Warm Weather Predator Hunting - Larry Weishuhn

A pair of red-tailed hawks circled overhead hoping to spot the distressed cottontail. Incoming

crows increased their cawing as they drew closer, if for no other reason than to aggravate the

hawks. At least something was responding to my efforts.

Sitting, my back against a gnarly mesquite, open-sight Rossi R95 .30-30 Win. rested in the crux

of my crossed shooting sticks in front of me I patiently waited in great anticipation. Fifty paces

out in front my Burnham Brothers’ Freq ultra-sonic electronic call broadcast its direly distressed

cottontail rabbit high pitched squeals. The circling raptors remained interested, even if it meant

tolerating the raucous crows.

Texas’ mid-afternoon sun intensified late spring temperatures making it feel really warm, nay,

hot. Sweat beaded on my forehead and threatened to drool into my eyes.

My mind drifted to a time many years earlier when I first blew into a Burnham Brothers C-3

mouth-blown predator call, hunting across the road from our rural home. I got so excited when

a “wolf” charged toward me I emptied my dad’s Model 94 lever-action .30-30 without so much

as cutting a hair. Recalling that first experience of calling predators, I nearly laughed out loud.

Even though I had embarrassingly missed seven rushed and utterly excited shots, I knew one

thing for certain from that encounter. I was not about to quit calling predators, ever!

Crows cawed, perched in the top-most limbs of nearby mesquites. I sat statue still enjoying

their caws while waiting patiently for a four-legged predator to make an appearance. My

reason, partly, for calling predators during late spring was to remove coyotes, bobcats and

raccoons just before the whitetail deer fawning season. That and the fact I dearly love calling

critters. And yes, raccoons can and do occasionally kill fawns.

Predators have their place in the natural world, but sometimes their numbers need to be

reduced or regulated. In this instance the young families who hunted the property wanted to

be able to harvest more fall venison. The primary means to accommodate their wishes was to

increase the deer population by upping fawn survival rates. More fawns added into the

population would result in added deer harvests opportunities. Competing four-legged predator

numbers needed to be reduced to accomplish this.

Does in the immediate area normally “started dropping” fawns during late May and early June.

I hoped to remove as many predators as possible just before fawns were born.

Thankfully the property conducted a proper rotational livestock grazing program which insured

ample habitat for whitetail deer. The immediate area too had received excellent rainfall during

the winter creating considerable spring ground cover. Ground vegetation not only provides

food for livestock and wildlife it also creates excellent hiding cover for new born fawns. With

such vegetation predators have a harder time seeing and finding young fawns.

During the first week of their life, fawns instinctively lie down and do not move from where the

doe leaves them. They remain death-like still no matter what approaches or walks by. Predation

during these first days is usually minimal. Fawn predation primarily starts occurring once they

get a bit older, when they jump and run from approaching danger. This is when coyotes and

bobcats take their toll.

What of wild hogs? They too can be serious predators on fawns, Thankfully the property had

an on-going feral hog removal program including continual trapping, Having done so for several

years this has greatly reduced wild hog predation of fawns.

Prior to my hunt I visited with Burnham Brothers Game Calls’ Gary Roberson. Gary, because of

lifelong pursuit of predators and his ever-continuing research knows more about hunting

coyotes and bobcats than anyone. He too is the host of the extremely popular “Carnivore”

television show which airs on Pursuit Channel. Based on his many years of hunting and studying

coyotes and bobcats he with the assistance of professional sound engineers created the

revolutionary Freq (www.freqcalls.com) the world’s first ever ultra-sonic electronic game call.

The process Gary and his team created records distressed prey sounds at their real and true

ultra-sonic frequency, measured in Hertz. The Freq broadcasts those extra high-pitched

frequencies and the low “growling” sounds made by distressed prey species.

Research demonstrates coyotes can hear upwards of 45,000 Hertz. Bobcats can hear upwards

of 65,000 Hertz, the same and slightly higher ultra-sonic sounds (Hertz) produced by distressed

prey such as cottontail and jack rabbits. All existing electronic game calls, shy of the Freq,

broadcast sounds only up to 17,000 to 18,000 Hertz, no matter how high the volume is turned

up or other adjustments made.

Burnham Brothers’ Freq produces and broadcasts distressed prey calls at 55,000 Hertz. That’s

what sets the Freq call so far apart from and above any other electronic game call on the

market. It broadcasts sounds at Hertz levels predators actually hear. This is the reason

predators respond so consistently to the Burnham Brothers’ Freq. And, why it brings in call-shy

predators, coyotes and bobcats, that have quit coming to “regular” electronic calls.

I asked my old friend to tell me about some of his latest predator hunting adventures. Gary

hunts predators a lot! I recorded our conversation for my weekly “DSC’s Campfires with Larry

Weishuhn” podcast episodes, available on Spotify, ApplePodcasts, iHeartPodcasts,

outdooraction.com, waypointtv.com, carbontv.com and many other places. Knowing I would

soon be calling with my own Freq, I asked him what to expect calling in upcoming warm

weather, as well as what advice he might have for my doing so.

“I really don’t do things differently when its warm to hot compared to what I do calling in cold

temperatures. Just remember it does no good to call in critters and not see them when the

respond. Always set up where you can see coyotes or bobcats coming in to the call. Maybe just

as important is to be patient. When the temperatures are warm to hot coyotes are slower in

responding. Bobcats nearly always are a lot slower about coming in than coyotes, even during

cool to cold weather. When it starts getting hot cats can be really slow in responding. Be

patient, really patient before leaving a set up.” Suggested Gary.

Presently, I was taking Gary’s statement to heart and practice, waiting patiently. Like him, I call

predators only during daylight hours. I want to see critters approach watching how they

respond. I suppose I could use some the night-time tools such as the various thermal devices

we have these days to do some watching, but no. Maybe someday, or rather night. But for the

time being, I will only call predators during daylight hours. Guess, I’m old school.

Gary and I also talked about our current firearms and ammo choices. Said he, “As I’ve gotten

older I’m more and more drawn back to where I started, hunting with open-sight lever-action

rifles. The only “new” in my current predator hunting kit is our Freq call and Hornady’s

LEVERevolution ammo. I mostly hunt with an open-sight Ruger/Marlin Model 336 .30-30 Win. I

guess it’s new in that Marlin is now owned by Ruger. Really like that rifle/ammo combination.”

“Calling coyotes or bobcats should be a close range game. Lever-actions are ideal for that kind

of hunting. They’re quick to point, accurate and fun to hunt with. If a follow-up shot is available

or required, sometimes I even amaze myself how quickly I can accurately shoot a second or

even a third shot.” Added Gary.

“I appreciate and love my bolt-action Mossberg rifles. I truly enjoy hunting with them and

shooting steel targets at long range. I particularly like my 7mm PRCs Patriot Predators topped

with Stealth Vision scopes and shooting Hornady Precision Hunter ammo. Although I can

accurately shoot those rifles at steel out to 1,200-yards, when it comes to hunting I want to get

as close to the animal as possible before pulling the trigger.”

“Frankly however, I often find myself grabbing one of my Rossi lever-actions R92s chambered

in.45 Colt and .44 Mag, or my .30-30 Win Rossi R95 when calling predators, hunting hogs and

even deer. Doing so takes me back to my early days of hunting!” I commented.

“Yessir, there’s also something really “comforting” about hunting with a lever-action. I’ve pretty

well decided from here on to do most all my hunting with a lever-action rifle and occasionally a

single-action revolver.” Stated Gary.

Meanwhile back on the hunt, it had not gotten any cooler. Thankfully there was a slight breeze,

but not blowing hard to the point of messing up the calling. I sat patiently and waited,

remembering Gary instructions to be patient, real patient.

After twenty minutes without any obvious four-legged responders, I was just about to get up to

walk back to my Jeep and drive to another location. Just then I spotted slight movement coming

my way, a deliberate and slow moving bobcat. Patience indeed was about to pay dividends.