I’ll never forget the year we started trapping coons and how well we were doing until a cold front hit. I was expecting everything to get better with the colder weather, lol to my surprise our catches came to a halt. I later learned that they den up when the cold hits…I was just interested to hear and learn about other patterns you guys have learned to predict based on weather or moon conditions.

Where I trap the otters move when it snows. They hold up in a pond for sometimes weeks and soon as it snows they make a move. Very consistent behavior

I was surprised at the increase in my coyote catch after a rain...sloppy but good.
Loutre you probably already know this but coon will still move in the cold but not very far usually.
See if you can locate the den trees where they live and you can still keep catching...some.

I am with MC coyotes move good after a rain here. After a couple years of mental notes I noticed more sign and I have had increased catch rate around late May on coyotes.I think the reason why is that time of the year here the coyotes are in the pup rearing stage and they have to get out more to catch game for the den.I have caught Big males as well as Wet Females during this time.

That’s interesting to see your coons den up in Arkansas.

Warm nights equal possums and a few coons.

Cooler nights equals everything.

Colder than normal with wind and its bobcats only…cameras confirm.

The first uptick in temps and it’s everything again.

After rains, it’s everything. It almost like your larger predators want to get out and check their territory.

Cool Springs and even early Summer everything is out and about. Don’t know whether it’s the weather or the fact of young about to be born or young in the dens.

I’m normally trapping right now, but after a bad experience with footholds I’m going to stick to thermal hunting June - August with maybe a few DP’s here and there.

Right now pups are out exploring and easily trapped and called. It’s just finding areas where you can see in regards to calling. September will be Prime Time to get sets in the deck for management purposes as far as next fawning and nesting season.

In the north predators hunt hard during snowstorms.If you go for a ride in a vehicle or skidoo at night during a blizzard you will see eyes shining all over the place,lynx fox wolves as well as smaller animals like marten and fisher out hunting right during the storm.They know it is easier to get close and catch prey at these times.
A good time for hunting for us too.Easy to walk on snowshoes right up to moose yarded up during a raging snowstorm.
Snares and traps will be full when it has been stormy.
The first cold weather in late fall really gets the animals moving.Extreme cold will make them hole up with a bone.
Beaver during open water move and refresh territorial castor mounds after a rain-have your traps ready.They also are much more active raising their dams after a good rain.
late October is the time to scout for beaver to trap in winter.
They will stay put by then and you can guage the numbers by the mudding activity on the house and dam and the size and how quickly the feed bed goes in.

I have noticed there are more people in WalMart buying goods just prior to a storm. More traffic, activity etc. but is it the media forecast or is it barometric sensitivity? After all, aren't we all creatures of the weather somewhat? My catch reflects the WalMart syndrome for both land and water. I will say I get more coyote interest in my sets at the first warm spell AFTER a storm front (rain or snow) has gone through. 2-3-4-10 days whatever but its not just coons showing me activity increases in better weather, coyotes are equal to or more for me here. Coyote harvesting is either Feast or Famine in ag country as prey availability is not an issue. Its the calories expended to garner that prey. My experience. ..................the mike

Intense snow, cold or flooding and my mink sets have an uptick in catches.

I have noticed that my catch usually goes up 2 days prior to front coming through. I remember one season I had 67 coon and other misc. fur one day, and that night the temperature really dropped and had about an inch of snow. That day I ran the line and only had 3 coon.

I also feel that during breeding season on coon, the weather don't seem to matter. They will be moving!

The animals will do what they are engrained to do based on weather changes. I have to plan and manage my line based on weather which may not be matching the animals the best. We have several smaller rivers and streams that are what we call flashy. If heavy rains are coming they can go up a couple feet and it may be days before one can check or set again and then they drop a lot each day too. If water is open yet I will keep my sloughs and small marshes set as they don't raise or fall as much or as fast. Dry land with big weather coming I will reset closer to the roads so I can walk in or observe. I will have some type of spot ID for my traps so that when we get several inches of snow I can find them. Things really look different when snow covered. Probably costs some catches but I don't have animals or gear out that I can't get to. I have experienced all of the above and paid the price for not planning better.

Brycer

A pattern that I have noticed over the years on the winter line is that shortly after I get a long line out, it warms up and we get a heavy rain followed by a lock down freeze. My uncle works the township and usually asks when I plan to hit it hard so he can get the plow trucks ready and loaded with cinders.

I’m thinking that if the beaver wait until the last minute to build their feed bed, it’s going to be a warm crappy winter. Will find out this fall. Some are predicting a long cool winter with more snow in my area. This last winter was one of the crappiest weather wise. Warm, rain in December. I only broke out the skidoo in January, I used the quad until then but it sucks with a quad. Can only cover about half the line and it’s way rougher. Need snow and the ground to freeze.

I've noticed in my area when snow and cold hit, mink and otter move quite a bit. Otter more so. I also see fox tracks quite frequently walking on the creeks/rivers if they're frozen.

Coon movement slows down if the temp hits around 30-35° F and then they practically disappear if the temp dips into the 20s.

One thing I've observed trapping a creek area I frequent is if the water rises quite a bit, all the animal movement shuts down near the creek banks. My traps would sit for days and not be touched. Movement would only pick up after the a few days when the creek levels have dropped back to mostly normal.

Seems like every time I think I've finally figgered out an animals pattern, it changes.

2 things seem to stay consistent though.
Bear move WAY better when it's really Hot and although most (I did for years) think the next 2 days after a major blizzard with super cold temps will get the coyotes/ Fox up and moving are wrong. usually SUCK for coyote/ fox movement.
Many years I went out hunting them after those events.

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The most incredible lighting storm Ive ever witnessed sure taught me a lesson. It was hot, 95* August, I was a kid. My dad was pig hunting and us kids were along for the ride. We were hanging out in the truck while my dad took a walk down the trail. It's thick brush with some openings between. The storm rolled in and about a half hour later my dad came running to the truck. It was the middle of the day, yet dark as it would be hour after sunset. The lightning was everywhere, and I mean for a fifty mile radius I could see it crawling through the clouds and coming down all around us. We hadn't made it 200 yards down the road and the bushes I had been next to for the last 3 hours had three enormous bucks standing in the open about 15 yards from the bushes. The kind of bucks you'll never see during deer season.

If significant rain is forecast, enough to raise the creek 5"-6", I'll set as many 110s in every undercut bank I can. When the water floods the undercuts, the muskrats flood the traps. You can do fairly well on mink in that situation too.

Well if that’s true than we’re in for it.

I’ve never seen this much beaver activity this early.

They were cutting last week of July like it was last week of September!