Predator Hunting

Please post some tips to hunting small predators, such as jackal.

I have been trying to hunt jackal on my farm, but they have become very smart over the years. I have been thinking of useing calls and/or decoys, but i dont know which ones to use. Please let me know what you have used or are using.

I Also have bought some trail cameras to take pictures of the leopards on my farm, but i have not gotten any usable footage. Let me know what kind of cameras you use.

Thanks,

Oli

Oliver.................I have shot a few jackals but have never tried calling them. I have called a lot of coyotes, foxes and cats at home though and I have been told that the same mouth blown calls and electronic calls that are used for coyote will work on jackals.

Here is a place where you can find what you are looking for when it comes to game calls for Jackals, Foxpro (click here) offers a few predator sounds specifically for Africa, including Jackals and by all means you should try a variety of other sounds to see what works best such as Cottontail Distress, Young Rabbit, Partridge Distress, Game Bird Chick Distress, Guinea Fowl Distress, Chicken Distress and there is more to choose from. Good luck trying some calls, the problem you are describing is what I call super Jackals. You have obviously removed the dumb and slow ones from the breeding pool and are left with super Jackals to have fun with.

Here is what we use for trail cams, Cuddeback (click here), they work well and are reliable. And I got them in South Africa. I have posted numerous pictures of Leopards on bait taken with it in the photo gallery here on AfricaHunting, you can see them by clicking here. This trail cam is already a couple of years old, I am certain that they have even better stuff right now. They have a video trail cam that the quality of the video is great. Have you baited your Leopards? I wonder if your issue revolves around the placement / positioning of your trail cam or the trail can itself?

Thank you very much for your helpful information. I will try it out when i am back in SA.

@ Ozondjahe. I did bait the leopards, and i had 3 hits within one night which to me seems alot on a 2000ha farm. That is why i would like to take pictures of them so that i can see their size. We have shot one leopard a coiple of years back and it was a hudge leopard. Where in south africa did u buy the cameras? Thanks for your help

Oliver, the Cuddeback mentioned by Jerome is a good unit. There are a number of others as well that do a good job. I have used several different models at bait sites for black bear, as many bears do not come in until after dark and the end of legal shooting light.

With bears another important item in selecting a trail cam is the availability of a cage to protect the unit. Bears will demolish them if they notice the cameras presence. Needless to say I have no experience using them with leopard. Jerome have you had any problems with the wildlife trashing your cameras?

Kelly, not so far. We usually do not leave the cameras in the bush for extended period of time and we place them well off the ground for most animals to have access to them. Baboons love to trash and destroy things, but so far I guess we just got lucky...

Really like the trail cam pics in the photo gallery of the Leopards, it's like looking into their secret world.

I have used trail cams with a lot of success over the years. You will get the best results from a cuddeback if you put it about 3 meters or 10 ft away from your bait.If it's to close the infra red will reflect and the photo will be white. The most important thing is to make sure that it's properly lined-up. Let it face to the area were the leopard will be when it's feeding. Test it to make sure it's lined-up good before you leave. Baboons will not come to a bait tree , because if you have baited there for a while the leopard smell will keep them away from the tree.You can make short video clips with a Cudde Back. It will depend on the size of your memory card.
I have shot a lot of Black-backed Jackals with a Fox Pro caller. I use a combination of 4 calls, but I shot 90% of them with the Cottontail call.I have heard the some people had a lot of success with a small pig call. You just need to play around at see what work in your area.
Archery Africa use to be the Cudde Back agents in South Africa.
Good luck
Andries

Thanks a lot for your input Andries. I will look into it

Oliver, when you return from your next trip be sure to show us some of those trail cam pictures if you are successful. Show us some of those other animals that it captures on film, or maybe Andries can... I really find these pics interesting.

Hi Olivier,

I have hunted many jakals in SA during day or night. I have used whistle's and cd's that play a distressed rabbit or small buck works very well..

Yes jakals become clever fast and i have even seen jakals setting off traps with their paws, i also know u will never catch a jakal in a cage like a cat unless u very lucky and the jakal is starving.

My best info 4 u is use a whistle backwards and suck in not out ... use cd's they work well. keep notes on where they are most often and go sit just before night break late afternoon they will come out and to call before going back in their holes. good luck

slowrafire@hotmail.com

Welcome owenowen!
Can you describe or post a picture of the kind of a whistle that you are using for your Jackal calls. Thanks,

HI,

We use one very similar to this.

http://www.africahunting.com/images/...06rabbit-t.JPG

Instead of blowing into it turn it around and suck wind in to your lungs. Try use your hands in a cup shape and move them to change the sounds.

What store do u buy it from in SA, or do u order it form UK or States?

Howzit,

We bought the caller and cd's at a hunting shop near us in Kimberley call Saucers.... You will fing this call in most hunting stores its a simple one but works wonders if u use it correctly. If u just blow it you will call maybe the cows in or nothing at all ... i have seen that too hahaha

Thanks for the advice... I will look into it when im down in SA the next time

its my pleasure , good luck

Thanks for the info on the whistle... Jackal population control is a lot of fun! I can't wait to try it. I think Oliver feels the same way I do...

Yes , we only control them because since we stoped farming with sheep and goats we turned our farm into a game farm and bought new lands, this has forced the jackals to prey on our smaller game like springbuck.....which were not doing very well and we did not expect the jackal to do this but we were wrong. We only control them as we do with all wildlife its important. Our springbuck are doing well now i think they are about 120 now... We are still having problems with our mountain reedbuck its a lovely buck but their numbers dont want to increase. I have seen jackals in the hills so it could be them, we have caught and shot some caracal but what is strange we even lost 7 full grown barbary sheep, one of our workers told us he saw a leopard on the farm but we not sure if he was smoking something hahahhaha

We usually also use whistles like mentioned by Owen. Other ways is with old fashion bait. What we do is take insides of a warthog and drag it along roads in an area where jackal is active and then drop it in a field where you sit and wait they pick up the smell quickly. Good camo or dark clothing is essential. nite vision telescopes will also help instead of switching your spotlight on every now and then. Guns with silencers will also help to increase your chances on shooting more than one.

Hope it helps you.