Coyote moved dirt and exposed trap pan

S

SkullValleyHunter

New member
Doing some trapping for coyote, went to check my trap and something moved the dirt from on top of my pan. Was this a coyote? Should I let it sit or dig it up and reset somewhere else ? Posted before and after pics of my set.useing mb 650 with latex pan cover and wax dirt. I blended regular dirt over top after the trap was bedded with wax dirt
 

Attachments

  • 20241101_171615.jpg
    20241101_171615.jpg
    221.7 KB · Views: 24
  • 20241104_121424.jpg
    20241104_121424.jpg
    250.5 KB · Views: 21
Looks more like a bird used your set for a dust bath. Usually coyote/fox scratch and pull out the trap out of position, especially if the cover material isn't packed HARD and tight to the jaws.
 
I would've thought that k9 would have dugit up also, I packed the jaws and bedded that sucker super tight. Just lightly sifted the dirt over the pan. Just thought it was odd that the pan was the only spot where dirt was moved. I saw a video on YouTube where a Grey fox didn't dig the trap up but exposed the pan then left when it saw something was off
 
Skunks (if there are any in your area) will sometimes dig just because it's fresh/loose dirt. The most likely culprit is the trap was not bedded properly/tightly. It appears the trap may be a little close to the hole (sometimes hard to tell from pic). I usually set the trap around 6-9 inches away from the hole with about a 3 inch offset.
 
You’re giving way too much credit to critters. A coon will dig up a trap down here if it’s not bedded properly. He’s not actually digging up knowing there’s a trap there, he just sees loose dirt and smells something so it’ll dig.
A coyote or a fox aren’t deft enough to specifically uncover the pan. Heck if their touch was that soft we’d never catch one, lol. I see no tracks so the bird theory sounds good to me unless you had a lot of wind. The only spot on the set not packed is the pan for obvious reasons.
 
Last edited:
Ya that was the other weird thing, no tracks , set hadn't appeared to be worked at all, I'm sure it's not because the trap wasn't bedded properly. If that was the case there would be tracks somewhere if the dog stepped on a loose jaw. I packed wax dirt in front and behind the jaws extremely well, I could push as hard as I could with my hand and no movement. It may look like the trap is bedded in loose dirt but that's not the case, I dug my bed packed dirt and got it all ready. I got loose dirt from down the road and sifted it around the trap and hole to make it look like something had been digging the hole out
 
Birds love that loose sifted dirt for a bath, and if the pan covering was just slightly lower that's where the bird will start dusting.
 
wildcat18 said:
Skunks (if there are any in your area) will sometimes dig just because it's fresh/loose dirt. The most likely culprit is the trap was not bedded properly/tightly. It appears the trap may be a little close to the hole (sometimes hard to tell from pic). I usually set the trap around 6-9 inches away from the hole with about a 3 inch offset.
Click to expand...
I'd bet skunk also. The MB650 is the worst trap on the market if you want to catch the incidental skunks. The trap pan geometry needs a heavier animal to reliably fire. It's a great trap for those that don't want to deal with the little stuff.
 
I didn’t see it was a 650. I run both MB550’s and 450’s and hold everything from possums to coyotes. GA doesn’t allow anything over a #2 and I get paid per critter no matter what it is, so a 650 wouldn’t make me money, lol.
We don’t have a lot of skunks here for some reason so I have no clue about them or their habits.
And yeah, if you’re after coyotes back that set up from the hole some. With fox I’ll have it closer to the hole, but I only do that if I find tracks or sign of a definite fox.
 
Skunks leave obvious tracks, as do most short legged critters in sifted dirt patterns. That dirt would allow a house cat to leave tracks. Birds not so much(they land dust and fly off). You can adjust 650's to catch coon, even rabbits but I only would for subsistence trapping.
 
Back
Top