Winter Coyotes...

[trappnman]

If you read the old coyote books- the "dispersal" was touted as THE thing to prepare for. That all trapping up to and after this time frame is nothing campared to the action of the dispersal.

And I can see that happening...that is, if a true dispersal occurs..the travelers would, by all I hold Holy, be easier to trap, thus creating more action.

Allow me a little scenerio building of what, through past definitions, a dispersal is...

Young teenage Mr coyote wakes up one day...and old Pa and Ma are urging him out the door... along with his siblings. "Yikes" he exclaims...how odd...and goes over to see Uncle Bob...and to his surprize, Uncle Bob sends him (they) on their way.

This happens at Cousin Joes and Aunt Sallys also..and next complete strangers are harassing them...and before you know it--travelling with the wind or however you deem it to be so...our teenage pup is suddenly 50 miles down the road.

THATS dispersal.

In areas, like mine, where voids occur all the time- why travel? instinct? I see no sign of that.

One other point- farmland territories and western territories- huge differences in size. Huge difference in habitat- the old "here today, won't return for weeks" doesn't hold true in settled areas- or more accurately- better habbitat (prey) areas.

Yes- a coyote is a coyote is a coyote----but localitys cause idiocyncresies in habits and actions.

Regarding your observations Zags...you just got a lot of coyotes....LOL.. but its ture- you do have a good population. With the numbers you take over such a short period as you do and you see tracks as if you never were there...you got a decent population.

and in one way- your observations are more evidence for NON dispersal. That is- almost immediately, your areas are filled back with yotes...

With the smaller territorie, I believe there is much more socializing or perhaps a better word would be tons of "neutral" territory....

if you are trapping on good sign, chances are its more than 1 family unit using the area- and so like placing a bucket into a pool of water- the water (coyotes) pushes back away from the bucket (you)...creating a "void"...

Remove the bucket...and the water (yotes) flow back.

It semantics yes- but an important point. That point being, the old school advice was ALWAYS set up and trap the "dispersal"....

Population shifts happen CONTINOUSLY....a dispersal, again through the time honored concept...happens in a very short period of time.

Thats the difference I guess....

[Zagman]

Man, with all these coyotes, I am fearful that dudes from TX, NE, KS, and MT are going to start a reverse trend and start state hopping/longlining here in New York......the new capital for large coyote populations......

SHHHHHHH.....let's just keep this hotspot to us girls....

When I am going balls to the wall during my week off, I have (at the high end) about 65 traps out (since it takes 2-3 days to get them all out along with checking, probably avg. 40 traps/day for the week), and average 4-5 coyotes a day.....the more traps I have out, the more I catch....

Lot's of days of 2-3-4 coyotes and couple of 6-7 and a rare day of 9 coyotes.....

If that's a lot of coyotes, then, yes, I guess I do have a lot of coyotes.....

But for some reason, I am the only dude at the fur sale with more than 5.........guess no one else has noticed this overpopulation?

Little tongue in cheek.....bear with me...

I guess I should have been more specific just like when you qualified your observations as pertaining to "MY" area...

When I say I take a bunch of coyotes from a relatively small area and then more move in, this certainly was not to imply this happens EVERYWHERE on my line.....but at some of the locations.

I drove around after deer season with a little snow on the ground and looked at a bunch my old sets....most were just like I left them, some had terds/tracks around them, some were worked.....when I put new sets in over New Year's weekend, I only put them at spots where I saw sign and/or I could access the spot due to all the mud....

Well, I sure aint setting the world on fire with those sets, having only added a couple coyotes and fox to the pile this week (have not checked yet today).....

Since you and I catch about the same amount in the same time, I have always assumed that our populations, overall, are similar.

Access, population, tools, drive, hard work, luck, preparation, attitude and WEATHER all determine how many make it into the back of the truck.....

To some degree, though, I think since I trap such a short time and you trap year-round, my couple of weeks are a lot more intense, balls-to-the wall, no time to stop and eat or crap or chat or talk to the wife.......

.......and thus, the percieved implication that I have more coyotes than other places.....I just hit it hard for a while and then go back to work......you need to keep a more realistic pace as you have to keep the eye of the tiger for 50 more weeks......

Do I have more coyotes then some places? Sure, but there are better places to catch coyotes in numbers,....in fact, I think the better places outnumber the lesser places....

New York has tons of trappers....not PA numbers, but plenty just the same.....but it's a rare animal indeed to see anyone with more than 10 coyotes at a sale. I think if the numbers were as good as some allege, then it would be more common to see guys with a truckload of them.....giving me the rare opportunity to walk up to them at a sale and say...."Man, you must have a lot of coyotes in your area....."

Zagman

[dj88ryr]

Zag,
You could do that well where any number of coyotes are present, your secret is out, all anyone has to do is be focused, dedicated, slightly insane, and work like a demon, simple ;D

[trappincoyotes39]

Tman you state a large % of coyotes are non territorial? Depends on the time of year and the coyote density in a given area, early fall till end of March I'm sure a bigger % are not territorial, you still have "loose family groups, but come April-August, that is what your dealing with coyotes fighting to keep there territorys intact and to keep intruders out, and the pair will fight like nobodys business any intruder of there kind.
Feb-end of march calving is a great way to show the acceptance of different groups of coyotes, but when ma and pa start cleaning out denning locals, intruders are not welcome one bit. You have a lower % that allows a nurse mate ussally a kin of ma's but that doesn't happen on a big % basis.
Zagman you probably have areas that have way more coyotes than states like MT/SD/ND and Wyoming these states all have predator control programs and alot of ranchers won't have high density of coyotes because they simply don't want them around the livestock, in any numbers at all.Ask Bob W why he doesn't do much in wyoming much any more? Not enough coyotes between control programs and disease to make it worth his while.

[trappnman]

Ah Zags...I knew you would take that wrong.

I meant no disrespect in saying you have a lot of coyotes.... all I meant that with the # of coyotes you take- a number that, my friend..impresses the hell out of me... and hen have you come back through and see a lot of tracks... you have a lot of coyotes.

And yes, you are correct in assuming that in my area I find about the same....

I TOO have a lot of coyotes....

Therefore....I feel that a lot of my conclusions on behavior, etc....mirror yours.

Thus my conclusions on dispersal.

Look at your line this year. 70+ taken by you...some at least by your competition, at least another 15 by "hunters"...add in car kills, accidents, disease....easily 100% coyotes taken off your line....seems to me like PLENTY of voids to fill.

Have fun this weekend- don't let them tear me up too bad...

[Zagman]

TC35:

Yep, you are right...there are higher concentrations here than in the fabled western states.....in fact, I have a good friend that trapped here his entire life, probably the best canine trapper in the entire Northeast and then some.....finally retired and moved to MT.....

He has seen it in both places and agrees that IF IF IF he had the same tools, access, and check laws, he could catch more coyotes in NY than he could in MT.

But, he drives through one gate in Montana and has a ranch that is bigger than my entire line of 80 farms over 3 counties....

He uses snares, calls with dogs a ton, and has liberal check laws, and therefor, catches 4-5-6 times the amount of coyotes there then he did here, even on his best years.

He is the only guy I know, for a fact, that caught over 100 NY coyotes in a season...plus over 100 fox that year.....

But 100-plus coyote men a relatively common in his new stomping grounds.....

Again, no one heads east to longline or state hop.....

Regarding dispersal in his area of Montana, he claims that there is little predator control in Canada, and therefore, has a steady supply of new coyotes from the north every year to fill in his voids.......

Steve....I will defend your honor this weekend.....

Zagman

[trappincoyotes39]

Zagman sounds like your talking of Gary Strader? Yes we have large land tracts, but just because you have 7,000-16,000+ acre ranches doesn't mean you have a ton of coyotes. They have to have coyote habitat just as anywhere else in this country. Some of those ranches are good for 20+ coyotes, but most are not. Bigger ranches means more driving, because of lower densitys of coyotes, yes 48-72 hour check laws help exspecially on coyotes, out west you have a mentality that if a rancher sees 3 coyotes running his place he wants them dead now, these men have seen and paid the price for higher coyote numbers, midwest and East not many landowners worry about coyotes, because "most" don't suffer the losses due to many factors, also we have had a major parvo outbreak on coyotes in the last 3 years and that has really takin a toll on coyote numbers.
Yes you have coyotes dispersing from Canada some end up in MT, some in ND and some in Minn as well, but they don't have to move 250 miles to be dispersal coyotes, I have them come up from a major river drainage next to Indian Reservation where there is zero predator control, the coyotes eat out of the dog dishes in these small Indian towns, they move 20-40 miles, small compaired to the Canada dispersal but all the same dispersal.
I have some ranches in this area, no matter the number of coyotes takin out, the voids are always filled, that I consider more than filling in, there seems to be an endless supply of coyotes not by the 100's but enough to keep coyotes in these areas every month of every year, no matter the pressure applied. Because the habitat and food base is ideal for coyotes.
I consider it more than filling in if a pair of coyotes or a yearling male moves from one home range into another, otherwise why move from where you came? Coyotes are great survivors and they know they work there way up through the social ladder, coyotes are territorial and will take over an area vacataed due for whatever reason, it's like they go from living in marginal habitat to better habitat with age. Now food base and density plays into the aggression of defending ones teritory as well, better years of high prey base less aggresion, drought years and higher coyote numbers means the older coyotes will defend there areas with more aggresion. During denning alot of yearling coyotes just wonder about and try to fill in between paired up coyotes, as they don't want no part of a pair defending the area in which pups are rasied as this becomes a life or death deal for them.
I was out the last 2 days and noticed alot of coyote activity on the frozen creeks, there running these alot more and less out in the more open sage flats hunting, they have become more bobcat like in nature, as they will do this time every year. Find cats, you will find coyotes at this time of year and visa versa.

[vttrapper]

excellent post

frank

[trappnman]

Everyone has different conditions, locations, situations.

A good trapper knows the specifics in his area, and how to adapt to those specifics for the maximum catch.

[Edge]

I hope no one thinks I kvetch about my area;I LOVE it and am truly blessed to live here......yeah,it snows and rains,but sometimes not both on the same day,and *those*are happy times indeed.

The learning curve is enhanced exponentially in winter;tracks and behaviors are more easily noticed,pace is somewhat slower and time can be takewn.Trapping coyotes in the winter is a shortcut to your Dr of Coyotology Deghree.

Edge

[PAMINK]

Oh Boy!!!

[CoonDuke]

[z]

A little too much testosterone......

No big deal.......Working it out!

I deleted my posts out of respect for Mark and publicly apologize!

But he does have a lot of coyotes!

Thats a joke Zipper! Sorry, Couldn't help myself!

!