Predator Hunting Archives - Page 4 of 9

24 02, 2016

Field Report: Calling Illinois Coyotes

admin2020-06-10T09:16:59-04:00February 24th, 2016|BigDeer, Deer Guns & Loads, Predator Hunting, Remington|Comments Off on Field Report: Calling Illinois Coyotes

Longtime Big Deer blogger Scott from MI went on his annual coyote hunt down in Illinois and filed this report, which includes great info on calling coyotes and coyote guns and loads: Hi Mike: We had a great coyote hunt the other weekend in Illinois. We hunt along the Mississippi River in the northwest corner of the state. Weather was great, low in the teens and highs in the upper 20s and 30s. Most of the snow was melted with some hard icy spots left, so it made it a little difficult to sneak around and into our setups. Still, it was much better than previous years when we have had 12 to 24 inches of snow to deal with! All of our normal [...]

8 06, 2015

Study: Wild Cats Cause Disease in Deer

admin2020-06-10T09:19:37-04:00June 8th, 2015|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Predator Hunting|6 Comments

This is an underreported story, but potentially a bombshell. According to The Wildlife Society, free-roaming domestic cats kill approximately 2.4 billion birds and 12.3 billion small mammals each year The indirect impacts of cats gone wild on larger wildlife are less obvious, but one of the greatest emerging threats from feral cats is infection with Toxoplasma gondii. A study published in EcoHealth found that feral cats, through their feces, are likely driving infections in whitetails in northeastern Ohio. The study’s authors collected deer samples from a Cleveland park, as well as cat samples from the area. Nearly 60% of the deer and 52% of the feral cats tested positive for T. gondii. Older deer and deer in urban environments were more likely to [...]

3 06, 2015

Only in Alaska: Girl Shoots Grizzly, Goes To Prom

admin2020-06-10T09:19:37-04:00June 3rd, 2015|BigDeer, Predator Hunting|1 Comment

This spring on prom Saturday, most kids were having pre-event dinners and get-togethers with family and friends. But 15-year-old Cassidy Kramer of Kotzebue had different plans. Led by her father, Lance, Cassidy and her 10-year-old brother hopped on snow machines and went bear hunting in the mountains along the Noatak River. Lance told KTUU Anchorage Channel 2 that predator control is important to local families, with moose populations declining in the area’s Game Management Unit 23. “It’s important to go out and get bears in the springtime,” Lance said. “We always try to get a spring bear every year.” Two hours or so into the hunt, Cassidy got her chance. She took aim, fired and hit a bear. When it stopped rolling down a [...]

24 03, 2015

New Science: Deer Eat Eggs, Baby Birds

admin2020-06-10T09:19:38-04:00March 24th, 2015|BigDeer, Deer Science, Predator Hunting|1 Comment

For years here in VA we have been blaming critters like raccoons, skunks and opossums for for preying on quail nests and contributing to the decline of wild birds here, but could another nest predator be to blame? Whitetail deer! Nola.com: Pam Pietz, a wildlife biologist at the U.S. Geological Survey's Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center in North Dakota, set up miniature video cameras that ran 24 hours a day to document the fate of grassland songbird nests. She was surprised to find deer raided as many nests as badgers, and more than weasels or red foxes. I can see a deer munching songbird or quail eggs if it happens across them, but Pietz’s research found they will also eat tiny unborn birds in a nest! Biologists [...]

2 03, 2015

Hunter Shoots Coyote That Attacked Doe!

admin2020-06-10T09:19:51-04:00March 2nd, 2015|BigDeer, Deer Management, Predator Hunting|3 Comments

This from our friend Adam in Nebraska: Today, I was reminded why I hunt predators. As soon as my buddy Justin hit the caller, a doe whipped her head up from her bed 50 yards in front of me on the other side of the river. Thirty seconds in, as she's analyzing the sound, she turns to look behind her. Out of nowhere, a coyote leaps into the air and pounces on top of her. It latched onto the back of her neck and she stood and started to buck and kick. The coyote lost its hold and the doe ran into the middle of the river. The coyote chased her and stood on the bank yipping at her, where he [...]