questions about trail cameras

[TomTeriffic]

Why do hunters even use them? What are some pros and cons of using them for hunting?

Are they even legal to use on public lands?

What is to stop somebody from stealing them or destroying them on purpose?

 

[Valley1320]

I use trail cams some, I wouldn't say I'm a heavy user. I like to just see the pics as much of anything. Other than I do have one on a dirt tank to see how often a lion comes by kinda. And end up getting some sweet bucks on camera as well that I love getting to see even tho I dont mule deer hunt that unit. I do hang some cameras in the areas I mule deer hunt mainly to help and see which areas it seems like the most mature bucks are in. So I can focus my time in those areas. But during the rut in our country the deer can move so far that I don't think it really helps me than

 

[Bowhuntrben]

From my whitetail hunting perspective. Note that I run limited cameras for the size area I hunt.

Pros of using them: Can give you an idea of some of the deer that are in the area and allow you to be more patient waiting for a particular deer. Can be exciting to see the big bucks. In certain cases, particularly early in the year, it can help you pattern a particular deer. It can be fun to have pictures of the same deer from year to year to see how it grows.

Cons of using them: Can leave you feeling like there's nothing around when you're not getting pictures when in reality it's easy for there to be a good buck there that just doesn't walk in front of the camera. Can cause you to pass up a buck you maybe shouldn't while you wait for something you got a picture of.

Legality depends on state and specific area.

Nothing can stop somebody from stealing them or destroying them if they really want to. A lot of folks hang them higher in the tree on public to make it less obvious.

I mostly have cameras because it's fun seeing the deer that go on our property. Pretty much all of the biggest bucks we've ever shot were deer that we never had a picture of.

 

[TomTeriffic]

I might only hang cameras on my private rural property if I owed such land. I would not want to take the economic risk of loss by hanging them on public lands even if lawful to do so. Man has hunted with guns for 100's of years without the aid of any electronic gadgets whatsoever. Most non-rural-land-owning folks who hunt probably don't own any trail cameras. Some do own GPS devices and binoculars and will scout out areas of interest pre-season and note locations by GPS waypoints.

 

[338BearHunter]

I might only hang cameras on my private rural property if I owed such land. I would not want to take the economic risk of loss by hanging them on public lands even if lawful to do so. Man has hunted with guns for 100's of years without the aid of any electronic gadgets whatsoever. Most non-rural-land-owning folks who hunt probably don't own any trail cameras. Some do own GPS devices and binoculars and will scout out areas of interest pre-season and note locations by GPS waypoints.

I do own such land, and I have cameras in strategic locations on this land 365 days per year. I have never once in 10 years of operating trail cameras had any human-caused theft or damage, and yes, I do get trespassers. I don't think I'd put trail cameras on public land either, unless I was running a bait site.

The common claim I hear is that a trail camera lasts about three years. As I am running nine, I should expect to replace about three per year, but I have not found this to be the case. I replace about one per year, if that. Unfortunately, they do experience annoying malfunctions. I have one whose internal clock is set to the U.S.S. Enterprise (I get time stamps of "Jan 18th, 2254"). Two others have crappy sound.

My avatar is from my trail camera. This is not the kill shot, but this is the bear I took in 2021.

I find trail cameras indispensable, especially when running bait. Right now, I've got one on a natural game trail to size up whether a treestand needs to go there.

 

[std7mag]

I don't run bait (illegal in my state) and i don't have private property to hunt.
ALL my hunting is State Game Lands, or State Forest or Park.

We are allowed to use trail cameras, but not drones.

The State Forest i typically hunt is over 250,000 acres. Abutted by another State Forest with almost the same acreage.

I cover large areas, and pick likely spots where deer, bear, elk may frequent, or walk past on their way to a good area.

I haven't had one messed with in the State Forests. (I have 8 cameras).
State Game Lands closer to town, yes.
I started putting bear cages on those ones.

The cameras let me patern not just animals, but how much human traffic goes through also.

Without the cameras, i wouldn't have known about the family of coyotes that went to a creek at 7:30am every morning.
6am one Saturday found me watching the creek.
Dispatched 3 of the 4.