Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Coyotes and Whitetail Deer

I've seen 'em interact thru the years and watched a little drama this morning.

Two big does were at a feeder 250 yards and crosswind from me. Four grown coyotes crossed from my left to my right, about halfway between me and the deer.

The deer evidently saw the coyotes, since the wind was wrong for them to scent them. They both hightailed it, even though the coyotes gave no indication they were aware of the deer.

Years ago, I was watching 4 does coming down toward me off a ridge and saw a lone coyote trotting along the side of the ridge on a path that would intersect with the deer.

Neither was aware of the other as the deer were screened by some brush. Just before the critters all met, the coyote smelled the deer and he turned around and hitailed it back the way he came from.

Apparently, it all comes down to who is outnumbered.

I saw something similar years ago. Basically it was a coyote stalking a doe and her fawn. The doe did all the watching and positioned herself in front of her fawn, but the ending was never in doubt.

I watched a pair of black baldy cows chase a coyote off. They were determined to stomp him into a bloody pile. They had calves on the ground.

Not sure why the dang thang posted 2x

Driving back from Harlo this summer I watched five pronghorn chase a coyote up and down a field. It was impressive enough to pull over and watch. They'd almost have it caught at one end, then chase it all the way back.

The dog eventually jumped the highway and the pronghorn stopped. They really wanted to kill that fugger.



Travis

Not always about being outnumbered. More than once out calling I have had a doe run coyotes off. A mama that thinks something little is getting hurt is a force to be reckoned with. I think that just like with people, it has a whole lot to do with the attitude of the participants involved. It can go either way.

I doubt that would fly well with the friggin' coyotes around here. Big bastards. 40-50 lbs seems to be the average. My buddy killed a 49 lb female off our gun club property last winter.

Many years back Ranchers in southern Texas advised the Texas Game Commission that the number of young deer fawns seemed to be on the decline! The commission did a one year study and determined that coyotes were responsible for 89% fawn loss! I kill every one of them that offers a shot!!

They also are hard on new elk calves, and a pack of them sometimes will jump and kill a cow elk while she is birthing. These coyotes here never will be decimated, but it helps to keep their numbers down and we shoot every one we see.

Last summer sighted a 22/250 dead-on at 200 yards because that seems to be about the closest they will come to our place in daylight. Yesterday AM early spotted a big male sneaking around down near the pond - 190 yards from the work deck. 30 seconds late - crow feed. Wish it were that easy more frequently.

Same here. I dont care how good a day it is for deer hunting, if a yote happens by, I shoot it.

I had occasion to be the gunner in a helicopter coyote control effort, where there were lots of coyotes.

One thing I learned from doing that is that when you spot some deer from the air, circle around the deer a bit, and start looking... Chances are pretty good that you'll find a coyote or more just shadowing the deer, or in some cases, messing with them.

It seems that coyotes just like messing with deer. If the opportunity isn't perfect, they just go about their business. But, time and circumstances are on the coyote's side. The coyotes usually get a venison dinner sooner or later.

Watched a lone coyote trying to chase a deer through a big soybean field one time.

The beans were already getting up pretty tall - tall enough that the coyote couldn't see above them while standing on all fours.

Every few yards or so it would jump straight up in the air like a kid's jack-in-the-box to get it's head above the beans and look around trying to see which way the deer was headed.

Was kind of funny to watch. The coyote never even got close to catching up with the deer in that bean field.

When calling coyotes in tall grass or desert brush growth, they do that a lot when coming to the call.

I call that "porpoising"...

Saw 2 mule deer doe beating on a coyote big time several years ago. They were flanking him at a full run / stott and "cross jumping"kicking the yote in the head as they jumped over. The yote took 5-6 good shots in the head before he was able to jink well enough to escape. If the two does had been able to get the yote on the ground I think they would have stomped him to death.

I was really pulling for the does.

One evening north of Roswell years ago while returning from an archery elk hunt in Co, my brother and I pulled over to film a big herd of antelope loosely bunched in a fence corner by the highway.

After a bit I happened to see a coyote belly down in the grass just past the antelope. A minute later we saw another as if they had the antelope cornered and waiting form the fast approaching darkness.

Early March a few years ago I was riding Ike out checking beef cows that were calving and three deer appeared on the horizon with two coyotes trailing them. The deer loped thru about 40 head of cattle and the coyotes tried following but some of the mama cows wouldn't allow it.

Ike acted like he wanted to get in on the chase so I gave him his head. It wasn't long and I was white knuckled on the saddle horn. Coyotes made it to a fence line and dropped into a ravine and I bailed off Ike, grabbed the 99-A, rested on a fence post and waited to see if the coyotes showed on the other side of the ravine. One did and I put a Sierra 90 grain HPBT into him.

That's the way to roll!

rockinbbar

"White-knuckled"!! Got a buddy that was chasing a big whitetail across a pasture one day....riding a bronc that could go hellforleather and the deer jumped a canal that had Johnsongrass growing on its bank. Well...Jack...not to be outdone spurs on the bronc and launches at full speed and lo and behold....the broncs chest hits right square into the canal spoil bank and Jack told me..."That sunofabitches ears twern't nothing but a blur when I went betwist 'em!" Damn nigh killed Jack but he's tuff....still at 82 and going strong!! A full-bore cowboy if there ever was one! He'll be down here shortly and we're gonna have an outside fire and drink some scotch!!

Here's Jack!

Walkerfire by Sharps45 2 7/8, on Flickr

Excellent! Sounds like a guy to ride the river with!

Old, wore out cowboys make for some pretty lively campfire talk! I'd have a nip of my favorite bourbon and sit back with y'all and enjoy the company!

rockinbbar

You'd be welcome!!