How to Hunt Coyotes at Night

Coyotes are top predators and kill not only young and weak deer, but also full grown and healthy deer. Help out the local deer heard by hunting coyotes.

In most States and Provinces throughout North America coyotes can be hunted year round. They have been known to cause problems for lifestock and other wildlife, so many game biologists even encourage coyote hunting. To even the odds and to make more of an impact on the coyote population, many areas allow coyote hunting at night. By learning How to Hunt Coyotes at Night, a hunter can hunt coyotes 24/7, 365 days a year. Night hunting for coyotes can be a very exciting and an extremely effective way to keep their population at bay. Here we will discuss tips and tactics on how to hunt coyotes at night.

Coyotes, like most predators are mainly nocturnal. They do the majority of their day to day activities at night like hunting, eating, breeding and establishing hierarchy. For this reason, hunting coyotes at night can be very fast paced as you see a lot more than during daylight hours. They also feel more secure at night knowing that humans are less active, so they tend to be a bit less weary.

Spot Lighting:

Coyotes are much more active at night then during the day. Using a spotlight and predator calls to find them can be very effective.

If you are hunting at night you will need a way to see the dogs. The most practical tool for bringing light to the night is a high powered spotlight. These spotlights are extremely bright and will do a good job lighting up coyotes up to 400 yards, if you invest in a good one. Here are the spot lights we suggest: Best Spot Lights for Hunting Coyotes at Night

When using a spot light, animals that can see in the dark are very easy to spot due to their eye’s bright reflect. For this reason, you don’t have to spend much time scanning an area to see if there are any coyotes nearby. All animal eyes have a certain glow to them when hit with an artificial light. It is important to be able to determine what type of animal is in the light before you start shooting as it can be hard to distinguish at times, but its easy enough to tell by just the eye reflection after you gain some experience. You will find predator eyes are typically brighter than prey eyes. Be aware though, there are always variances in reflection strength and color, so be extremely sure of your target before aiming a weapon in its direction.

Most spotlighting is done from a vehicle where the spotlights consume 12 volt power from the cigarette lighter. It’s also possible and popular to use a spotlight that runs off a rechargeable power supply. These spotlights are very nice to have, and in many states necessary, as to be legal the light needs to be powered by something other than the vehicle. Check your local regulations to be sure of all laws pertaining to hunting with artificial lighting.

Calling Coyotes at Night

Click here to view the best coyote calls broke down by price: Best Coyote Calls

FoxPro makes the best predator calls with a variety of price ranges. Click on this picture to view the best electronic predator calls broke into price ranges.

One of the most effective ways how to hunt coyotes at night is to use predator calls. Coyotes are out and about most at night and are more confident when coming in to calls than during the day. If you have experience calling to coyotes and other predators during the day, then you should have success with the same sounds during the night. Common sounds are prey in distress calls, mainly rabbit, bird sounds, and a number of coyote howls, yips, and distress calls.

Call Types: Both mouth calls and electronic calls work well for hunting coyotes at night, with electronic calls giving you a significant advantage unless you are extremely skilled with a mouth call. Electronic predator calls are extremely loud, clear, and are typically actual voices of real life animals making them very believable to predators. Many coyotes come running in fully expecting to see what they are looking for without fear.

TIP: When hunting coyotes at night you need to be ready at all times. It may take less than a minute before they are right on top of you. Therefore, make sure you are ready to shoot before you begin your call sequence. Likewise, not all coyotes come in at a full run; some come in casually. If you are in an area that sound can travel long distances, then it may take a while for the coyotes to get to your location. For these reasons, it is important to be patient. Give them plenty of time to come in or you may experience what most experienced coyote callers have and do when as soon as you get up you see a coyote running away. Other predators such as bobcats tend to come in even slower and more alert.

Best Times to Hunt Coyotes at Night

While winter time coyote hunting at night can be cold, it is the best time if you are after fur quality.

Most states allow coyote hunting at night all year round, but most people partake in coyote hunting during fur bearing seasons, which in most areas is the end of September through march, depending on the year. This does not mean you can’t or should not hunt them throughout the spring and summer, but this is when their hides will fetch the highest price.

The warmer weather can be some of the best times to call coyotes though, especially if your are just learning how to hunt coyotes at night. There is less competition during this time of year so coyotes are typically easier to bring in with predator calls.

During the winter, days getting shorter and night longer is one a major reason why many people hunt coyotes at night as well. When it gets dark at 4:30 in the evening, that does not leave much time for hunting coyotes during the daylight hours. If you want to try a few areas after work during the fall and winter, a spotlight might be your only option; and a good option it is. Learning how to hunt coyotes at night will open up a lot more hunting opportunities for someone who would like to get out more often.

Gear You Will Need to Hunt Coyotes at Night

There are a few gear items needed to hunt coyotes at night in addition to the typical necessities of day time coyote hunting.

Any centerfire rifle will do the trick for coyote hunting, but smaller is better as they are rather small animals and perseving the hike will fetch the best price.

Rifle: Just about any rifle will do the trick for coyotes. These dogs are smaller than one might think with, with a 30 pounder being a big one. They are also soft skinned, so a big bullet is not necessary and will destroy the hide much worse than a smaller one. My personal opinion is that a 243 caliber rifle is the perfect coyote rifle. It is flat and fast shooting, with enough weight to carry the bullet for longer distance shooting. Also, you can find ammo at any sporting goods store and a .243 makes a good caliber for white tailed deer, hogs, and antelope, without much recoil.

Spot Light: Artificial lights can be a number of brands. Spotlights that have the ability to control the light spread are nice as they let you use a flood light for scanning and then dial it in to a beam to determine what you see. It is best to have both a 12 volt light that operates from a vehicle power source/cigarette lighter and a rechargeable spotlight for when you get out of the vehicle. Also, you may want to purchase a red filter (cover) which turns your light beam red. Predators do not see red so they will be unaware that they are getting blasted by a spotlight. Even without the filter, many times they do not even care and keep on coming in.

Check out the best spotlight available (opens new window): Best Spotlight for Hunting Coyotes at Night

Predator Calls: There are a number of predator calls that you may choose to use. Electronic calls work the best. Mouth calls such as reed and diaphragm calls work well but make sure you practice before you go out as these calls take time to perfect. Go here to checkout the best predator calls for coyote hunting at night broke down into price ranges.

Be Ready for Anything

Bobcats are also more active at night and might come in to your calls while targeting coyotes. Bobcat hides are worth $200-$300; much more than a coyote.

One thing to remember when you hunt coyotes at night is that like coyotes, other predators are most active at night as well. For this reason, you should be ready for whatever you may see. Foxes, bobcats, lynx, and other predators are all good animals to take as an addition to coyote hunting at night. In some areas, it is even legal to take cougars at night and hopefully soon, wolves in some states. For this reason, you need to be ready and legally prepared to hunt these animals as well. Check your local regulations as some of these animals may require special licenses and permits. You do not want to have to pass up a predator because you failed to get a tag for it, or even worse because you were not sure whether or not it is legal.