Coyote Hunting - Volume of Call?

[Slug870]

So I have been out a few times using my homemade call for coyotes (El Cheapo), but I have yet to have a yote come in to it. I have been using rabbit distress call sequences as of late, but I find myself unsure of how loud I should have the volume. Given that the MP3 player has its own volume, as does the mini amp, I am uncertain as to exactly how loud I should be playing the calls.

Could it be that I have the volume too loud? Perhaps the yotes somehow know it is artificial; or maybe they are just not interested? I know that they are in the general area, as I see plenty of tracks, so I am questioning my methods...

 

[rral22]

First, I don't use electronic calls so take this for what it's worth.

I think it is true that one can begin your first calls at too high a volume and ruin a careful sneak by scaring things a bit if they are close, but I have far more often been concerned about not enough volume into a wind, or across wide spaces. Volume can be good, but not all the time.

Can you start low, and later work up the volume gradually until it is louder? I also don't call continually. I will do a set fairly quietly and then wait a few minutes before another 30 second set a little louder. Repeat as necessary.

 

[Redfrog]

I call loud and long. If the sound of a dying rabbit scares a coyote, he better switch to being a vegan.

Does anyone think a rabbit that is caught by a predator starts off screaming quietly so as to not startle other predators in the area?

 

[Slug870]

I call loud and long. If the sound of a dying rabbit scares a coyote, he better switch to being a vegan.

Does anyone think a rabbit that is caught by a predator starts off screaming quietly so as to not startle other predators in the area?

Thank you for your reply.

I was wondering more along the lines of the call being distorted or unnaturally sounding I guess, fearing that the yotes might sense something is up....

 

[powdermaker]

I have about equal success using my Fox Pro or mouth call. I never set the Fox Pro higher than 2/3 volume. Don't bother going out if it's windy. I generally spend 20 minutes at a stand but most often coyotes show up within 10 minutes. If I mess up it's because I've had a coyote come in down wind without me seeing or they come in fast and don't stop to present a decent shot. (I'm terrible at running shots).
Perhaps you should try a mouth call and see if you can get a critter coming in...then switch to your electronic call and see what effect it has on them? I really like the Primos fawn bleat call. I call very aggressive like its a rabbit squall. Good Luck!

 

[rral22]

Does anyone think a rabbit that is caught by a predator starts off screaming quietly so as to not startle other predators in the area?

No, but that's not the reason I start gently.

I know for certain that a careful sneak into a likely area, and then a sudden really loud scream from a mouth blown call can cause a nearby (less than 20 yards) sleeping coyote to leap up scattering snow, look around frantically, and then run like ...... well, like a scared coyote. It was quite funny, actually, but we couldn't shoot through the bush so he escaped.

Since then, I always call more softly on the first set if I think there could be a coyote very close to the set up.

 

[Redfrog]

No, but that's not the reason I start gently.

I know for certain that a careful sneak into a likely area, and then a sudden really loud scream from a mouth blown call can cause a nearby (less than 20 yards) sleeping coyote to leap up scattering snow, look around frantically, and then run like ...... well, like a scared coyote. It was quite funny, actually, but we couldn't shoot through the bush so he escaped.

Since then, I always call more softly on the first set if I think there could be a coyote very close to the set up.

I've never, ever spooked a coyote like that. I imagine I'd have been laughing too hard to shoot.

The terrain I call is wide open, visibility is usually a mile or two in any direction. I have had coyotes jump from their beds at 200yds and come to the call.

As far as sound quality, well I set up with two clients and when I blew my howler it sounded like nothing I'd heard before. After a couple tries of unbelievable bad sounds, I saw a bit of grass under the reed. Pulled the grass and howled. two coyotes came in. They were inside 500 yds when I started so they definitely heard all the garbage calling and cussing.

The trick is to get out and call. Making mistakes on the keyboard ain't the same as real life. And besides even when everthing is perfect, sometimes they don't show up.

 

[rral22]

The day it happened was windy enough that we were convinced we had to get close to be heard. Moving upwind in fresh snow, we could be very quiet, and we kept a small bush between us and the big bush we were planning to call into from the cover of the small one. Less than 75 yards separated the little clump from the big bush and we hoped to catch something in that opening.

We did a really careful approach and stopped as soon as we reached the small clump of trees. We both crouched down a few yards apart, covering opposite approaches to the small bush which we could easily see through, and my partner let out a loud scream to reach as deep into the big one as we could.

The coyote was sleeping just in the edge on the opposite side of our small bush for some reason. He must have been deeply sleeping because he let us get that close, and when he sprang up, I swear he had the same slightly stunned look on his face that I have when we get a fire call in the middle of the night. Once he figured out which direction he needed to go (which didn't take him long, actually) he left the scene as only a coyote can, and kept that small bush between us all until he reached the big one.

We laughed all the way back to the truck. Sometimes I think there are more fun times from the real SNAFU's of coyote hunting than from the complete successes. In any case, we now open every series with some gentle calls, and have since shot several coyotes that must have been less than 100 yards away (very quick arrivals) when we started calling.

I really like the "flexibility" of mouth blown calls. They allow adapting your technique to every situation, and you never have to do the same thing twice. The only disadvantage is that a coyote will have the source pinpointed, and that means you are pinpointed. We like to use two people to fix that; one to call from fairly good concealment, and one to cover the likely approaches from a good angle. The coyote is looking for and concentrating on the call, and often can be ambushed, completely unaware of the second hunter.

And you get to hunt with friends too.

 

[fratri]

I used one of those homemade callers for 2 years, always played it as loud as I could without distortiing. What part of the country are calling in?

 

[Slug870]

I used one of those homemade callers for 2 years, always played it as loud as I could without distortiing. What part of the country are calling in?

I am in NB. I have generally tried to get as much volume as I could out of it, without causing too much distortion.