Check Their Stomachs?

[uncle buck]

I know Hern does this from time to time...


However I remember once!!!Hunting in snow that accumulated so high that I had to park where the oil man delivers oil at the farm..I also had to walk the railroad tracks down so I could get deeper into the farm..I called right from the side of the railroad track...Snow must ave been drifted up 4 to 5 feet off the railroad tracks...   I scooted off the side of the tracks 5 feet and called..It was 12:00 noon.. Did not take long in came two red fox together.. I had a Rem 7600 pump 6MM with reduced FMJ loads.. I killed both...They were hungry for sure...Due to the conditions..
Had to crawl on my belly to retrieve them both too.. walked down the tracks and I started to THINK..What in the heck where they eating...I opened their stomach open...Nothing but green vegetation.  No wonder they were so hungry...They must have been eating moss or green bark off of branches.. No protein what so ever in their stomach.....So hence the reason they came in fast, at noon, in 5 feet of hard crusted snow to my calling.... Things were hungry!!!!!!!!


However what if you check a fox stomach and saw field mice...Wonder if that would be an indcation of what they would be feeding on?  you know just like a trout eating a certain hatch???Or is a mouse, a rabbit, and a shrew, all open game...Or do they go after a specific prey species??

or
Would this be something only a trapper should do?

[scott]

i have a really strong stomach, i have cut up many of deer to find out what they were eaten but for some reason i just cannot bring myself to cut open of fox or coyote stomach. 

[Hern]

UB, I think Canines have regular feeding grounds. Places where they know they can fill their belly. As the seasons change, methinks the feeding grounds change. And during extreme conditions, canines find food or die. It's tough out there and a caller can take advanage from time to time.
Remember the winter of '95-'96? Snow, snow and more SNOW! Roofs were caving in, folks were shovle'n roofs off.
I was still run'n a small trapline and call'n during these extreme conditions.
Here's an example how things are related...
-A farmer didn't get a small corn field in before the snow piled up, that season
-Muskrats gathered on this section of creek to eat this corn during harsh, deep snow conditions
-Fox migrated/concentrated to this creek bottom/corn field to catch feeding Muskrat
-Hern focused on this hot spot to kill many Fox
I saw in the snow....where the Muskrats tunnel (lots of tunnels) thru the snow to get to the corn. I saw where Fox sat and waited (like a cat) for Muskrat to come by, then pounce on them

At times, as fur killers, we wonder where did all the Coyotes go? Where the heck is the Fox? Other times it seems we are loaded with Fox! What the heck?
A bit of experience, scouting, time of year may reveal answers to the questions...'Why'...canines may have moved to different food source.
In season scouting will help one to keep up with the changes.