Haydel’s Squirrel Calls
I had some trouble locating squirrels this past hunting season in my normal hunting spots so I was reading up on squirrel hunting techniques and ran across an article about some squirrel calls that were based on field research. Seems these ‘whistles’ really make the greys and foxes come out of the woodwork when used properly. The bark call with the little squeak whistle really sounds incredibly like a squirrel in peril. I’m going to make sure to keep these handy when hunting in the fall. Watch for my report / follow up on their use and success rate later on this hunting season!
The article and the story of the creator indicated that these calls were quite effective in bringing out the squirrels from their hiding places when none seemed to be in the general area. It sounds like a great strategy to get a squirrel going when things are slow in the woods.
Bark Call with chatter sound (as best as I could imitate).
Squeak call with falling off at the end (more difficult to imitate).
Whistle call – Alarm sound.
Another method of of calling squirrels, you may try the ‘kiss-of-death’ call too (mouth-hand call).
For those folks who have difficulty finding these calls, you can order online direct from a distributor.
So I’ll be trying these calls this fall when I’m out in the woods looking for squirrels and rabbits. We’ll of course try these during the annual bird hunt weekend too, checking the woods for the furry little guys in our favorite grouse spots too.
Good Luck!
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Equipment, game, Hunting, squirrels
Braided Dacron Jesses
It’s taken a bit of time to perfect the techniques, however I am pleased to say that my efforts have not gone unrewarded. After reading through some braiding tutorials and tying knots and untying knots for hours, I have a pretty good how-to on braiding dacron jesses. Check out the
new how-to in the “How-To: Equipment” section.
I chose 100 lb. test black dacron kite string and then applied a few knots and braiding styles to produce a single piece of equipment that is both strong and functional. The how-to that I put together is more of a set of high-level instructions for creating Jesses, rather than a complete step-by-step instruction manual for braiding and knot tying. I leave the details up to the experienced pros where applicable.
If you are interested in taking a look at a set of my dacron jesses, please leave me a comment and let me know.
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dacron, Equipment, jesses
Moulting Update for August
We are armpits deep into the dog-days of summer now, pulling to the middle of August. It’s been a warm season with lots of activity in the backyard garden for Tahoe. Her moulting process continues to be a delight to me as her colors continue to change and enhance her appearance. She is beautiful! Her new coat of fresh clean adult plumage is in perfect condition and she looks exceptionally darker than she did as an immature hawk. Her red tail really stands out and certainly the most noticeable feature of her adult plumage. Her red tail is mostly full, with a few feathers left to grow in to their full length. You can notice on the back feathers and the secondaries in the wing, the contrasting colors that her new feathers have against the old ones. I’m super excited for the onset of the fall hunting season to see what she has retained from last year, and to watch her continue to develop her hunting skills back on the wing for her favorite quarry.
-Good Moulting!
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feathers, intermewing, moult, summer
Moulting Update for July
Summer can be a quiet time for falconers with a moulting bird. For me, it’s a time to learn more about my Hunting Hawk and see how she does with a regular routine. The feathers are coming in quite nicely, I can’t wait until her tail is full summed. Her wings are going to be very dark and the front of her chest is already getting some colored streaks to it. She may or may not lose her belly band this year, but that remains to be seen. Some red-tails don’t lose it until the second season.
In the picture above, Tahoe has lost all of her immature tail feathers, and you can notice the difference in coloration between the newly grown feathers in the secondaries on the wing (they are darker). The red tail feathers continue to grow in. Keeping the mews clean has been quite a challenge, as it looks like someone went in there and had a pillow fight!
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feathers, moulting
Moulting Update for June
The Summer Solstice has arrived and its a good time to update on moulting progress for Tahoe’s adult plumage. Feathers continue to drop each day, mostly body feathers by now. Several of the deck feathers and primaries still remain, but I’m sure it’s soon to change. I’ve already started to see the adult red-tail feathers grow out beyond the body and contour feathers, it’s very exciting to see them already. As she loses more body feathers, the mottling of the immy-brown feathers and the adult-body feathers becomes more apparent. The adult feathers are two shades darker, almost black compared to the brown feathers. I’m super excited to watch her transform her colors. I’ve received many compliments on her plumage, with many companion falconers commenting that she would be a dark bird as an adult. At this stage in the game, it’s certainly appearing that way. Until next time!
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feathers, moult, summer
