Why coyotes stop coming?

A

AWS

Retired PM Staff
We have been talking scope selection and number of suggestions have been for higher power scopes for 400 and 500 yard shots.

Why the long shots, they sound fairly common? If a coyote comes into 500 or 400 why doesn't it come to 100? Personally if I have one that won't keep coming first I look to see what I did wrong. Usually it is something like they hit a spot where the van/vehicle can be seen. They see something out of place/movement. Then I checked to see if there is a physical barrier I couldn't see. Then I look to see if there might be a better place to set up. Territorial boundaries can stop coyotes. I've gotten to the point where I have minimized movement, no binos, never fiddle with the scope, don't move my body just a slow scan with my head. My remote is velcroed to.my leg that I slowly move my hand to to make changes never lifting it to see but slowly looking down when I have a.remote.i need to read.

What are your thoughts
 
I’m just envious of the guys that can see a coyote hang up at 400-500yds.
That always pops in my head on blank stands…is there a coyote out there sitting and deciding to come in and I can only see 100yds? Or “was” one coming in and when I switched sounds did it just stop or lose interest?
One day I’m gonna find a spot (with coyotes) that I can see for hundreds of yards and maybe get to see one hang up or even charge in.
 
Pretty sure guys have mentioned on here lots that they’ll come in a straight line up to a certain distance and then like to start to circle around to get downwind while often using cover or terrain feature to stay out of sight during that circle. That way they can verify thru scent while also staying safer (not rushing into a bigger predator at the sound source). There were discussions about coyotes having different comfort zone distances where they begin that circle

The best example of this I have seen is Wayne Carlton’s calling bears dvd to be honest. Pretty much every bear comes straight in and then starts circling Wayne using cover

Edit: I wonder if the coyotes status within the pack could be a factor in determining how far he stops to scan or circle. Low confidence and weary of getting his butt kicked as usual at the dinner table may condition him to be extra cautious of threats at the sound source.
 
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Idk why they stop coming sometimes but it sucks. I’ll take long shots on coyotes but I try to exhaust all my calling options before doing so. All of those long shots the coyotes are standing still and I’ve had plenty of time for my wind call, dialing dope, and getting myself a good shooting platform.

what frustrates me is when I have a coyote start slowly coming in from a long ways out but stops after traveling 100-200 yards and just sits for a long time. I know I’m tucked in, out of the down wind, and the vehicles nowhere in site too. Thats when I start dialing and taking the long shot.

Out here, I if it’s a very open area, I think they get a little sketched out if they can’t see anything when they clearly should be able to.
 
AWS said:
Personally if I have one that won't keep coming first I look to see what I did wrong. Usually it is something like they hit a spot where the van/vehicle can be seen. They see something out of place/movement. Then I checked to see if there is a physical barrier I couldn't see. Territorial boundaries can stop coyotes. I've gotten to the point where I have minimized movement, no binos, never fiddle with the scope, don't move my body just a slow scan with my head.
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99% of my hunting is pipelines, power line senderos, two tracks, etc. with call placed 75 yards or less from my hide, and 99% of the time, the coyote(s) burst out from the brush very near the call, so if any hang up, I'll never see it. Occasionally, the will enter the sendero several hundred yards out and travel toward the call on edge of the sendero. My view from typical stands, most often coyote enters sendro @ 90* angle:
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There are a couple of dry lake beds where I can see several hundred yards and I have witnessed coyote(s) hang up repeatedly at what was obviously a boundary (fence in one instance, two track on another).
Like you, Erich, I usually put the call out and set up w/rifle on shoulder, aimed down the sendero toward the call and sit looking over my scope so that only movement is dropping head just enough to see through scope for the duration of the stand (usually 30 minutes), because when it happens, it usually happens fast. Only time I will use my binoculars is when I set up on a lake bed, I'll slowly scan the opposite brush line when I first sit down and assume the position.
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Daytime, I/we usually set up, if possible, where the coyote can approach in cover to within 100-200 yards and then have to expose themselves to find out what all the commotion is about. If they hang up we rarely see it with this setup.
That same setup usually is very open for a good distance downwind. The big majority of my longer shots are on multiples where the remaining coyotes bug out on the shot. Often this is downwind and often they stop to look before disappearing.
I don't take 500 yard shots but if I have a good hold I will take one at 400 or so.
I shoot big scopes with big objectives simply because I like them.
We were shooting at steel with some friends last year and I offered to let one shoot my rifle with a Nightforce 4X14x56 and when he was aiming he said he thought he could see a fly on the target at 125 yards. I said "well, kill it".
 
Spurchaser said:
I’m just envious of the guys that can see a coyote hang up at 400-500yds.
That always pops in my head on blank stands…is there a coyote out there sitting and deciding to come in and I can only see 100yds? Or “was” one coming in and when I switched sounds did it just stop or lose interest?
One day I’m gonna find a spot (with coyotes) that I can see for hundreds of yards and maybe get to see one hang up or even charge in.
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YEAH! Thats exactly what I thought, I couldnt imagine ever seeing a coyote 500 yards away.

I suspect that I have dogs that hang up but at night in thick cover I would never know. In these cases I dont know if the dog is hanging but I expect likely, but often enough, frustratingly often, there will be fresh coyote tracks in the tracks we made ether walking in or walking from stand 1 to stand 2(my best story is a fresh frozen coyote poopsicle in my buddies footprint he had to pick up for trap bait, it gets messy later). Often enough that when we hunt in groups we discuss leaving a guy at stand 1 while someone else goes to stand 2, but that means the guy on stand 1 has to sit for around 2 hours straight just looking for a random coyote in the freezing dark. Some of these coyotes will come in right to the call over an hour later after we go pick up the call and leave, often enough that I have thought of walking out, picking up the call and sitting back down but by that time im just arguing with the cold and the fun has worn off.

This happens most often in more open areas, with more pressured coyotes. I think they learn and if they hear a call coming from a big open area, its just not normal for a rabbit or another coyote to be in the middle of an open field or out on a frozen pond. Theres so much cover here that everything stays in cover, hearing a rabbit distress or coyote howl in an open field is strange to them, thats like an elk hunter hearing a bugle from a mountain peak then looking at the open very tip of the mountain seeing nothing there, it doesnt make sence.

I like to get the call down in a low spot or in a pile of brush or something, when the call is in the wide open they ether move too slow or they come in full speed, not stopping and moving too fast.
 
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Lots of reasons mentioned, and all valid points. I night hunt almost exclusively at this point. I think they outright hangup at distance less in the cover of darkness. When they do I feel that it’s typically the setup. I always TRY to setup so an approaching coyote can TRY to use the wind to circle and use its nose. Most times I’ve had them hangup and refuse to budge were on wind in my face setups and there was no way for the approaching coyote to use its nose. Maybe they’re just pressured, educated, old and experienced coyotes that are more likely to do this? I’ve had many that throw caution to the wind at night.

I don’t take long shots at night unless it’s a wounded one that gives an opportunity to finish the job.
 
on night hunts you could always try moving closer while scanning to keep an eye on the coyotes location. we walked well over 300 yards and crossed a road one night to get closer to two coyotes that decided to shut up and just bed down in an open field.

they never woke up :)
 
I think the issue is that lots of coyotes are becoming educated and call shy. Frankly, our sport has become very popular. Many people are buying an e caller and getting into the sport. They’re killing a few and educating many coyotes. The same situation was happening when some of us senior guys were calling in the 70s. The difference is coyote calling was more of a fringe sport with very few of us pursuing it. Today there’s many many more people calling. And there’s calling contests, there’s fancy e callers with remotes (vs cassette tapes), there’s legal night hunting with thermal, and even online chat rooms to share calling adventures. The coyotes are pressured, in many locations.
I called at night several places in Ks two weeks ago. I’ve called and killed many coyotes there. I saw multiple coyotes on each stand, none came close enough to take a shot.
 
bohunr said:
on night hunts you could always try moving closer while scanning to keep an eye on the coyotes location. we walked well over 300 yards and crossed a road one night to get closer to two coyotes that decided to shut up and just bed down in an open field.

they never woke up :)
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I have at times made moves on coyotes at night Bo. Especially really dark nights. It’s pretty amazing how sometimes they seem oblivious. I’ve killed a few where you’re just walking and scanning and there they are just milling around mousing or something, relatively close to you. Is it a dumb coyote, or am I an incredible hunter? :LOL:
 
flintrock said:
Daytime, I/we usually set up, if possible, where the coyote can approach in cover to within 100-200 yards and then have to expose themselves to find out what all the commotion is about. If they hang up we rarely see it with this setup.
That same setup usually is very open for a good distance downwind. The big majority of my longer shots are on multiples where the remaining coyotes bug out on the shot. Often this is downwind and often they stop to look before disappearing.
I don't take 500 yard shots but if I have a good hold I will take one at 400 or so.
I shoot big scopes with big objectives simply because I like them.
We were shooting at steel with some friends last year and I offered to let one shoot my rifle with a Nightforce 4X14x56 and when he was aiming he said he thought he could see a fly on the target at 125 yards. I said "well, kill it".
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For that last 100-200 yards that has no/minimal cover, do you (or anyone else reading this) put the caller fairly close to the cover? Or in the middle of the open?
 
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hunt0168 said:
I have at times made moves on coyotes at night Bo. Especially really dark nights. It’s pretty amazing how sometimes they seem oblivious. I’ve killed a few where you’re just walking and scanning and there they are just milling around mousing or something, relatively close to you. Is it a dumb coyote, or am I an incredible hunter? :LOL:
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The real dumb ones are when you’re sitting in your truck waiting for a hog cam to go off and just scanning with a rifle and spot a coyote. Start lip squeaking from the drivers window of a white F150 and he comes in to 50 yards and gets shot.
Or step out of the truck and one starts booger barking at you and you ignore it and keep walking towards the sound while carrying the caller and it’s playing pup distress and the coyote decides instead of running away, it’ll run towards you. Now if you think that’s a dumb coyote, imagine if you will, getting a loud click when you touch the trigger and have to bolt a round all while this joker is trying to decide if you’re danger or it needs to come in to the pup distress sound!! Yes it died once a bullet was chambered.
I tell all my landowners I’m good at removing their stupid predators. It’s the smart ones that give me trouble!
 
If you set your e-caller out in the open where it can clearly be seen quite often the coyotes will stop and look at it. Even moving decoys can make coyotes stop to look at them.

I have had way more coyotes run right up to my e-callers when they are hidden in grass, rocks or low brush.

We kill quite a few coyotes every year in wide open country with very little cover. Quite often we have a shotgun shooter laying down on their back 10 to 20 yards from the e-caller and a rifle shooter laying prone on a small rise or hill 50 to 70 yards from the e-caller.

IMG_2702 by https://www.flickr.com/photos/156463377@N08/, on Flickr

The coyote in the above picture stopped to look at my son when he moved his rifle getting ready for the shot. Many times the coyotes can see us laying down but they don't seem to get spooked when they see something that is less than 2 feet high.

IMG_0260 - Copy by https://www.flickr.com/photos/156463377@N08/, on Flickr

In this above picture you can see the shotgun shooter laying down on the left, in the middle of the picture is my Foxpro with the coyote running in on the right side of the picture. About 5 minutes before I took this picture I shot a coyote with my 243 that stopped about 100 yards away.

IMG_0852 - Copy by https://www.flickr.com/photos/156463377@N08/, on Flickr

In these huge open grassy areas there are lots of Kangaroo Rats and some Jack Rabbits so there is plenty of food for the coyotes. In some of these huge open areas I find coyote scat with juniper berries or grapes in the scat in places that are 3 to 6 miles from any junipers or any vineyards.
 
I myself will not take any shot over 150 yds at night, I have some stands that I can see 300 yds or more, I still use lights, I do have a thermal scanner I use to see what is beyond my scan light and anything seen I try different sounds or as last effort I will try to move closer, sometimes it works, this just my way of night hunting.

Daylight I will take longer shots not to many over 300 yds.
 
Newpond0 said:
For that last 100-200 yards that has no/minimal cover, do you (or anyone else reading this) put the caller fairly close to the cover? Or in the middle of the open?
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99+% of the time my caller is within 15 to 30 yards of where I'm sitting. Approach is concealed as best I can from where I'm calling to, so the last thing I want to do is reveal myself in the open ground between self and the cover. I do a pretty good job of sitting still with slow head movement so having the call that close doesn't concern me.
I also like my caller to be in a clump of grass or brush. It doesn't take much to partially conceal a caller.
 
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