Coyotes and foxes may respond to traditional predator calls, but bears require more powerful lungs. To prepare yourself, scouting for bear signs in your area is key.
Search for bears that shuffle their feet and circle, as these animals tend to be curious yet wary of humans. Additionally, identify areas where bears might visit and prepare to scare them away by shouting loudly or using an air horn to scare them off by using physical means or an air horn.
The Basics
Coyotes and other predators often respond quickly and readily to even simple calls, while bears require more prolonged, aggressive calling sequences. When using diaphragm or electronic predator calls it is crucial that they start immediately loudly until a bear comes within shooting range of you – you may need a break occasionally to catch your breath or reposition yourself, but do not allow too long of an interval between calls; bears have short attention spans and will quickly lose interest without continuous sounds being played back to them.
One key element of successful bear calling is playing the wind. While hunters often rely on scent-control clothing and products, one key strategy for playing the wind effectively is positioning yourself facing into it during your calling sequence – this will keep your scent far away from any bears that might approach, while making sure that any calls made are heard by them.
Attract bears with common distress sounds. Jackrabbit or bear cub distress sounds are likely to draw their attention; you could also imitate sow in heat sounds or an aggressive buck sound for maximum effect during Fall when sows may be traveling with their young cubs in search of food.
As soon as a bear approaches your calling site, they’ll show their curiosity by circling and sniffing around. Bears can quickly recognize that your calls represent bait or berry patches for them to explore; when they do so, their behavior changes drastically as soon as they realize this connection between its calls and what they’re finding at their feeding sites; as it circles more aggressively around its source – or you!! Depending on its presence near you setup area, ensure your gun is loaded and ready.
Finding Quality Calling Locations
While predator hunting can yield multiple animals on any given day, bear hunting requires patience and hard work. Conditions must be optimal; bear must be in an upbeat mood; you need to know how to use your calling setup; using calling skills to lure a hairy bear within earshot is one of the most thrilling hunting experiences out there!
Bear hunting requires using similar basic predator calls that you might use on coyotes and foxes, though you will need to use louder calls than those used for coyotes and foxes and do it nonstop as bears seem to have short attention spans and soon lose interest when the noise stops; playing wind games as well as using scent control clothing and products is therefore crucial in order to reach successful bear hunting results.
Find a location where bears cannot easily approach while calling, such as on a cliff or another topographical shield, to increase your odds of success and reduce any chances of being mauled by one. Ultimately, what you don’t want is for one to come barreling towards your calling setup looking for food only to become mauled itself!
Bears can often hang their heads and sniff the ground when approaching potential meals, so it should come as no surprise if they stop coming around at some point. In such an instance, if necessary, simply scare them away as this may bring back another opportunity later.
At its best, calling a bear during the fall can be the key to filling your bear tag. Spotting its hunger signals and using an easy infringement call are all it takes for one to wander up towards you looking for free lunch – it can make even veteran predator hunters feel like kids again! Just ensure to wear sturdy boots, carry an ammo-rich rifle or bow along and be prepared for some rough play when calling bears!
The Sound
Calling bears can be the heart-racing highlight of any predator call hunt, offering one of the greatest rushes ever experienced by predator hunters. While baiting, hound hunting and spot-and-stalk techniques all bring thrills, nothing compares with watching one come charging toward your setup with its nose sniffing up at you and turning its attention toward you as potential meals! Calling in bears requires patience and skill but when conditions allow nothing can compare to seeing it approach and turn its gaze towards you with anticipation for potential sustenance!
To attract bears, it’s best to create calls that sound similar to what they would make naturally. Moaning sounds such as sow in heat or cubs fighting will pique their interest; other suitable sounds include distress calls from fawns and motor-like purring; even the “infringement sound” can help draw them in! All of these sounds can be combined as part of a sequence to draw out bears.
Place your call near food sources that attract bears. Black bears tend to feed on acorns, berries and fish; thus if a deer feeder attracts bears then placing your calls near it may increase success rates further.
Bears tend to respond more consistently than more wary wildlife such as coyotes or foxes when you call out to them even after you have moved beyond bow or rifle range, and to maintain this response it’s essential not to pause your calls for long periods. If a pause does occur it’s crucial that the intensity of your calls continues as bears can quickly lose interest if they don’t hear an exciting sound soon enough.
As with other predator calls, calling bears shouldn’t stop you from trying. Just as in any hunt, however, effective bear calls will only work if you commit fully and remain in one spot until they get an effective shot at you.
The Duration
Bears have short attention spans and quickly lose interest when your call stops, so try to maintain it for as long as possible, only stopping briefly for breathers or quick rest breaks. A diaphragm can help ensure a steady call even for extended periods.
If a bear responds to your calls, be ready for its actions. A bear might use its body language to appear bigger by puffing out ears and cheeks or bounding forward on front paws in an effort to intimidate you, usually as an attempt to escape or prey upon you; but there’s always the possibility that they won’t retreat after receiving warning; in such an instance it’s wiser to slowly back away while avoiding eye contact and waving arms to show that they are human beings.
When charging more aggressively, bears use their ears and hackles as well as growling or barking noises to show aggression. If a bear charges you, do not run as this will only provoke it further; rather stand your ground and vocalize to remind the animal that you are human; most times a charging bear won’t attack unless threatened by you or its cubs.
As fall progresses, black bears begin their search to put on weight before winter denning season begins. Placing yourself within earshot of a bear feeding site is one of the keys to filling a bear tag successfully; be alert and watch for signs that a bear is nearby – like sniffing or walking over your bait pile – before entering residential areas where bears may have been called out by law enforcement agencies such as LART to immobilize them to prevent chased into traffic or crowds of people by hunters chasing chased into traffic or into crowds of people by chased hunters; it would also be wise to bring along another hunting partner as part of this process if necessary – maybe to assist in immobilization processes if necessary.