Question about hunting regs (feeling too lazy to look it up)

[phylodog]

I'll be bowhunting for deer again this year. We just set up a blind on our food plot today and pulled camera cards. 7 out of 7 cameras had coyotes on them and it's time for a few of them to take a dirt nap. I'm thinking pretty seriously about putting together a precision AR upper for this task which leads to my question...

If I'm sitting in a tree stand or blind with my bow, can I have an AR15 with me to shoot coyotes?

 

[Hookeye]

Old regs were "no guns" while bowhunting. Now they allow handguns for "protection".

Even if one could legally pull their pistol and pop a yote while bowhunting deer, ...........I'd call it poor taste.

My guess is that it's probably frowned upon in the legal sense, and using a rifle would be extra naughty.

 

[MRP2003]

Hookeye is correct.

I would try to take them with the bow. It would be a challenge and for me, probably a big rush to be able to pull back and hit one with the bow.

i would think that the times the yotes show up is different than the deer so you could hunt them both just switch your weapon based on the animal.


Let us know if you get a yote and if possible post some pics if you get one.

 

[HuntMeister]

Get written permission from the landowner to kill them and you can go out there now before season and reduce the yote count.

 

[Hookeye]

We had a couple moving through 2 days in a row. 3rd day (after one ducked my recurve's arrow) cuz and I left the bows at home and brought out cannons.
Calling off and on, for over 30 mins.....I smoked one.

Wasn't too upset at the dog ducking my prevous attempt by bow. Took one yrs before from the ground, 42 yards, with my Blackwidow. Would have been my first trad deer if that SOB hadn't spooked her (I shoot well when p*ssed).

 

[phylodog]

We had a couple come in pretty close last year but they remained on the other side of cover and we couldn't get a shot. My hunting partner did hit one but never found it so we're not sure if the hit was fatal. Had I had a rifle with me in the stand there'd be two less dogs on the property. I'd love to go out and take a few before season but it's a two hour drive and time is limited. What little time we do get out there is focused on patterning, cameras and the food plot. We made an attempt at trapping last year but didn't have much luck, we'll probably put some snares up when we head out there to stay.

It'd be nice to have an option to take a few that show up but don't offer a bow shot.

 

[yote hunter]

Early deer season and even before deer season don't take your bow just take your AR and hunt yotes, the rut ain't on yet so use the time to limit the yotes.. Plus it give you a reason to be out there, plus you can see what deer are in the area too.... Just food for thought..

 

[throttletony]

Get written permission from the landowner to kill them and you can go out there now before season and reduce the yote count.

agreed.
If it's PUBLIC land, then you have to wait for the furbearer season to start (Mid Oct), but it sounds like you're talking about private land. I'd take the coyotes out sooner rather than later, unless you really care about their pelts (winter is prime pelt season).
Coyotes, and a few other "nuisance" critters, can be take year-round on private land if they are a nuisance and w/ landowner's written permission. You can also use ANY weapon to take them as nuisance animals --- so go ahead and break out that 223, 243, 308, 30-06, etc. and put down a couple wild dogs.

 

[throttletony]

Also, a "precision" AR upper will likely not be necessary. I'm assuming most shots will be within 200 yds, more likely closer to 100. Any decent AR with some magnification should be capable. (3-9x or 4-12x, or 2.5-10x, etc would all be fine, even a 1-4x with steady hands would be great)

BUT... if it's a reason to get a new upper or a whole new AR setup, then go for it!!
(I love 18"-20" ARs for hunting) w/ hornady superformance varmint ammo if you can find any right now.


and one last thing, if you are a reloader, you could consider an AR10 rifle in .234, 7mm-08, or .308. That would be a very capable coyote gun, that could double as a great range gun, and hunting bigger game in other states.

 

[phylodog]

The upper will see other uses as well so it'll need to do a little better than most standard uppers are capable. I'd love nothing more that to head out in the evenings from now until season starts and hunt them but it takes almost two hours to get there so I can't swing it.

I've got a call in to a friend with the DNR to ask him. The angle I didn't think about is that we hunt as a team and film everything. Generally if my partner is hunting I've got a camera and no bow. I'm wondering, in this specific scenario if it would be an issue if I had an AR with me. I guess a CO could claim I was hunting deer if I'm in a tree stand with a rifle but it'd sure be nice to be able to have one out there.

 

[Willie]

We have a Conservation Officer on our site and he answers questions from the members..

I’m sure that he answered the bowhunter and gun question at one time. I went through 9 pages and found this so far..



http://hunt-indiana.com/thread/50034/rifle-turkey-hunting

http://hunt-indiana.com/thread/48689/hunt-deer-squirrel-same-time


If someone wants to dig deeper go to..


http://hunt-indiana.com/board/18/ask-conservation-officer

 

[phylodog]

I went through ILEA with 18 conservation officers but I've only kept in contact with one of them. I finally got ahold of him today to ask him about this. He told me the law used to specify that you could not be in possession of a weapon which was not legal for hunting deer while you were deer hunting. He said that the law had been changed but similar to what the CO said in the links above, if approached by a CO be prepared to explain what you're doing. It's basically going to come down to whether the CO believes you or not but it'll be difficult to prove you were hunting with an illegal weapon if you had not shot a deer.

I also asked about me having a rifle while filming my hunting partner, he didn't think that would be an issue at all and would be easily explained. I almost wish he hadn't said that because I promptly got online and spent over $1200 with BCM, Rainier Arms, B&H photo and Alan at A&A optics to put together another upper which I'm hopeful will be responsible for a dramatic reduction in the Fountain Co coyote population.

 

[sportsman223]

What part of Fountain Co?

 

[singlestacksig]

^ same as above.. what part of fountain county are you hunting ?

 

[JeremiahJohnson]

Well, it appears the question has been answered. Agree with the above posts by Willie and Phylodog.

My hunting buddy here at Crane invested in a take-down 10-22 to bring a squirrel sniper with him during early bow season. Add to that a can and you've got a nice go-bag packable quiet squirrel sniper at the ready while bow hunting deer. Pretty slick.

 

[phylodog]

We hunt just north of Veedersburg