I've shot 3 squirrels in the back yard over 3 days giving me and left them lay to see if a coyote which we supposedly have a few of would come by to have dinner and give me a chance for my first coyote. Nope. No coyote. Yes to all 3 being dinner to a Redtail Hawk. I saw the hawk ripping apart the 1st. squirrel the next morning after I shoot it. After 8 minutes that Hawk flow off with the squirrel. This morning the 3rd. squirrel was gone but the Redtail Hawk apparently came back to see if I left him breakfast, I saw him sitting in one of the Oak trees. Great looking bird!!
What's taking the bait?
- Thread starter FLbushman
- Start date
Have had the local owls do that when i go out rabbit hunting. Will usually leave a pile of them at a central point so when I walk back I pick them all up. Came back and on multiple times seen owls grabbing rabbits and flying off with them.
Really cool to see.
Really cool to see.
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I'm a little tiffed at the local hawk and eagle because I think they are scaring the squirrels away and decreasing the target population too. But they are nice to look at.
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This thread is funny to me. Several scavengers and predators will come if you leave food out. It’s like leaving filled grocery bags out in front of food bank after hours. Hell, an owl will take your decoy or try to take off with an electronic caller if you play the right distress calls.
@JimD I believe that hawks spook squirrels. I’ve watched them swoop down beneath the canopy while I was posted up squirrel hunting. Sometimes I don’t even hear them, save a single stealthy wing flap. I think that squirrels have a distinct warning call for airborne predators that’s different from their call for terrestrial predators.
@JimD I believe that hawks spook squirrels. I’ve watched them swoop down beneath the canopy while I was posted up squirrel hunting. Sometimes I don’t even hear them, save a single stealthy wing flap. I think that squirrels have a distinct warning call for airborne predators that’s different from their call for terrestrial predators.
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I always tell people that if they're not there, they're not finding the bait. Bait sites don't bring scavengers or predators in. It concentrates their time & attention in a place that makes them vulnerable to either shooting or trapping.
Like boxing, your opponent is there. It's up to you to put time and space together to put one on his nose.
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@Hal4son My assumption is that if squirrels, hawks, and coyotes are present so are raccoons, possums, skunks, and who knows what else. That’s how things have looked in various places I’ve lived - city or rural. On some occasions I also saw foxes within city limits. Unless this member lives in an asphalt and concrete setting it’s likely that predatory animals are close to food sources such as squirrels and opportunistic scavengers are close to dead animals and garbage cans. Again, my assumption. To your point of “if they’re not there” then the insects,
microbes, and/or fungi will feed on the carcass if it’s not too cold. Even in an urban environment I imagine rats would feed on a carcass.
microbes, and/or fungi will feed on the carcass if it’s not too cold. Even in an urban environment I imagine rats would feed on a carcass.
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@Ezana4CE A lot of coyotes living in the city limits. Food is everywhere and no one threatens them. I get calls about urban coyotes regularly. Recently I've gotten a couple of calls of one living downtown, sleeping in the open and has no fear of people. He'll become a job for someone.
Depending on where you're at, the black vultures could be a target.
Depending on where you're at, the black vultures could be a target.
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@Hal4son Times have certainly changed. We continue deforesting, building in, and industrializing their natural habitats. I am inclined to belive that this has a lot to do with overlapping human and animal populations. It’s really conjecture based upon my limited experience from what I’ve seen in a few states over a period of decades. I never thought I’d see hogs and coyotes in certain areas I’ve seen and read about recently. Even the frequent forest fires have pushed larger animals like bears into residential areas that I don’t think saw them in years past.
@FLbushman Anyhow, as for baiting coyotes, @Max115 piled dead rats in the same spot outside of a farm for about a week and placed a trail cam in front of the bait to track the coyotes feeding behavior. It may be worth a shot to bait your coyote(s). You may want to look up his coyote pesting videos for specific details.
@FLbushman Anyhow, as for baiting coyotes, @Max115 piled dead rats in the same spot outside of a farm for about a week and placed a trail cam in front of the bait to track the coyotes feeding behavior. It may be worth a shot to bait your coyote(s). You may want to look up his coyote pesting videos for specific details.
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Hawks learn quickly to answer the dinner bell! Pest at a friends place and as soon as the hawks hear a shot they come flying on in looking for the free meal! Fun stuff! Great shooting and nice squirrel buffet you put out!
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The hawk acts like it owns the place. One time I got annoyed enough to place a few pellets in the tree near it. It ignored them. I had to throw sticks at it to get it to move and then it just flew up higher in a tree. Completely unafraid. Squirrels don't come around until after it leaves.
The eagle doesn't come around as often but sometimes sits in the top of my oak trees for a few minutes. It seems more focused in the fish on the lake but I'm sure it would take a squirrel if it had the chance. I've seen it pluck a fish out of the lake.
The squirrel population seems reduced but the leaves are still in the trees and our temperatures are back up into the 80s so it's hard to tell. But the population of doves seems to be decimated. There were dozens last year at this time and I only see 2 or 3 now. The doves like to sit on the electric wires which would make them easy prey for a hawk or eagle.
The eagle doesn't come around as often but sometimes sits in the top of my oak trees for a few minutes. It seems more focused in the fish on the lake but I'm sure it would take a squirrel if it had the chance. I've seen it pluck a fish out of the lake.
The squirrel population seems reduced but the leaves are still in the trees and our temperatures are back up into the 80s so it's hard to tell. But the population of doves seems to be decimated. There were dozens last year at this time and I only see 2 or 3 now. The doves like to sit on the electric wires which would make them easy prey for a hawk or eagle.
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