Predator Hunting Tips

Predator Hunting Tips

Predator hunting, like so many outdoor activities, has progressed tremendously in recent years. I remember when I was young, we would just set up on a field edge and use a squeaker mouth call to call in foxes and coyotes. Those were Kirsten is a predator hunting pro!fun times. Fast forward to today and not only have the coyotes flourished, providing more animals to hunt, but the technology and knowledge available today helps to straighten the learning curve and give you more shot opportunities on predators. Predator hunting is a great way to get into the great outdoors after deer season and have some fun. Here are a few pointers to get you started in predator hunting.

Where To Hunt

A predator hunter needs a lot of ground to hunt, but more importantly you need land that has plenty of predators to hunt. Thankfully, getting permission to predator hunt a property is not as hard to get as other game. Property owners are often happy to have you clear out a few coyotes.

Public land is a great place to hunt predators and, in most cases, offers a lot of ground to hunt. Being able to move around and have many setups keeps the area fresh. Too much calling and shooting in an area will divert the predators and they will become harder to call in. Most public land options only allow daytime predator hunting so keep this in mind and hone your daytime predator hunting skills for public land.

Electronic vs Mouth Call

As I mentioned in the opening paragraph all we had back in the day was a mouth call. It was just a simple call that sounded like a mouse or rabbit in distress. Mouth calls have evolved into more than just a squeaker. Like the FOXPRO Furtaker Combo Pack Predator Hand Call that offers several options like bird sounds, rabbit sounds, rodent distress sounds, and even coyote vocalizations. The FOXPRO combo pack is all you need to hunt predators.

Electronic calls like the FOXPRO Hellcat Digital Predator Game Call get you hunting right away. With 24 calls programmed into the GC350 you can set your call away from your stand and use the remote to activate these calls to bring in predators from far away. With an electronic call you can set up away from the sounds that the predators are focused on. This keeps the focus off of you so the shot can be made.

A great addition to the GC350 is the FOXPRO Prowler Digital Predator Game Call. A decoy gives the call another dimension. An old trapper I knew as a kid showed me his bobcat set and it was a trap and a duck wing hanging from a string above it. That’s all you need to catch a bobcat he told me. The visual attraction is a big part of predator hunting and by adding a decoy to your set up you increase your chances of calling a predator into range.

Take The High Ground

Elevation is your friend when choosing a place to set up for predator hunting. If you set up in a tall-grass flat, you might call a coyote or bobcat in close and never see it. It is best to find a point or ridge and position yourself downwind and overlooking the area you want to hunt. Be sure you keep your set up below the horizon to avoid silhouetting yourself, one small movement and the keen eyes of any predator will pick you off and the hunt is over. Setting up on the high ground where you plan to call will also allow you to monitor those hidden routes that predators use. Hunting from the high ground can make a big difference in spotting predators.

Night Hunting Tips

Predators are nocturnal by nature. Their target prey is most active during the day and then lay-up at night. This works to their advantage when targeting their next meal. This has led to some of the most successful predator hunting being done at night. It’s imperative that you effectively light up predators in the dark using the proper hunting light.

Different conditions call for different lights. Whether it be the color or the intensity, having these at your fingertips makes it easy to adjust to the predator and the hunting situation at hand. The FOXPRO Gunfire Kit is the perfect option for predator hunting at night. The FOXPRO has 3 easy select color options and a remote that can be attached to your gun to increase and decrease intensity while keeping the target in the crosshairs. This is a huge advantage for the predator hunter.

One tip for hunting predators at night is to keep your light on. Many hunters turn their light off for fear of spooking the animal. According to the popular predator hunters that call themselves The Night Crew, you should never turn off your light. They say that the light is a shield that keeps the predator from seeing you. Predators will still come in, even with a white light, and they have harvested the fur to prove it.

If you want to up your game in the nighttime predator hunting arena, then you should consider a night vision rifle scope. There are a wide range of products, from infrared to thermal. An infrared version like the SIGHTMARK Wraith 4K Mini Digital Riflescope is an affordable nighttime predator rifle scope that is also packed with features. The Sightmark Wraith has a removeable infrared illuminator that offers accurate target acquisition up to 200 yards. This scope also comes with a built-in 1080P HD digital imaging camera to record your shots. A great scope for the money.

If you want to go all out and leave the spotlight at home then the AGM THERMAL Varmint LRF TS50-640 thermal imaging rifle scope is for you. This scope ain’t no joke. With a built-in laser rangefinder that can project the precise distance from shooter to target. This range is visible in the field of view, so you know just where to aim. The AGM THERMAL is also equipped with a high speed embedded MultiMediaCard (eMMC) that allows for onboard video recording and image capturing.