I Shot Predators with Tracers!

Raccoons, also known as "trash pandas", are big time predators of the woods. They will eat absolutely anything in their path, and are are detrimental to upland game & turkey populations. It is impossible to completely terminate the raccoon population off of a property, but it is important to keep their population in check. We have caught over fifteen raccoons all at once just on one trail cam, which is absolutely insane. These guys might look cute and cuddly but they eat hundreds of turkey, quail, and pheasant eggs, which can be devastating to a population. 

My family and I really enjoy predator hunting. Mainly because we know it is one factor that plays into a healthy turkey population at our home farm. The best conditions to hunt these critters is during a warm fall or winter night. They are nocturnal so the best time to catch them is while they are rummaging around for food. Typically we find them along the edges of our corn fields, since corn is an easy food source for them. It is illegal to shine from a vehicle, so we typically park the truck at the opening of our fields and start walking the fields shining our lights midway up the trees. When the light hits their eyes it is game on. It can be hard to find a raccoon after first spotting them, so it is important to shine the light on them until ready to shoot. 

On our latest episode we brought along the .22, air gun, and my bow! For anyone wondering, I only lost one arrow and that is because it got stuck in the tree. Nocturnals make it easy to find my arrows in the dark.