Monday, January 17, 2011

Winter Predators at Falster Farm – Part 2


Snow at Falster Farm is a beautiful event for more than just the obvious change in our panoramic view of God's charming creation. The snow makes visible the sign of what creature(s) are using the pastures other than our cattle. Those animals that are too lightweight to leave their tracks are suddenly clear in the snow to any that look to see their lanes (trace) and passage points over, through or under the fence.

Over the fence goes the deer; through the fence go the rabbits, coons, opossum, ring tails and feral cats; while under goes the armadillo, skunks and wild hogs. Much of this activity goes on at night so one rarely sees anything but sign.


Sign can be actual foot print(s); bits of hair on a barb of barbed wire fence; dug out dirt; fence pushed up or even pushed opened; dug burrows, roots rubbed raw: all from traffic that is frequent or intermittent. The snow hides all but the foot prints – if you knew where the lanes of passage were (approximately) then the actual axis of travel on that path will be clarified.
If shooting a varmint is not possible or practical, trapping by steel trap, live trap, or snare are the means I, and only God knows how many men before me, have used to solve the predator problem over the years. The reason for this plethora of choice is that each animal has its travel character, each kill it makes is in a site-specific environment, with the hallmark of the good hunter being adept at seeing into the setup and designing a means to make the kill.

Above is the East Pasture "Goat Yard" while at right is the "Goat Gate" which is the possible means of entry by varmints into the barn hall which houses the winter roost of the egg layers. Until the snow pointed out the pathway of the coons and opossums, it was not clear about their travel. The next photo shows the tracks in the snow, which I followed about 1/3 mile crossing the east pasture to this gate. An opossum with large clawed feet was working the chicken yard and hoping to find a way in to grab a chicken and (while still alive) start ripping and eating out her guts from the rear end. The opossum eats only the guts and lungs, that's his death sign.

So, next I made a 'catch plan' based on the evidence. Even though the snow indicates the varmint went through the gate, and there is a rub on the top of the hinge, I'm not convinced he goes over the hinge or under it, so I will set up a snare on the top of the lower hinge and a live trap on the pathway at an obvious narrow passage – there under the leaning cover.

As an enticement to enter the live trap, I put an egg that was cracked by a clumsy rooster. So, if I miss him in the snare, I have a backup plan with the Live Trap.

If this turns out to be a skunk, he is more apt to take the egg than go after a chicken on the roost . I have my set up in place and can come back in the morning and see if the bandit shows up tonight.

Next morning I find the barn yard raider in the live trap, needing to be dispatched as humanly as possible. You might ask why not move him to some distant neighborhood? That is not good stewardship on my part or respect for another's property. I respect this opossum and his nightly hunting my property and surrounds. It is out of respect for him and his challenge to me and mine that I give him an honorable death.



Fin – Deo Soli Gloria