Panel Showtime! Saturday Feb 27th at 1:30pm

As further evidence that the predator calling industry is growing, the ISE, the western United States largest and best hunting, fishing, outdoor sports, and adventure travel show will host an hour-long predator calling panel discussion.  Panel members include:

Gerry Blair

Gerry Blair – AKA The Beast Master, is an icon in the predator hunting industry.  Gerry is one of the most recognized speakers and authors on predator calling.  His retired Arizona Highway Patrolman straight-talk and “Blair-isms” are sure to add lots of humor to this informative calling discussion. 

Steve Craig

Steve Craig – “The Lion King” of Cottonwood, Arizona brings his cougar calling expertise to the panel.  Steve is one of the industry’s best teachers on all types of predator calling, and is recognized across the US for his uncanny ability to locate and bring mountain lions to his call. 

Rich Higgins

Rich Higgins – Do you speak coyote?  Rich Higgins, founder of Predator Professionals does and he’ll tell you how.  Rich brings decades of experience in coyote vocalizations & behavior expertise to this panel.  Rich will separate fact from fiction when it come to talking to coyotes and provide time & field-tested methods to bring more coyotes to your stands. 

Mark Healy

Mark Healy – Co-founder of Wildlife Callers Blog and professional speaker brings 23 years of predator calling experience to the panel.  Mark Healy and Dave Martens (the other founder of Wildlife Callers) scout and call specifically for mountain lions and have called 15 cougars in the past 4 hunting seasons. 

When:  February 27th, Saturday.  Panel time 1:30pm in the Adventure Theater. 

Where:  University of Phoenix Stadium (AZ Cardinals Stadium) - One Cardinals Drive, Glendale, AZ 85305

Parking:  Included with your paid admission! 

Admission:  $15 Adults (16yrs and older).  Kids 15yrs and younger are free with a paid adult!

Tickets:  Click Here

An ISE show is an outdoor recreation, fishing, and hunting event like no other.  Mark your calendars for Saturday February 27th and show your support for predator hunting & calling in Arizona and the western United States!

As the event date draws near we’ll make additional announcements and provide a specific time the panel will be on stage. 

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Thank you again for reading and supporting Wildlife Callers’ Blog.  Send your questions or comments to: 

 Mark@wildlifecallers.com

Good calling to everyone,

Mark Healy

One of this year’s event planners and well-known mountain lion caller, Steve Craig, invited me up to the cool pines of Payson for a weekend of wildlife calling seminars, good food, games for the kids, and campfire time with predator hunters from all over the Southwestern U.S.  The event this year was well attended, with more than 100 predator hunters, spouses, and kids on hand.

Southwest Fur Harvesters

Throughout the day there were presentations from calling and trapping experts.  There were presentations on calling bears, calling coyotes & coyote vocalizations, cage trapping.  The event seminars focused on  responsible fur harvesting and managing fur-bearers as a natural resource.  

Eddie Murdock of AZ and his B&C Black Bear

Professional bear caller and hunter, Eddie Murdock, was on hand to share his knowledge of bears and how they respond to predator calls.  His advice:

Call for a minimum of 45-minutes (longer is better) and use common distress sounds like cottontail rabbit, jackrabbit, and deer fawn.  Eddie stressed that calling continuously for bears was key.  I asked him if he paused between the various sounds that he uses and he told me “not more than 30-seconds”. 

Eddie also did a whole segment on locating bears, reading sign, habitat, terrain, and more.  To learn more and follow Eddie’s bear calling info on the web go to:  http://www.pvci.org/PvciForum/ .  His name on that site is LoneBear. 

Rich Higgins Discusses Coyote Vocalizations

Respected coyote behaviorist and predator caller, Rich Higgins, gave a one hour presentation on coyote calling.  Rich explained several ways a predator caller can use coyote vocalizations to increase calling success throughout the season.  His presentation included demonstrations on how to produce the sounds with a hand call.  Rich also discussed the various calls that coyotes make, and how to interpret/respond to those calls for maximum effectiveness. 

Rich allowed me to video tape his presentation.  As time permits I’ll post several segments from it and share his decades of coyote calling wisdom with everyone.

Rich is one of the founders of the discussion forum www.PredatorProfessionals.com .  Please visit that site for more information from Rich and veteran callers all around the US. 

Some of the most informative discussions I had were between the presentations.  There were plenty of seasoned predator callers willing the share their tips and tricks.  Whether your question was about calling bears, or calling more grey fox, bobcats, coyotes or cougars, someone at the event had an answer. 

Brian Fettkether, Tyler Higgins, Rich Higgins, and Steve Craig Discuss Predator Calling

Ned Burris - AZ Predator Caller

Travis and Vickie Watson of The New Mexico Trapper's Association

This husband and wife team, Travis and Vickie Watson, were in from Carlsbad, New Mexico promoting wise use of fur resources and how to best manage fur-bearers for future generations.

They had a ton of information for trappers and callers and were more than willing to share their thoughts about furbearers as a natural resource. 

We’d like to thank Steve Craig for the invitation to this event.  The planners did an outstanding job putting together the speakers, refreshments, food, and activities for all of the kids.  We’re already planning to attend the 2010 rendezvous next fall. 

Anyone interested in more information on the Fur Taker chapter that made this event possible, please visit this link:  http://www.furtakersofamerica.com/Arizona.htm 

Good hunting to everyone,

Mark Healy

Mark@wildlifecallers.com

Steve Craig is one of the most recognized names in predator calling in North America, and is one of the foremost authorities on calling mountain lions using their own vocalizations. Steve is also an expert in the use of Wildlife Technologies electronic predator calls and game callers and the Wildlife Technologies library of digitally recorded animal sounds. We are very pleased to post Steve Craig’s work on the Wildlife Callers’ Blog.

Steve Craig the "Mountain Lion King" and a Maine Black Bear

Most expect me to answer with a mountain lion or a bobcat story, and then are quite surprised at my answer.

It happened on a Saturday in 1967, in Indiana. It was a very quiet, windless day. It had snowed all night and had stopped about 4 AM or so and I was really itching to get out to hunt. I got up early, did my chores, and grabbed my gun and an old Pied Piper predator call.

It was beautiful that morning–a winter wonderland to say the least. I headed for a pasture east of my house. Picked a good sized walnut tree to sit in front of at the edge of the pasture, and let go a series of wails on the old Pied Piper.

Back then we did not have any coyotes in Indiana so red fox was what I was gunning for. Within a couple of minutes I see a huge old dog red fox heading my way on a dead run. I had stopped calling as soon as I saw him. He stopped at about 100 yards out and sat down in the snow, seemingly unable to locate where the sound had come from.

I already had the gun pointed at him and so I just gave a little toot on the call and that was all he needed to hear. He took a load of #2 shot from my 20 gauge at 10 yards! I was so excited, I didnt see the she fox starting to leave to my left. Instinct took over and I swung and rolled her at 25 yards. To this day, I still don’t remember kicking another shell into that old Mossberg bolt action shotgun.

I spent the rest of the morning skinning those fox, and waiting for the County to plow the roads.

That evening, just before dark I headed out in my vehicle with my shotgun, my call, and an old Carbide miners light that I used for coon hunting.

I pulled close to an old hay field, set up along the edge, and started calling. A pair of eyes came bouncing across the field and right up to me. It was a comical thing watching me adjust that old light I had wired to my cap, trying to get it and the shotgun pointed in the direction of the fox.

Finally I managed to get everything lined up and shot him at about 15 yards. I loaded him in a basket I had on my vehicle, and headed down the road to my next stand. It was starting to snow lightly by now, so I wanted to get a couple more stands in before it got too bad out.

I stopped next to an old, over grown briar patch, and almost immediately another red fox shows up, and he went down at 20 yards! He went into the basket as well and down the road I went.

As I was heading for home, great big silver dollar sized snowflakes were falling, and it was starting to build up. I pulled into another pasture that was next to some woods and started calling again. It only took 30 seconds or so for a huge grey fox to show up and I gave him a load of # 2′s as well. I loaded him in the basket and barely made it home slipping and sliding all the way.

What makes this one of my most memorable days?

5 foxes shot with a 20 gauge shotgun with 5 shots, 4 of them reds, all called with a hand call that I still have to this day. And, I was all of 14 years old, riding a bicycle on snow-covered slick country gravel roads!

So there you have it. Things sure have changed since that day. But it is a day I will remember forever.

Hope you enjoyed it too!

Steve Craig

Note: Steve is no longer booking guided hunts. We are providing a link to his site so our readers can look at his photos and read his content. http://azpredatorhunts.homestead.com

Your questions and comments are always appreciated. info@wildlifecallers.com