Thursday, January 29, 2009

Camo and Motion

A lot of people have been talking about what is the best camo pattern to use and whether or not it is really a camo pattern issue or a movement issue. In my opinion, it is both. however, I still think movement is the key. If you can remain still, then you can wear almost any article of clothing and kill coyotes. If you move, I believe it is better to have a camouflage pattern that helps hide your movement. This is why I like lighter patterns. If you are trying to be a rock, then you cannot move. Rocks don't move. CRP in the wind moves, so this is not likely to cause a coyote to run away...for the most part. It really depends on the amount and type of movement. That being said, the right pattern for your area is the right pattern for your area. I get annoyed at the in-fighting that goes on about what pattern is the best. There is no one pattern that will work best. It is a question of the pattern that works best for your situation and your hunting style. Some patterns make me look like a dark blob at moderate distances. This is okay if you are hunting rimrocks or something similar. If you are out in a wheat field, a dark blob may not be beneficial. I hunt the lighter colored agricultural lands. This means that I need something lighter in color and something that breaks up my outline. You may have something that works well for your area. However, be careful when you suggest that pattern to someone else. It may not work well for them.

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

The Stats

Here are the stats for these two coyotes:

Female Coyote:
Time: 8:30 AM
Temp: 24F
Conditions: breezy and cloudy
Barometric Pressure: 28.92 inHg
Elevation: 955 ft.
Set Up: Along a fenceline sitting position
Calls Used: None (Spot and Stalk)
Time from 1st Call to Sighting: N/A
Shot: Bushmaster Varminter .223 using Hornady 40-grain V-Max Moly bullets
Age: ~1 yr.
Notes: 200 yards, 11.5 mph crosswind

Male Coyote:
Time: 12:40 PM
Temp: 27F
Conditions: light snow and breezy
Barometric Pressure: 28.55 inHg
Elevation: 1,296 ft.
Set Up: Prone in the open
Calls Used: Lil' Dog
Time 1st Call to Sighting: 22 min.
Shot: Bushmaster Varminter .223 using Hornady 40-grain V-Max Moly bullets
Age: 3 yrs.
Notes: 15 mph crosswind, 200 yards

Interesting Scent Post

During my last hunt of this property, I found an old two-point rack, probably from someone who thought it was a three-point. Oops on their part. Anyway, I moved the rack to the side of the road. This photo was taken on my next hunt of the property. As you can see from the photo, the coyotes in the area are using it as a scent post. This photo shows you what they think about deer!

Young Female Coyote

This girl was hunting near some cows. Notice her ear has been torn up, probably a bite during her early life as a pup.

Chewed Up


This big male had some battle scars. The legs and the hind end in particular show signs that this guy has either been in some fights or really can't negociate barbed wire fences.

Teeth



The big male coyote that I shot was particularly interesting. It had some serious canines. This coyote played for keeps.

High Winds and Lots of Action


Well, I was at it again. The wind was howling and so were the coyotes. I did my best to shoot through the wind and was able to score on two coyotes. I took some very interesting photos that I will upload to the next several posts, and hopefully you will find those as interesting as I did. For now, this is the traditional trophy shot. Notice that it was cold and windy. These coyotes are frozen stiff.

Sunday, January 25, 2009

Calving Season

Calving season is under way in many parts of my state. I got a call from a landowner whose land I have hunted recently. The landowner just lost two calves to coyotes. Actually, mama had twins and while protecting one of them from coyotes, inadvertantly stepped on and killed the other. The coyotes had a feast. I will be heading there in the near future to try to take a few more from that area. They are thick in that neck of the woods. I thought that taking a few old dogs off the property would help out, but I think that I need to remove about seven more just to make a dent. Hopefully, I can get a few more with my limited time to hunt this week.

Sunday, January 18, 2009

SHOT Show Day Four

The final day of the SHOT Show was spent trying to see all the rest of the booths and talk to all the people that I had missed. I hope I got everyone. It was a busy day. I had meeting after meeting. I had one meeting where I spent the entire time walking around the booths to meet people for other meetings. It was fun but challenging.

Overall, the Show was a success. I did find out a few things about it that I found interesting.

1) "Famous" people in the industry are just people. It was great to see that most of them were not wrapped up in themselves. I had many good conversations with these people, and I hope they feel the same way.

2) This was a trade show, which is very different than a scientific conference. At a trade show, the people at the booths are there to sell product to distributors and retailers. At a scientific conference, the people are there to be scrutinized and defend research. Both types of gatherings are designed for networking, and I tried to network as much as possible.

3) Along the lines of the last point, the people working the booths are sales representatives. They are business professionals and not engineers. Their knowledge of their products is limited to what is listed in the catalog. Beyond that, it is hit and miss. This is fine for selling product to retailers. This is not so good for media personnel who must learn about products with enough depth to be able to communicate that product's vices and virtues to their readership. I think every company should bring an engineer that can answer almost any question regarding their products. This is especially true of optics companies, ammunition makers, gun makers, and electronics makers.

4) For the most part, the products at this Show were gimmicks that will sell well because of good marketing. I will not single out any products, but I will say that hunters turned engineers do not make great products. They have great ideas, but they should not be the manufacturers. Engineers turned hunters are much better at making quality products.

5) Optics manufacturers take notice: If you keep using Chinese makers, they will reverse engineer your products and figure out a way to make it less expensive. They will then create their own products that rival yours in terms of quality but with a lower price point. In a few years, they will be your competitor. Chinese optics are getting better and better. It is a matter of time before the days of having to buy German scopes to get top quality will end. No longer will consumers have to pay $2,000-3,000 for that quality. Imagine if you could get the same scope quality as the German big wigs for half the price. Why would you pay more just for a brand name? I know I wouldn't!

6) It seems that every industry has several industry-wide problems that can be masked but not solved. It takes real genius and know-how to solve these problems. The companies that solve the problems that the rest of the industry cannot will soon dominate the market until the rest of the companies catch up or copy the solutions. Innovation should be rewarded with your dollars. Companies that mask the problems with features and marketing should be denied your hard-earned money. When companies discover that marketing gimmicks and useless features fails to capture the consumer, real progress can be made toward better products.

7) Signature models of products are great for sales, but not for the wallet. I would like to see the end of signature models or at least be assured that signature models do not cost any more than non-signature models.

The SHOT Show is a wonderful event. I wish everyone could attend. Hopefully, I will be at the next one in Las Vegas.

Saturday, January 17, 2009

The Recent Kill Logs

I am going to report data for as far back as I recorded it.

Atmospheric Pressure:
27.58 inHg
27.48 inHg
27.06 inHg
27.18 inHg
27.65 inHg
27.47 inHg
26.80 inHg
27.18 inHg
28.59 inHg
28.21 inHg
28.70 inHg

Temperature:
28 F
82 F
45 F
48 F
28 F
17 F
33 F
60 F
22 F
14 F
43 F
40 F

Time of Day:
9:15 AM
11:30 AM
6: 20 AM
7:30 AM
9:45 AM
12:00 PM
1:15 PM
6:30 AM
7:00 AM
7:15 AM
8:45 AM
9:00 AM

Elevation:
2240 ft
2344 ft
2810 ft
2680 ft
2173 ft
2345 ft
3030 ft
2635 ft
1300 ft
1263 ft
1620 ft
1159 ft

Sex and Age:
M < 1 yr
M < 1 yr
M < 1 yr
M ~ 3-4 yr
F < 1 yr
M < 1 yr
M ~ 1 yr
M ~ 2 yr
M < 4 months
F ~ 2 yr
M ~ 1 yr
F ~ 4-5 yr
M ~ 5-6 yr

Distance:
200 yd
125 yd
200 yd
250 yd
60 yd
200 yd
450 yd
310 yd
200 yd
200 yd
270 yd
40 yd
150 yd

SHOT Show Day Three

Day three at the SHOT Show was very productive. I had the honor of meeting Gerald Stewart of Johnny Stewart Game Calls. He spoke very candidly with me about coyote hunting. It is always a joy to learn about calling coyotes from a veteran hunter like Mr. Stewart.

Instead of speaking specifically about a product today, I thought I would offer an idea. Without getting into who does what, there are optics companies in the business who are applying coatings to their products that specifically focus on certain wavelengths. For example, one company focuses on the transmission of blue light as this is the primary light in the atmosphere at the crepuscular times of day. Another focuses on brown and red light transmission as this is the primary coloration of game animals. A third company focuses on green light transmission as humans are most sensitive to green light in terms of detection limits. In other words, human eyes are designed to detect green light the best.

Here is my idea, which could be a horrible idea. You decide for yourself. Instead of using anti-reflective coatings to specifically target a wavelength region, why not make some filters that thread into the end of the scope next to the objective lens that is lightly colored to optically correspond with the color on which you wish to focus. Such filters exist for cameras, so it is simply a matter of adapting them to riflescopes. This does come at a cost though. Whenever you filter light, you reduce its transmission. Your image will be color brightened but it will be darker overall. This could be a problem in low light.

I would also like to see a UV light filter that is removable, just like a camera filter. this would help reduce glare but it may be redundant as many optics manufacturers already use UV filter coatings on their optics.

It is just a thought. What do you think?

Friday, January 16, 2009

SHOT Show Day Two

Day two of the SHOT Show was just as eventful as day one. Instead of spending all my time visiting booths, I spent a good deal of my day meeting people. I was able to meet some very fine hunters and writers including Byron South, Jay Nistetter, Bob Robb, Jim Zumbo, Jim Shockey, J. Wayne Fears, and several others that escape my mind at the moment. My goal is to meet Tom Gresham as I am a big Gun talk fan. Hopefully, that will happen soon.

I saw a few more interesting products today. Some of them are niche market products that are useful and interesting but not worth singling out. One product that I have been looking at is the Ozonics HR 100 scent control device. This operated on a basic concept that has been in use for many decades. Scent molecules come into contact with ozone that is created by the machine. Ozone breaks apart the scent molecules resulting in scent elimination. I visited the booth and spoke to everyone in the booth. I was able to do the tech-speak with the right guy to get all the data that I desperately wanted to see. Unfortunately, I was not given any data. Instead, I was given anedotal evidence and a list of famous people in the industry that like the product. Well, I have always been told that famous people are just people. Since I believe that is true and I know that those people are not experts in the science behind the product, I must only trust the data. I was not given data or figures. This tells me that there is some reason that I cannot see the research. It is not IP. It is product effectiveness and claim verification.

Here is my doubt. It is generally thought, and research backs it up, that scent hounds have a 1-2 ppt scent detection limit. For this ozone product to be as effective as claimed, it must break up scent molecules with an almost perfect efficiency. It must not miss many molecules, and it must break the scent molecules it contacts efficiently. This is a tall order for any scent blocker or eliminator, and it is not very probable.

There are other problems as well. the unit must be placed at least 6 inches above your head in order for the ozone to be able to cover your entire scent stream. This is a problem for the coyote hunter who may not be able to hang this device in the open country.

If it is an especially windy day, the ozone will not descend as intended and will be carried roughly parallel to the your scent stream. The wind must be low enough to allow the ozone stream to fall to the ground to cover your entire scent cone.

Something else to consider: have you ever gone to the beach and smelled that wonderful beach smell? Guess what...that smell is ozone. Ozone from the air over the ocean rolls onto the land and can concentrate there under ideal conditions. Coyotes tend to be alerted to unfamiliar scents. If you are hunting beach bum coyotes, this is your product. for those of us who hunt the interior of this country, the beach smell may not be advantageous. If ozone kills your scent, what kills the scent of the ozone?

Don't use this product in an enclosed or limited ventilation area such as a blind. Ozone in large concentrations will kill you. Don't use it in your car on the way to your call stands.

In the end, this product is a gimmick that has a sound scientific basis. It is relatively bulky for a coyote hunter, runs for only four hours per battery charge, and may make you think that it is not necessary to watch the wind. There is no product that will enable you to ignore the wind when you are coyote hunting.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Deer Hunters

It must just be a personal thing, but I am a predator hunter. I am not a deer hunter. However, I do use the deer that I shoot. I was out in the field right after deer season, and I found this coyote. While I have no proof, I imagine that a deer hunter shot this coyote. I have no problem with that. However, I would have preferred that the shooter did something with the coyote. Tan or sell the hide. Do anything constructive with this animal. Don't let it rot. I looked the coyote over to see if the hide could be salvaged, but to no avail. I was coyote hunting on this day, and my selfish nature wished this coyote was still alive so that I could have called it. I would have used the pelt!

The Wrong Bullet


When you choose the wrong bullet, you get huge exit holes. It only took two coyotes for me to abandon the 55-grain HP for the .223 Rem. I now use a 40-grain V-MAX Moly bullet. The lighter bullet means less penetration and the construction of the V-MAX means instant disintegration. If you are looking to keep your fur, go with the lighter bullets.

Spring Den Work

Finding the entrance of a coytoe den in the spring can be a tough order, but it is part of the fun.

Camouflage for this Terrain?

How do you hide in this? No camouflage manufacturer has a print that matches pure white. Your best bet: a painter's suit, a white facemask, and a white gun.

Coyote Pistol?

I have a backup pistol that I carry in bear and cougar country. It is the S&W 460XVR. I have handloaded some Hornady 300-grain XTP HP that give me lots of penetration and controlled expansion. In a pinch, it can also take close running coyotes, but I would imagine that pelt damage would be of concern.

Interesting Scouting Photo (Late Season)

This is an interesting find. A female coyote was resting here. There is some blood in the snow. This is most likely an indication of ovulation as it was the breeding season when this photo was taken. Note the very deep snow.

SHOT Show Day One

The Shooting and Hunting Outdoor Trade Show is a huge event in the hunting and gun industry. The scale cannot be adequately described in words. You have to be here to get a sense of the grand scale of this event. Every major company and many lesser-known companies are represented. I had a chance to talk with many representatives today, and each one has been very accommodating. I have a renewed appreciation for the people and products that are being offered to the predator hunting market. We are a niche market, but we are growing at such a rapid pace that manufacturers are paying attention. Our voice is being heard loud and clear, and the future is exciting for the predator hunter. I wanted to give a sneak peak of a product each day. I have no "dogs in the hunt" so I get to speak freely.

Steiner, a manufacturer of high-end binoculars, has a few new models that are being specifically marketed toward hunters. I got the chance to discuss specs on the models, and I was very impressed with the company. Without getting into the specifics of the various models, let me explain the technology being used. Ask yourself one question: What colors are most game animals? Well, tans, browns, reds, and yellows come to mind immediately. Keep this in the back of your mind as I turn to technical stuff. Hang in there with me on this; it will be short. Optics are coated with thin films that help transmit light into the glass. These films are known as anti-reflective coatings. Each coating covers a specific range of wavelengths. To get all the wavelengths of the visible spectrum, several different coatings must be applied to the lenses. a good true-color binocular will have all these coatings applied several times a piece. This can lead to 20-25 total film coatings and can up the price point considerably. Coming back to our color question, if the game that we look for is within a particular range of colors that are all in the same color spectrum range, we can focus on the coatings that work best on that color window. In other words, if you want to focus on transmitting as much red and brown light as possible, you have to apply as many red and brown anti-reflective coatings as possible. On the other hand, the anti-reflective coating that covers the green wavelength region is not as vital. Therefore, fewer total coatings need to be applied for that particular range. This brings down cost and helps your eyes focus on those vital wavelength regions. Imagine using binoculars where the coyotes pop out from the background better. Well, it is time to have your cake and eat it too. Steiner has several models tailored to the requirements of the predator hunter using this technology for much less than you might imagine for Steiner quality. For less than $200 MSRP, you can pick up the last pair of binoculars you will ever need for those long call stands in the open country. The aptly named Predator Pro comes in two flavors for the predator hunter: the 8x22 and the 10x26 running $180 and $200, respectively. For good glass and a company that stands behind its products like Steiner, this is an incredible deal. These models are lightweight, compact, but are designed for the hand (and the gloved hand for the cold-weather callers), and are extremely rugged. If you are in the market for some new glass, give Steiner a long look. They aren't just for those big-city hunters anymore.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Coyote UV Vision


I recently took some absorption/transmission measurements of coyote corneas to see their response to UV light. I wanted to determine whether or not coyotes can see in the UV, making it vital to wash your camouflage garments in a non-FWA detergent. FWA stands for fluorescent whitening agents. They serve as a color brightener and are found in most detergents as well as toilet paper. Under UV light, these phorphorus agents fluoresce in the blue spectral region. Because the FWA's fluoresce in the blue region, I am not sure why it is important that animals can see in the UV, but it is something to note just for science. From the results of the measurements and the plot seen below, it can be said that coyote corneas do not block UV light down to roughly 300nm. While this does not mean that coyotes can see into the UV spectral region, it does indicate that, unlike humans, coyotes do not filter out UV light using their corneas. This leads to the logical conclusion that coyotes may see in the UV since their eye biology does not exclude it using eye biology's natural light filter - the cornea.

Old Dog


I recently shot a coyote that had worn teeth. It was a male and was an old dog. One way to tell is by tooth wear and the other way is to look at its testicles. Young male coyotes have smaller testicles, but this one had large ones that were slightly hanging down from its backside. It looked like it had hemhorroids.

Bullet Performance



I am a big fan of the 40-grain V-MAX Moly bullets for use in my Bushmaster Varminter chambered in .223 Rem. This photo is the heart with bullet shrapnel lodged in it and the base of the bullet that I recovered from the animal's opposite side rib. There was no exit wound for this shot and there is usually no exit wound on any coyote that I shoot with this load.

Hunting Partners

Annie and I are truly hunting partners. She is exactly my type; she is quiet, listens, in shape, and blonde. While my wife is the latter two, she struggles with the former two.

Random Live Coyote Shots



Every now and again, I get a chance to take a long distance photo of a coyote. These are a few of the shots that I have taken. My wife took the one in the snow...that is probably why it is blurry...camera operator error!

Decoy Photos

When I feel like packing out a decoy, I will use one. I am not sure if they have really helped anymore than just calling, but it is fun to use one.

Interesting Scouting Photos

Porcupine hide left from coyotes carefully eating the porcupine without getting the quills.

Coyote scratch scent mark in the snow.

Fawn kill from coyotes in the early spring.

Urination scent-mark post in the snow along a territorial boundary, a dirt road.

Coyote tracks patrolling a natural boundary line, a farm road.

Tolling Training Photo


I like to use a coyote hide to introduce my dogs to coyotes. This gives them the scent and eventually allows me to use the hide to lay scent trails for scent training. Don't let your dogs play too long with the hide or they will get used to its smell and not be intrigued by it.

Tanning Process






The process includes skinning, fleshing, salting, brining, drying, and tanning. These photos are of the various stages of this process. With a commercial in-the-bottle tanning agent, this entire process can take as little as 1 week.

Trophy Photos II



Trophy Photos I





The Dogs Playing Around



Tolling Photos with Annie






Annie is my Ladner blackmouth cur. She has been trained as a coyote tolling dog. For those of you who wish to know more about tolling coyotes, I refer you to my free e-book which is can be downloaded from my website: http://www.huntingthehunters.net/