls can be loaded and played directly from a standard size SD card. Any custom audio file saved as an .mp3 or a .wav file format can be played in this electric game call.
ICOtec has an exclusive, free audio call library that’s accessible from the website. The ICOtec Gen2 Electric Game Call is a lightweight, compact unit that is easy to carry and quick to set up. Speaker unit runs on four AA batteries, and the remote runs on one 9V battery. The unit has an external speaker port and a decoy port and includes a remote sync cable and computer USB connection cable.
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