Night hunting continues to see its popularity grow
With plenty of options for all types of hunters, thermal night vision equipment is providing hunters with a new option.
Ohio continues to be living quarters to thousands of predators like coyotes and foxes that tend to prey on smaller farm animals and domesticated animals like dogs and cats, making them a menace to farmers and pet owners.
Because of the frequency of attacks and abundance of coyotes in particular, which are prone to hunt in small packs, night hunting for these predators has become a more popular hunting sport.
The challenges of night hunting vary greatly from a daytime hunt, and that alone has prompted many hunters to try their skills at night hunting.
One popular option when it comes to hunting at night is the use of a thermal scope that illuminates a predatory animal through its body heat.
Duane Mast of J&L Sports in Berlin said night hunting is a growing sport among hunters because of the challenges it presents.
He said thermal hunting for coyotes in the local counties continues to be pursued because of the growing population of coyotes.
Thermal hunting is among the most highly anticipated forms of night hunting, and because it presents a heat signature rather than sighting through a rifle scope, the animals are much easier to spot at night.
Mast said they carry monoculars, binoculars and scopes in the thermal equipment realm, along with range finders. He said some of the thermal equipment comes equipped with range finders.
He said from beginner to expert, there are three different levels of thermal equipment that dictate the clarity and distance to which it is useful.
“People might be surprised with the clarity of some of the higher end equipment,” Mast said. “You get what you pay for, but I will say that the lower end product is getting better.”
While hunting for many types of animals in this area has been a popular hobby for many hunters over the decades, this fairly new option of hunting predatory animals at night continues to gain popularity.
Mast said rather than hunting the animals, it is best to draw the predators to the hunt, meaning an animal call or deer carcass bait.
“Calling is the most effective way, and there is an art to that,” Mast said. “It’s all part of the challenge of night hunting that hunters need to learn and grow into.”
Like any hunt, thermal hunting takes time and practice and plenty of patience to perfect, but Mast said the learning curve is a fun part of the process.
For those seeking to make a lesser but equally impressive investment into night hunting, Night Eyes provides a solid entry into the night hunting realm.
Night Eyes is the invention of Joe Zaffuto, who created the LED predator hunting lights products that utilize a red light in tandem with both a headlamp and a rifle.
The idea behind Night Eyes is the implementation of a red light that allows hunters to first spot the eyes of a coyote or fox, lure it through a call such as a rabbit or another coyote, and then make the kill.
“This is not night vision hunting,” Zaffuto said. “You can turn any rifle into a night hunting weapon in 15 seconds. You don’t have to buy anything special. Just take your deer gun, hook this system up, and you’re ready to shoot coyotes and foxes. This makes it very simple.”
Zaffuto said he designed this system in 2012 because he felt there was a glaring need for a more successful system in the industry.
The headlamp and gun light are lightweight and easy to pack, carry and assemble quickly, making this night hunting excursion fairly inexpensive and compact.
Zaffuto said predatory night hunting is an activity that is on the rise, not only because hunters enjoy the challenges that accompany the hunt, but also because fox and coyote kills among domesticated animals are becoming common in Ohio and surrounding states.
In utilizing the two components of Night Eyes, the red light of the head lamp is set at 30%, and the hunter lures a coyote in with a small animal or coyote call. The coyote isn’t concerned about the dim light and begins to creep closer to what it believes is another animal.
Zaffuto said the red light illuminates everything in front of the light while camouflaging everything behind it in a sea of darkness.
He said this process is needed when hunting in a wide-open field with no concealment or blind.
“Everything immediately behind the light is bathed in total darkness, so the animal doesn’t see anything behind the light,” Zaffuto said. “My face is 2 inches behind it, and the coyote can’t even see that. The light is your concealment. As long as the light is fixated on the eyes of the approaching animal, you are invisible. I could stand behind you doing jumping jacks and the predator wouldn’t see me.”
The next step is to take the rifle gun light and turn it on the animal, this one at 100%. Zaffuto said the approaching animal becomes conditioned to the low glow of the head lamp, and the gun light at 100% doesn’t scare off the animal because of that.
Now with the coyote bathed in light, a hunter can easily identify exactly what animal is approaching.
“Oftentimes with thermal hunting, all hunters see is the glow of the eyes and a heat signature, and you can’t tell if it’s a coyote or a dog or some other animal,” Zaffuto said. “With this system there is no doubt.”
One key to the process is keeping the red light’s diffused beam on the animal at all times until the rifle light can be placed on the animal. One glance away or looking down at your rifle will allow the animal to see behind the light.
Both units can be operated courtesy of a remote control through Bluetooth technology, making it easier to operate without losing sight of the predator.
He said the system is not for use for deer hunting, but for predatory hunting only.
Both J&L Sports Center and Night Eyes can be found online.