An apex predator, wolves are a valuable component of a healthy ecosystem.
Wherever they’re found, weed out the old and the sick and keep the population in order. Wolves — which in the broadest sense include coyotes, gray or timber wolves, brush, Algonquin, and many other permutations in Eurasia and elsewhere — are, in some respects, all the same. For one, all are canids. And all wild canids are ravenous predators with a diet of mostly meat. The wolf evolved as a successful predator of big game by becoming a lean, mean, fighting machine. They don’t put on fat – they’re always hungry. They are recognized as being intelligent, agile, and fleet of foot. Wolves are like a population of professional athletes.
Catching food, however, that can run away and often fights back is very hard work. To survive, wolves can and will scavenge. Food that can’t be eaten all at once is food to be eaten next; food that’s found is bonus. The hunger that keeps wolves alive is also the wolf’s Achilles heel. Hunger can make wolf the hunter become wolf the hunted.
Baiting works
Given their propensity to scavenge, it’s no surprise that baiting is one of the best and most efficient ways to hunt a wolf. This tactic can work at any time of year. In summer and autumn, wolves supplement their diet with vegetation like berries and gut piles from roadkill and hunter harvest.
Baiting still works, but during warm spells, bait has a short shelf life.
Conversely, a bait site in winter can be effective for weeks with minimal refreshing. In winter, it’s easier to have a set-up where you can watch the bait at a distance that lowers the risks of being detected by wolves and still provides good, clear shooting opportunities.
Unless you plan to hunt the site immediately, a bait station needs to offer enough incentive for wolves to re-visit the site. Too much easily obtained bait, though, can be counter-productive. Make it so the wolves have to gnaw, dig, and scratch for their reward.
Best baits
The best baits are parts and pieces of animals like deer and moose. Roadkill and fur-bearing mammal carcasses, especially beaver, are also top-notch baits. Possession and use of carcasses for wolf baiting that come from sources other than your legal harvests, including roadkill and fur-bearers from trappers, may require notifying MNR and/or obtaining a free-of-charge Notice of Possession.
Check with the local MNR office for details.
How to set up
My late friend Gary Gehrman often used his spring and autumn bear bait stations to bait wolves in late fall and winter. He would put meat chunks, scraps, and bones in secured barrels with heavy-gauge wire mesh on the open end.
Most wolf hunters secure the bait. Barrels, as mentioned, can work. On icy water, cut a number of wedges large enough to freeze chunks of carcass, hides, and large bones. Puncture through to water; pack and freeze the bait in with slush.
Scatter some extra bait around the site. Bits and pieces of blood, flesh and bone will saturate the spot with scent and attract ravens, eagles and other scavengers. The squawking of birds will alert any nearby wolves that’s something’s up.
Pre-existing stands or blinds for deer, moose, or bear are suitable for wolf hunting. If you don’t have one, you’ll need to improvise.
A hunt can be done as soon as the bait is out, but waiting and — if necessary re-baiting — is also an option. If you use trail cams, photos can provide useful information such as the number of wolves visiting the site, the timing of their visits, and more.
I’ve found that wolves have tended to visit my bait every seven to 10 days. Studies have shown wolves make regular patrols of their home range, often encompassing many miles.
If a bait station has been used before, the wolves will know about it and will be on high alert on their approach. But a new bait pile the wolves don’t know about will have the same result. Ensure a new hunting blind blends in. Wolves have excellent eyesight and will easily spot anything out of place.
When and what
The most likely times wolves visit bait is dawn and dusk. It’s the way of the forest. However, they can show up at any time. Wolves travel in packs of various sizes, but there are also many lone wolves.
Wolves, including coyotes, are commonly seen in pairs. If it is a pack that comes to the bait, it’s highly unlikely they will all show up at once.
A technique used by generations of wolf hunters is to freeze carcass parts into ice-covered waters and wait for wolves to cross the ice.
The only pure white wolf I’ve ever documented in Ontario was on my trail cam.
Originally published in the Nov.-Dec. 2023 issue of Ontario OUT of DOORS
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