ROAD HUNTER: HUNTING FARMLAND COYOTES

ROAD HUNTER

Throughout the country, farmland could be the most challenging habitat in which to consistently call wily coyotes. But there are ways to beat them!

HUNTING FARMLAND COYOTES

It takes a little more creativity, but there are songdogs to be had this time of year in ag-rich regions.

STORY AND PHOTOS BY SCOTT HAUGEN

Coyotes occupy a diverse range of habitats throughout North America, but hunting them on agricultural land could be the most challenging of all. Farmland coyotes know when you get up in the morning, when your kids board the bus to school, when you get on a tractor to work, and when you hunt them.

Farmland coyotes constantly see, hear and smell you, which makes outwitting them tough. But if you make the right moves at the right time, success can be consistent. HIT THE CORNERS On a recent coyote hunt, I headed to the upper corner of a field to call. I’d never called from this location before, always heading to the brush-choked bottomland instead. But standing water from heavy rains forced all the meadow voles and field mice to higher ground, and in winter, coyotes go where the food is.

Two minutes into my calling, a pair of coyotes came charging in.

“Cutting corners can be very e ective when hunting agricultural fields,” begins Terry Denmon, president and CEO of Mojo Outdoors. “Calling a single corner of a field – usually into areas of trees and cover where coyotes bed – can be more e ective than calling them into the middle of an open field.”

But what if corner cover is sparse, not allowing for setting up and calling across those edges? “That’s when I might go 50 yards into the open field and set up in the wide open,” Denmon advises. “This situation is all about decoys, though. I run a call and decoy in one, setting it about halfway between the edge of the field and where I’ll be. Make sure it’s o set, so when a coyote comes out, it’s locked on the decoy and caller, not you.”

When hunting aglands, Denmon never turns o his electronic caller.

Setting up on an elevated location is always a good idea when hunting coyotes, but one agland trick is to call from farming machinery parked in a field. “Coyotes are used to seeing that” equipment, tips expert Terry Denmon of Mojo Outdoors.

“These coyotes are smart and can pinpoint sounds from a long way. When they come out of cover, I want them locking in on the sounds of that call and the movement of the decoy.” Mojo’s Triple Threat E-Caller is ideal for this situation, especially when there’s a crosswind.

Another bold move Denmon makes is setting up in aglands with the wind at his back. “I’ll set up on the edge of a field and actually put my e-caller downwind from me, so the wind carries the sounds across the field and into cover,” he notes. “If there’s a ditch or tree line across the field, get ready. Don’t count on ’em coming all the way across an open field; you want to shoot as soon as the dog comes out of cover.”

MORE OPTIONS Cutting corners and setting up in the open are two options when calling farmland coyotes, but there’s more. If the terrain allows, take the high ground. Many agricultural fields are located at the bottom of rolling hills. They don’t have to be big hills, just rises that allow you to gain elevation, which not only o ers a sight advantage, but increases shooting opportunities. It can also help lift your scent above the low ground, as air usually travels in horizontal layers, like a river.

“I only call for about 15 to 20 minutes, then pick up and go, so I want to be mobile when it comes to picking a place to call on farmland,” Denmon continues. “My calling style is largely based on covering ground. Most of our coyotes are called in under 10 minutes, with most of those coming in under five minutes, so I want to be able to pick a good spot, call, shoot, and move to the next place.”

Denmon’s ideal field setup is placing the electronic call and decoy in the sun, then hopefully setting up in some shade along the edge of a field. “Any elevation helps, and a tree or row of trees are great, as they o er shade and break up your outline,” he says. “We even do good calling from tractors parked in a field or using old farm machinery as a cover. Coyotes are used to seeing that.”

Placing a decoy on the edge of a field, then backing into the open or setting up kittycorner, is a great way to capture the attention of coyotes and pull them out of cover for a shot.

TIMING IS EVERYTHING When hunting agland coyotes, it’s all about timing, and there’s more than one prime time. Rich, a local rancher near my home, raises cows and sheep. “For me, when the calves and lambs start dropping, that’s when we get serious about killing coyotes,” he shares. “We actually like having coyotes around the rest of the year, as they keep rodent numbers down in the fields, but once the smell of newborn livestock fills the air, coyotes do a lot of damage and cost us a lot of money. We’ve seen ’em pull calves right out of a cow as she’s calving!”

The coyote rut is also prime time to call in aglands. The coyote mating season can vary across the country, so there’s no one set time. Out West, prime breeding seems to be from midFebruary into early March, while in the Midwest, it might commence in January.

Males become more aggressive and vocal during the coyote rut, and they cover more ground and respond to a wide range of coyote sounds. Agland coyotes can be very transient because food, cover and other coyotes are widely spread and ever-changing, which is another reason calling during the rut can be e ective.

Weather can also have an impact on agland coyote hunting success. Flooding creeks and rivers can congregate food sources in fields. Rodents head to any elevated terrain they can find once their holes and trails get filled with water.

Heavy snows can also impact coyote movement and activity in fields. One winter I was hunting coyotes in South Dakota. The sheep rancher wanted every coyote shot, but two days of intense snowfall made it impossible to hunt the grass fields the sheep grazed in. When the storm lifted, heavy winds had cleared parts of fields, while deep drifts covered other portions. This made picking places to call easy, and the coyotes responded.

A fast snowmelt can also lead to

Looking to increase your success rate when hunting farmland coyotes? Try setting up and calling across corners, into areas of cover that hold coyotes.

good agland hunting. A big influx of water from rapidly melting snow can force rodents from their homes, sending them to higher ground where coyotes will find them.

“Post-harvest can be a great time to hunt ag fields,” confirms Denmon. “It opens up fields and exposes food, and coyotes won’t be far.”

CALLING COYOTES As for what sounds to deliver when calling coyotes, don’t get intimidated and keep it simple. My farmer buddy, Rich, just uses a handheld cottontail distress sound year-round. I prefer an open-reed mouth call, as I can generate a range of sounds with it, from screaming varmints to birds, and even “kiyi” sounds and fawn distress calls, which can be very e ective in the spring and summer months.

“People get caught up on how many sounds they can make when calling coyotes, and I’m not sure why,” o ers Denmon. “Almost every coyote I call in is with four or five sounds. My go-to sound is a cottontail distress, and I’ll run that for the first five minutes on my electronic caller, even if there aren’t any cottontails around. Jackrabbit distress sounds are also super; I love those! Then I have a pair of jackrabbit sounds I like, and I try to follow up shots with kiyi calls. I’ll often end sets using the hurt pup, or kiyi, call, as that can bring hesitant coyotes out of cover.”

If you’re intent on using coyote vocalization calls during the winter breeding season that’s currently upon us, starting a set with a few howls can be e ective. They don’t have to be loud at first; you’re not usually covering a big target area when hunting agricultural land, unlike when hunting the vast sagebrush flats of the West. If nothing comes in within the first few minutes, try another series of howls, but make them louder. If nothing shows, try the howls again and follow it up with some kiyi sounds and coyote fighting sounds.

Coyotes often come to calls in pairs during the wintertime breeding season. If you can identify the usually smaller female, shoot it first. Then make loud kiyi or fighting coyote sounds and get ready to shoot the male. Males seem to pause more readily following a shot than females do. This is where having a handheld call, in conjunction with an electronic call, is nice, as things can happen fast. A mouth call allows you to make loud sounds quickly.

Unless they’re mousing in fields, coyotes are in cover, and this is where hunters must focus calling e orts. Find the cover, then the challenge becomes getting coyotes to emerge. The more creative you can be when hunting farm fields for coyotes, the more fur you’ll pile up. 

Author Scott Haugen cut the corner of this farm field and pulled a big coyote into his lap. Editor’s note: For signed copies of Scott Haugen’s bestselling books, visit scotthaugen.com. Follow Scott’s adventures on Instagram and Facebook.