Snowshoe down

[tom gobble]

Hit the woods with hunting buddy and forum member ihunt for a grouse /hare hunt. We worked the cedars in a public bush that used to produce good numbers. Over the years the yotes have been hitting it hard and the numbers seem real low. After a lot of bush kicking one made a mistake and Ihunt took it down. As for grouse we flushed one twice and my barrel was bent enough to miss lol fun hunt anyways and the weather was perfect. Sorry for the side pics I don’t know why it does this

[swampsinger]

Congrats on bagging the bunny. I know it seems right to blame a decline on coyotes, but hundreds of years of documentation show that snowshoe hare have natural population cycles. Over time there have been a few theories as to what causes these cycles. The latest research seems to promote stress hormones in females as a trigger, and interestingly how it may effect genetics in following generations. This might explain why cottontails get along a lot better adapting to human habitation.
I believe snowshoe are under utilized resource in Ontario, and the MNRF has no interest in promoting this type of hunting and by their actions would like to see it end.

[Ryantg]

Congrats on a successful hunt. I was out today with a hunting buddy but no luck. Stomped brush piles and fallen trees. Zig zagged, stopped and waited. To no avail. Any tips for a novice hunter? I seen all sorts of sign jacks and snowshoe (and coyote) Also where are the grouse this year I’ve only dropped one and that might of been the only I’ve seen..

[tom gobble]

Congrats on bagging the bunny. I know it seems right to blame a decline on coyotes, but hundreds of years of documentation show that snowshoe hare have natural population cycles. Over time there have been a few theories as to what causes these cycles. The latest research seems to promote stress hormones in females as a trigger, and interestingly how it may effect genetics in following generations. This might explain why cottontails get along a lot better adapting to human habitation.
I believe snowshoe are under utilized resource in Ontario, and the MNRF has no interest in promoting this type of hunting and by their actions would like to see it end.

I hear what your saying but this is the eighth year we been hunting them at this bush. Supposedly there’s a 10 year cycle. If that’s the case numbers should be close to normal but it’s far from that. Our first couple of years we did not see a single yote track and now there’s lots of sign. They can’t be helping the case but I’m sure that’s not the only reason like your saying.

[tom gobble]

Congrats on a successful hunt. I was out today with a hunting buddy but no luck. Stomped brush piles and fallen trees. Zig zagged, stopped and waited. To no avail. Any tips for a novice hunter? I seen all sorts of sign jacks and snowshoe (and coyote) Also where are the grouse this year I’ve only dropped one and that might of been the only I’ve seen..

Seems to me your doing all the right things. Don’t get stuck hunting the same spot even if there was success in the pass. Novice or not that’s our first rabbit in a long time, so don’t blame your self. My advice to you is to look for the right habitat, young cedars that clump together are great places to start. They know how to escape so make sure one guy is kicking and the other is watching him ready to shoot. You both can’t kick the bush and watch each other at the same time. Just keep on hunting and having fun and learn from your mistakes and success good luck.

[fratri]

Nice........... I remember chasing them years ago.... miss doing that.... Congrats on whats sounds like a nice hunting day with a friend...

[tom gobble]

Nice........... I remember chasing them years ago.... miss doing that.... Congrats on whats sounds like a nice hunting day with a friend...

Never to late to start doing it again Fratri.

[punkrockerpj]

nice bunny

[KennyT]

I agree with SwampSinger that the coyotes are way up and rabbits are way down. I am almost 50 and have bunny hunted every year since I started hunting in my 20's. Seeing a coyote track used to be a rare thing and we would often kick up 8-12 cottontails in a day. Now every brush pile will have coyote tracks around it, usually fresh ones on top of old ones. Even if we get there at first light, they will have hunted it the night before. Most days if we kick up two rabbits, it is a big day for us. And we work the brush very actively. To clarify, we also hunt areas geographically separated from one-another, so it is not just an issue in one area. Finally, for those who will say we should hunt the coyotes, we do. My buddies run hounds and most of us also use hand or e-callers. The main issue is that with urban sprawl, there are too many areas off limits to hunting for them to hide in.

Actually, one more thing. Think about how many rabbits you see in town if you walk at dusk or dawn. Around Paris, there are tons. Some of these areas are only a few kilometers from where I rabbit hunt. But because the coyotes are not in town (OK, they make rare appearances but are not typically there regularly), the rabbit populations in town are way better than in the country.

[tom gobble]

I agree with SwampSinger that the coyotes are way up and rabbits are way down. I am almost 50 and have bunny hunted every year since I started hunting in my 20's. Seeing a coyote track used to be a rare thing and we would often kick up 8-12 cottontails in a day. Now every brush pile will have coyote tracks around it, usually fresh ones on top of old ones. Even if we get there at first light, they will have hunted it the night before. Most days if we kick up two rabbits, it is a big day for us. And we work the brush very actively. To clarify, we also hunt areas geographically separated from one-another, so it is not just an issue in one area. Finally, for those who will say we should hunt the coyotes, we do. My buddies run hounds and most of us also use hand or e-callers. The main issue is that with urban sprawl, there are too many areas off limits to hunting for them to hide in.

Actually, one more thing. Think about how many rabbits you see in town if you walk at dusk or dawn. Around Paris, there are tons. Some of these areas are only a few kilometers from where I rabbit hunt. But because the coyotes are not in town (OK, they make rare appearances but are not typically there regularly), the rabbit populations in town are way better than in the country.

I agree with you 100% but its not only the yotes. Rabbits/hares are most vulnerable as babies, lots of other predators can easily have access to a meal. We should all hunt yotes on a regular basis but its proven that even if taking a handful of yotes down each year doesn't do anything to there population. They thrive in urban areas better then you think, i hear yotes all the time and i see rabbit fur once and a while in the parks and im sure they are the cause or my self LOL