Coyote hunting

nagano21 said:
How effective is bird shot on a Coyote anyhow?
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About as effective as it is on intruders...You'd have to be exceptionally close, or exceptionally lucky to take out a coyote with birdshot. What you'll wind up with is a wounded coyote...

#4 buck through a full choke is what I've used in the past and there's also dedicated 'T' shot, which is an adaptation of a large goose/crane waterfowl load. It's usually loaded in 3 or 3.5 inch shells and can be shot through a coyote or turkey choke. I have no experience with anything but #4 buck, but folks seem to like the coyote-specific stuff...
 
No #4 Buck for coyote in MA.

Coyotes may be hunted with shotguns using numbered or lettered birdshot (≤ 0.230 inch pellet diameter), except during the shotgun deer season (see below). Fox may be hunted with numbered birdshot only (≤ 0.160 inch pellet diameter).
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http://www.shotgunworld.com/amm.html

4 Buck is .24".

I've never seen "F." I saw some "T" size ammo at BassPro, but it was steel.

For "BB" size, I've found Remington Ultimate Home Defense rounds fit the bill:

http://www.remington.com/products/ammunition/shotshells/home-defense/home-defense-loads.aspx

2 3/4" 1.25oz of tungsten-bronze-iron pellets ( 56% denser than steel and 10% denser than lead). Way less expensive than some of the "coyote-specific" hunting ammunition, too.
 
StevieP said:
No #4 Buck for coyote in MA.



http://www.shotgunworld.com/amm.html

4 Buck is .24".

I've never seen "F." I saw some "T" size ammo at BassPro, but it was steel.

For "BB" size, I've found Remington Ultimate Home Defense rounds fit the bill:

http://www.remington.com/products/ammunition/shotshells/home-defense/home-defense-loads.aspx

2 3/4" 1.25oz of tungsten-bronze-iron pellets ( 56% denser than steel and 10% denser than lead). Way less expensive than some of the "coyote-specific" hunting ammunition, too.
Click to expand...

Where did you get this? I have yet to see any "T" or "BB" shot in any MA gun shop or Dick's or Walmart.


wdcollard said:
So you can use a .223 to hunt yote in MA? Was thinking of going out for them but I also wondered what you do with them after.
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Save the pelt. Not really good for eating unless you are very hungry (survival situation).



bi6uwz.jpg


from:

Tennessee Hunt and Fish - Shotgunner Pellet Chart.



shotsizs.jpg


from

The Multi Purpose Shotgun



shot_sizes.jpg


from

Shot Size Table*



more:
Steel Shot "vs" Lead Shot

Shotgun Shot Patterning

Findout how many pellets are in a shotgun shell! View the Shot Conversion Chart courtesy of MEC. Have you ever wondered how Lead Shot is made?

Matching Choke to Your Quarry

Steel shot energy chart

Is the 3" 20 gauge a Good Turkey Gun?
 
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Wow, can't have buckshot in the woods but can go squirrel hunting with a .50 BMG? And wildlife officers who studiously enforce it? They should be ashamed. They should be ashamed of mismanaging our wildlife and not making coyote elimination a priority. I just heard some yotes howling down the street.

I think I'm going to try and blast a few soon. Will have to check and see if we are supposed to check in these 'magnificent' furbearers asap or at our convenience before the season ends.
 
BerkshireHunter said:
Wow, can't have buckshot in the woods but can go squirrel hunting with a .50 BMG? And wildlife officers who studiously enforce it? They should be ashamed. They should be ashamed of mismanaging our wildlife and not making coyote elimination a priority. I just heard some yotes howling down the street.

I think I'm going to try and blast a few soon. Will have to check and see if we are supposed to check in these 'magnificent' furbearers asap or at our convenience before the season ends.
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pretty much, within 48hr of the season ending.
 
Anyone know what the deal with Bobcats is? I was looking at the regs and it doesn't say much, there's just a dash by them and coyotes, for bag limit... so, no bag limit? And they can be shot, not just trapped? Would be rare around here, but I saw one and a ton of their tracks in the Berkshires- and if'n one came in while predator calling, might have to shoot the kitty, they've got a nice winter coat. [wink]

Not my pic... but nice.
S7300984.jpg


EDIT- huh, bobcat season doesn't open till December 20th... that's odd.
 
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As fun as coyote hunting seems to be, I'll probably pass on it seeing as how confusing these damn R/R seem to be... not worth getting Jammed up over these screwy laws.
 
BerkshireHunter said:
I found another spot in the regs, under hunting prohibitions-

What's FF shot? Maybe they think it's more humane that coyotes be taken at a distance with skeet shot. [rolleyes]
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I've hear of F, but never FF. I found this over at MassWildlife:

2. The use or possession of shotgun cartridges loaded with a rifled slug, single ball, buckshot of any size, air rifle shot, BB shot, or any other shot larger than #1 birdshot is PROHIBITED except: (a) on a target range during daylight hours, (b) for the hunting of deer during the period when it is lawful to hunt deer with a firearm, and (c) for the hunting of waterfowl, American coot, or coyote using B, BB, BBB, F, FF, T, or TT shot during the periods when it is lawful to hunt those species.
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http://www.mass.gov/dfwele/dfw/regulations/plain_language/hunting_shotguns.htm

I think it would be interesting to pattern standard BB goose loads through a super tight choke....
 
BerkshireHunter said:
Anyone know what the deal with Bobcats is? I was looking at the regs and it doesn't say much, there's just a dash by them and coyotes, for bag limit... so, no bag limit? And they can be shot, not just trapped? Would be rare around here, but I saw one and a ton of their tracks in the Berkshires- and if'n one came in while predator calling, might have to shoot the kitty, they've got a nice winter coat. [wink]

Not my pic... but nice.
S7300984.jpg


EDIT- huh, bobcat season doesn't open till December 20th... that's odd.
Click to expand...

I saw my first ever bobcats in the woods today. It was a neat experience. About 80 yards out. Big female and two smaller ones. The small ones were really grey. At first thought it was a coyote and was going to drop the hammer. Then i saw no tail. Then mom who had much more color walked in. No idea what the season was so i let them walk....
 
nagano21 said:
I think I might start taking this up! What do you all do after you kill one? I doubt anyone would eat one, I just want to know what my next step is after one is killed.
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After you have shot the coyote you should skin it. You can open skin or case skin it. If you want to sell it you should case skin it. Research case skinning. Coyotes don't have a lot of fat so most of the time you can skin in a way that you wouldn't have to flesh it. After skinning you need to put it on a stretcher, fur facing in, for 1-2 days then turn it so the fur is out. You can get wire or wood stretchers. Case skinning is easy, and after you do a few dogs you should be able to do a coyote in about 10-20 mins.

After its dry you need to check it at a fur check station. I am pretty sure that only Mass wildlife offices check fur. This has to be done I think 5 days after the close of the season. After you check it you can sell it or send it off to get tanned. If I tan it I send it to moyles tannery.

I know some people don't put up the furs, but I am a firm believer that everyone should know how to. My understanding of the law in Ma is that you can't just shoot the dog and leave it so knowing how to case skin a dog right after you shoot it can make it easier to deal with. Also you never know when you'll shoot one that is really unique and want put it up. Personally I like all them and put up all the fur I get unless it has mange.
 
Mark from MA said:
I saw my first ever bobcats in the woods today. It was a neat experience. About 80 yards out. Big female and two smaller ones. The small ones were really grey. At first thought it was a coyote and was going to drop the hammer. Then i saw no tail. Then mom who had much more color walked in. No idea what the season was so i let them walk....
Click to expand...

That was the same thing that happened to me during deer season. About 50-60 yards away in the growing dusk. (my eyesight isn't very good, and I had pink eye that day... but it was a bobcat [laugh] jk) My first instinct was coyote, I might have leveled the gun for a shot but I didn't see a tail. It acted more cat like and was gone in the thick stuff in about 2 seconds.
 
I saw a Lynx in Hardwick on 2 separate occasions, and some HUGE tracks out there as well.

I saw a mountain lion in Wilmington, Vermont on the Catamount trail.

I saw a bobcat chase a rabbit across the road and do a u-turn in the snow (caught it!) right in front of my headlights near the Mount Snow base lodge! I almost hit him. THAT was really cool!
 
The ones i saw walked by at 930 am. Saw them for a while watched mom thru the binocs. She kept checking back on the smaller ones. They walked into the same godawful overgrown cut that i expect the deer to come out of.
 
MassMark said:
That's cool - how tight was the pattern? Of course, waterfowl rounds are designed and loaded for spread and coyote loads are not so much.
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I had a large percentage of pellets hit inside 30" using a full choke on a short, turkey barrel. I forget which choke it was, but had tried a few. One full definitely patterned better than another full. It was surpising to me, but I don't have confidence in the load being lethal enough for coyote, even at a short range (30yds). I did think of going after crow with it though. After deer season, I'll pony up for the $$ coyote shells and try them out. Even still, any of my shots will be kept inside 30 yards, assuming I have the opportunity. And until we have some snow cover, I won't bother with night hunting.

The coyotes have been away from my area for the past year or so, but they're back now taking dumps in the middle of the trails. Almost ran one over that was picking through a neighbor's trash the other morning. Still a lot of rabbits around though.
 
Just waiting for some snow and moonlight. Anyone in Central MA want to go check a spot with me, who has an e-call? We can TRY for some daylight hunting, but I'm betting 70-30 on seeing nothing.
 
If you can't find the loads the next best thing is the Hevi shot BB loads or even the black cloud BB because the Flight control wad keeps the pattern fairly tight. These loads are commonly available everywhere because they are used all the time for geese.
 

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