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(Posted for May-June 2010)
HOOK STICK
by Hal Sullivan
(This article was first published in The
Trapper and Predator Caller, February 1994)
 The water swirled
brown and muddy, three feet above its normal level. Somewhere underneath was
my trap, and I wanted it back. I had donned my chest waders to navigate this
water, but even with shoulder gauntlets, I couldn't reach the traps. But
this wasn't a big problem because I had my hook stick. I fished around,
caught the chain with the hook and pulled up the trap.
My hook stick is
a round wooden pole about four feet long and one inch in diameter with a
metal hook attached to one end. As described above, I use it to fetch traps
out of deep water, but it also has many other uses on the line. In fact,
this hook stick is so versatile, that it is my constant companion when I am
running a water line.
First of all, my hook stick provides me with a wading staff and walking
stick as I run my traps. I use the stick to probe the water ahead of me
checking for depth and unseen objects. In the event I do lose my balance or
encounter treacherous footing, the staff gives me extra support.
On land, I use it
to help keep my balance, just as in the water, but more often I use it to
move things out of my way. I can use the stick to deflect and push aside
small limbs and branches that might be in my path. If I encounter a tangle
of briars, I can often beat a path through them by swinging my stick like a
club to snap off and break over the briars. I can also avoid a lot of burrs
and other sticky objects by beating the weeds down with my stick.
One of the very
best uses I get from my hook stick is in helping me get up and down steep,
slippery banks. The hook stick has on occasion saved me from a dunking. If I
can't get my footing on a slippery bank, usually I can stab the stick into
the mud below my foot to give me a grip. This is a good thing to remember as
you are sliding down the bank. Other times, I will drive the stick firmly
into the bank to give me a standing place while I make a set.
But most of the
time when I am negotiating a steep bank, I rely on the hook end of the stick
for an anchor point. By throwing the hook over a limb, root, or small tree,
I can go hand-over-hand the length of stick to lower myself down, or pull
myself up as the case may be. I can get in and out of some really nasty
places this way, even though I may have stop and rehook four or five times
on the bank. The hook is especially handy on those short but steep banks
where you can slide in but can't get back up. With the four-foot stick, and
three more for my extended arm, I can grab something seven feet away and
boost myself up.
The hook stick
works in other ways as an extension of my arm. I often use it to reach out
and get a stick out in the water or up on the bank, that I might want for a
guide or a tangle stake. Sometimes, I leave my packbasket on the bank and
then need something out of it. If I can hook the strap, I can lift the
packbasket down to me without leaving the water. The stick is also really
handy in the back of my truck. I have a cap on the bed, and the only access
is at the tailgate. I use the hook stick to pull things to the rear so I can
reach them without climbing into the truck.
Fast Forward - Today, I won't buy a truck cap unless it has side windows
that open too.
By now you may
have figured out that my hook stick gets a lot of use and abuse. It does,
but I have been using the same one for four seasons now. The first hook
sticks I made were no more that a broom handle and a bent piece of wire. The
one I use today is not greatly different by description, but it is certainly
more substantially constructed than the early models.
Consider the
handle. My first models were made literally from broom handles. These are a
little shorter than four feet, but the fault was not in their length. Broom
handles are not made to be particularly strong. I snapped a number of them
in two slapping at branches that were no bigger than my thumb.
Have you ever
noticed that most broom handles are painted? Part of the reason for this is
to hide obvious cross grains. When I decided to make a good hook stick, I
went to the lumber yard. I looked through their selection of unfinished
round handles and choose the ones that showed the straightest and strongest
grain. And the fact that these handles were six inches longer than a
standard broom handle did not displease be a bit. These handles were tapered
in a cone shape on one end and this proved to be an advantage in slightly
increasing the gap when the hook was placed in this end.
My first hook
sticks were made with eight or nine gauge wire. I drilled sideways through
the handle and ran a length of wire through the hole. One end I would twist
around the stick and the other end I would bend into a hook. On later
models, I drilled an angled hole from end of the stick and out one side.
This centered my hook on the end of the handle.
But even this
large size wire does not make a good hook. When I pulled hard, for example
in retrieving a staked down trap, the wire would straighten out. I was
constantly bending the hook back in shape, and during this time I was very
hesitant to use my stick to pull myself out of the creek for fear the wire
would choose an inopportune moment to give up.
Finally, I
decided to make the hook out of 1/4-inch diameter steel rod. Sometimes this
can be found around junkyards, but I went to a machine shop and bought brand
new rod for something like 30 cents a foot. Bending this rod with your
fingers is out of the question. I clamped it in the vice and bent it into
shape with a hammer.
My hook is not a
simple U shape. I make it in the shape of a question mark. This centers the
curve of the hook directly over the axis of the handle and not off to one
side. This makes the stick balance better, especially when you are holding
it by the hook end. It also makes the hook pull in an exact straight line
with the handle.
I also knew if I
was going to use this larger material, I would have to come up with a better
way of fastening it to the stick. The only alternative was to drill a 1/4
inch hole directly in the end of the handle. But this presented two
problems. First was how to fasten the hook in place to keep in from pulling
out of the hole. Being in and out of the water would cause the wood to swell
and shrink loosening the hook. The other problem would be to keep the hook
from breaking out the side of the stick with the hole drilled up the middle.
I started by
drilling the 1/4 inch hole straight into the end of the handle and driving
the shank of the hook into it. Then I used a smaller, 5/64 inch bit and
moving back from the end of the stick, I drilled sideways trough the handle,
through the hook, and out the other side. A pin inserted through this hole
would hold the hook, but there is more to come.
To keep the stick
from splitting out on the end, I reinforced it with a wrapping of 14 gauge
wire. To start the wrap, I inserted the end of the wire through the small
hole I had drilled so the wire also acted as the pin for the hook. I let
about 3/8 inch of the wire stick out the other side of the handle, and this
I bent flat against the stick. To do the wrapping, I clamped the hook in a
vise.
The first wrap,
went around the stick and across the down-turned end of the wire. This
fastened the wire in place. I continued wrapping in a spiral away from the
hook. I laid each wrap tightly against the preceding one, and to keep them
tight I kept twisting the coils with a pair of pliers. I took about ten
wraps. At the last wrap, I again drilled a small hole, but this time, I did
not drill through the metal.
I drilled a
shallow hole through the edge of the stick in the same direction I was
wrapping the wire. I pulled the free end of the wire through the hole as I
twisted the coils tight. When everything was snug, I bent the end of the
wire sharply where it came out of the hole. This held the wire temporarily,
I clipped off all but 3/4 of an inch. I bent a crook in the very end of the
wire, and used a hammer to drive the wire down into the wood like a
one-legged staple. This held the coils tight.
 |
Here's a finished hook stick. Note how the top
wrap overlaps the wire to hold it in place. On the final wrap, a shallow
hole is drilled through the wood, the wire fed through it, then it is
pounded into the wood on the other side. |
Yes, it takes a
little extra time to make a good hook stick, but no more than it does to
make, and remake, several shabby ones which may never work very well in the
first place. I really can't tell you how long they will last, but I haven't
worn this one out in four seasons.
A hook stick does
not fall into the category of necessity when it comes to trapline equipment,
but it can make your life a lot easier. It can function not only as a fetch
stick, but as a wading staff, walking stick, brush buster, and extension of
your own arm. If you have never used one, I suggest you try it. Chances are
you'll be hooked.
###
(Posted for March-April 2010)
Growing As A Trapper
by Hal Sullivan
(This article was first published in The Trapper and
Predator Caller, March 1994)
I was talking to
a neighbor whose son had recently been bitten by the trapping bug. Dad, a
nontrapper, had taken an active interest but only in a supervisory position.
He described the boy's sets, "He just hid a piece of tuna fish at the base
of a tree, put his trap out in front of it, and covered it with leaves. That
won't catch anything, will it?" I told him it would probably snag a possum
or two. "Yeah, but he wants to catch a fox. You can't catch a fox like that
can you?"
I carefully
explained that it was possible to catch fox with sets very similar to this,
but at this stage in the boy's trapline career, he would do better to
construct some cubbies and target possum and coon.
I'm sure the vast
majority of trappers have such humble beginnings and high aspirations.
Trappers seem to go through three stages of development. In the first stage,
you want to learn all there is to know about trapping -- in two day's time.
Through the second stage, you develop your skills, and increase your
experience -- on your way to learning all there is to know about trapping.
In the third stage, you finally figure out that you'll never learn all there
is to know about trapping.
Let's look at how
three different trappers would approach a situation. One trapper is just
beginning his second season; he is a beginner. The second trapper has a few
seasons under his belt and has the potential to make good catches. The third
trapper measures his seasons in decades.
On the bank of a
creek there are three muskrat dens. One is old and caved-in above the
waterline, one has leaves and a small stick across the entrance, and one
shows a trail of fresh mud leading away from it. The beginner sets two
traps, one in each of the underwater dens. He catches one 'rat. The second
trapper sets two traps, but both of them are in the run leading away from
the active den. He catches two 'rats. The third trapper sets three traps.
Two on the active den, and a third in the caved-in den. The third trapper
will probably catch two 'rats just like the second, however, he has
increased his potential to add a wandering mink to his bag by setting up the
dry den.
There is no
substitute for experience. Simply spending time on the line is the best way
to grow as a trapper. But this does not diminish the value of good books and
other printed and video material. This information can better your knowledge
and round out your trapline education. It seems like the knowledge you gain
from books and magazines goes hand-in-hand with the amount of experience you
have. You may not fully comprehend something you have read, until you try it
on your trapline. By the same token, you may never get the idea to try it
unless you read about it somewhere.
The next location
is a muddy creek bank, and the target is coon. The beginner sets his trap on
the bank and hides a piece of fish beyond it. He catches no coon. The second
trapper goes to the waterline and constructs a pocket using bait and lure.
But he catches no coon. The experienced trapper scouts up and down the bank
for a few yards in either direction. He sets no trap; he catches no coon.
Here, everyone
had equal success, but the more experienced trapper expended less effort and
wasted less time. It is important to know how and where to set your traps,
but it is also important to know when and where not to set a trap. The
experienced trapper scouted the area and considered the conditions for
finding sign to be ideal. He did not find any sign, so he did not set a
trap.
Again, there is
no substitute for experience when it comes to reading sign. A beginner might
step right on a fox scat and not recognize it. An intermediate trapper might
recognize it and make a set. An experienced trapper would examine the scat
for age and probably for contents before he decided whether he would make a
set or what kind of set he would use. All these have to do with the depth of
perception that a trapper has for sign reading. A beginner may have trouble
identifying the tracks he encounters. Later he will be able to identify all
of tracks he comes across, and finally he will learn to look in the places
where he will most likely encounter these tracks.
In situation
number three, we have a fresh set of fox tracks along a dusty lane that are
quite visible to all. The beginner crudely constructs a dirthole and says,
"I hope that's a dirthole." The second trapper plugs in his patented set and
says, "Now there's a dirthole." The third trapper says, "I'll bet these fox
are sick of dirtholes," and puts in a flat set.
While all of us
at sometime strive to master a certain kind or construction of a set, the
real key to trapping is versatility. By all means a beginning trapper should
try to learn the construction of the basic sets like the pocket and dirthole
set. In fact, a beginner should try to master the fundamental sets before he
tries anything fancy. On the other hand, intermediate trappers sometimes get
stuck looking for the "perfect" construction of a set that will take all
animals in all situations. All experienced trappers have their favorite sets
that they use over and over again as the conditions warrant. But they also
have at their disposal other sets that will better suit the varied
conditions in our natural environment.
Before I say it
again, if you think that experience is the best teacher in learning and
applying various kinds of sets, you are right. There is no way to make the
years and the seasons roll by any faster -- thank God. However, you can
expedite the process, by studying books and magazines as mentioned before,
and by being observant and inquisitive on the trapline. To the beginner, it
can be quite bewildering; I know it was for me. You spend most of the time
running from trap to trap just to see if you've caught anything. When you
finally stumble on the fact that certain locations and conditions are more
likely to produce a catch, you are on your way to cashing in on your
observations.
You begin to ask
questions about why you caught, or did not catch, an animal at a certain
set. You begin to remember things that happened from one set to the next and
can combine them into a workable set for future use. To aid in remembering
and recording what happened on the trapline, more experienced trappers use
notebooks to write down the information. I know that most beginning trappers
would disdain keeping a notebook, but it is never too soon or too late to
start keeping a permanent record, even if it’s just a few short notes to jog
your memory.
Please bear in
mind that none of this discussion is meant to dissuade anyone from taking up
trapping, nor is it meant to belittle beginning trappers. I never discourage
anyone from learning to trap. I do stress responsibility, and I'll be the
first to encourage the efforts of a beginner. Sometimes I have been
effective in steering a beginner towards more realistic goals, but I never
discourage the ambition to improve and become a better trapper. We crawl
before we walk, and every beginner has the right to work his way up.
Nor do I mean to
detract from the trappers in the middle category. However, many trappers in
this class fall into the "trapper-in-a-can" syndrome. They become convinced
that there is a certain secret set or secret lure that will instantly make
them successful as soon as they can get it out of the can. Fortunately, in
the quest for this super set or lure, the trapper usually gains enough
practical knowledge to keep him progressing despite himself.
And finally, I
don't mean that years of trapline experience alone are the sole judge of the
skills of a trapper. Some trappers who have taken a keen interest and have
invested a good amount of time in study and careful observation have gained
a lot of experience in a few years. And again, some trappers can be on the
line for years and not make any practical advance in their skills. Trappers
who excel in the field are those who are constantly learning, be it beginner
or pro.
Now let's look at
the last situation. Here we have a clearing in the brush that shows a good
amount of fox sign. The beginner hides a chicken leg at the base of a low
bush and sets his trap in front of it. He catches a possum. The intermediate
makes a good baited dirthole set in the middle of the clearing. He catches a
possum. The experienced trapper uses a fox scat and a drop of lure to make a
flat set. He catches a possum.
The beginner is
pleased with his catch no matter how humble it may be. The intermediate
trapper is humbled by his catch and vows to do better. The experienced
trapper, with a truck load of possums-past giving him a proper degree of
humility, smiles and shrugs his shoulders. Despite his best efforts, he has
had no more success than the kid with a chicken leg. Conversely, the
intermediate can take consolation that he has done no worse than the
experienced trapper. Finally the beginner knows he is on the right track to
becoming a better trapper. Through each phase, the trapper grows and
develops his skills at catching furbearers. And catching a furbearer, even
if it's no more than a possum, is the thread that ties us all together.
###
(Posted for January - February 2010)
The Last Beaver
by Hal Sullivan
(This article was first published in
Fur-Fish-Game, August 1993)
Burton Harwood
stood at the edge of what had once been a ten-acre lake. "My partners and I
built this lake about three years ago," he said. "Our bass were getting up
around three pounds, and we were beginning to catch some good size bream. We
put in those fish structures," he pointed to a line of boxes made with
crossed railroad ties now setting on dry ground. "I came here on the first
day of September and this all that was left," he sighed as he surveyed the
remnant puddle left at the bottom of the lake bed.
I could easily
understand his disappointment. He and his partners had invested a good deal
of time and money in building this lake. Besides the fish structures, there
was a dock and a fishing pier along with a picnic area. Wood duck nesting
boxes were spaced around the edge of the lake and various smaller bird
houses were placed in the surrounding trees. It was obvious that an effort
was being made to attract wildlife to this newly formed habitat. Oddly
enough, it was this attraction that led to the demise of the lake.
The lake had
drawn the attention of a pair of beaver. The beaver set up housekeeping in
the lake and started a colony. The lake had been formed by constructing a
levee across one end of naturally occurring depression. It was in this levee
that the beaver chose to build a bank den. A heavy thunderstorm had caused a
sudden rise in the level of the lake flooding the bank den. As the water
level rose, and pressure increased, the spot in the levee weakened by the
beaver's den gave way. The rushing water did the rest, wiping out a hundred
yards worth of the levee, eroding it to its base.
That had been
four months ago. The levee had been rebuilt, and Mr. Harwood and his friends
were hoping that the winter and spring rains would refill the lake and give
them a fresh start. However, even though the lake was gone, the beaver
weren't. The dirt to build the original levee and to repair the damaged
section was obtained by digging a ditch around the lake on the outside of
the levee. When the lake drained, the beaver moved into the ditch. It was
mid January when Mr. Harwood got word there was a beaver trapper in the
neighborhood and contacted me. My job was to remove the beaver, all the
beaver, from the lake and prevent a repeat of the previous tragedy.
The ditch that
held the beaver was about three hundred yards long and twenty feet wide. One
end of the ditch was about fifteen feet deep, and it tapered to dry ground
on the other end. The easiest access to the ditch was to drive my ATV along
the top of the levee and climb down the bank to the ditch.
I scouted the area and found a new bank den the beaver had made. Fortunately
for Mr. Harwood, this den had been built on the side of the ditch opposite
the levee. The bank was very low here, and the beaver had improvised by
digging into the bank, then using mud and sticks to make a roof over their
den.
Although I had
located the den, which was about half-way down the ditch, I had no intention
of setting a trap there or anywhere in the immediate vicinity. One thing I
have learned about beaver is that they can be easily spooked especially on
small impoundments like this ditch. The sight of one of their kinfolk in a
trap or the commotion caused by its capture can put other members of the
colony on alert. I wanted to keep my sets away from the den where the
capture of a beaver would less likely be noticed by the rest of the colony.
Near the deep
end, a strip of land had been left across the ditch. It appeared that when
digging the ditch they stopped, skipped ten feet, then started up again.
This divided the ditch into two sections and the beaver were crossing this
strip of land to get into the lowest section of the ditch. There was a well
worn slot where the beaver climbed out. The slot was deep enough to submerge
a #330 bodygrip, and I stabilized one of these traps in the slot.
All my #330's are
equipped with five feet of extra chain and two swivels. This gives me a lot
of latitude in finding a place to fasten the trap, but it also serves
another purpose. Although bodygrip traps are lethal, a beaver may give a few
kicks or roll a few times before it finally succumbs to the trap. The long
chain allows any beaver I catch to move the trap away from its original
location. This can move the beaver out of the main travelway where it is
less likely to be noticed by another passing beaver.
The other end of
the ditch was shallow and featureless. I moved down the ditch to where the
water was knee deep. Gathering up some sticks and logs, I built a barricade
across the ditch. I left a hole in the barricade big enough to accommodate
another #330. This gave me two sets on the ditch, and I was satisfied that,
for the time being, this would be enough.
On the first
check of the traps, I had one yearling beaver in the land-crossing set. In
the first week, I took two more yearling's in that trap, and one at the
barricade set. It struck me as unusual that I had not yet taken an adult
beaver. Generally, adults will range much farther than young beaver. I also
estimated that I had probably removed all the young beaver from this colony.
In this area, four offspring would be considered a large litter.
The traps sat
empty for a couple of days, so I decided to move closer to the den. I
selected a spot about 75 yards from the den, and made an artificial castor
mound on the bank. This would certainly attract the attention of the adult
beaver, leaving the impression that a stranger was in their midst. I made
this set using a foothold trap rigged with a slide-wire drowner. The wire
was anchored with a feed sack I had filled half-full of dirt.
The next day, I
found an adult beaver at the end of the slide wire. I figured there was one
more beaver to go, so I reset the trap. The following day saw no action. On
the next check, I searched for the trap with the blade of my shovel
listening for the telltale "clink" of metal on metal. The trap was not in
its bed. I located the slide wire and started to pull in the sack. There did
not seem to be enough resistance to indicate that I was pulling in a sack
and a beaver, and when I reached the end of the wire I found only an empty
trap.
Closer inspection revealed that the trap was not exactly empty. Clutched
between the jaws was a small piece of a beaver's toenail.
Now, I had
created a genuine problem for myself. I had pinched the beaver, and it had
escaped. It was very unlikely that the beaver would return to this set, and
the probability that it would visit any other lured set I might make in its
very limited home range was low. I still had the two bodygrip sets in either
end of the ditch, and since I had other traps in the area, I could afford to
play a waiting game with the beaver. I remade the castor mound set on the
off chance that there might be another beaver present.
A week passed
with no action at any of the sets. In fact, the water in the ditch began to
clear up. Previously, it was always muddied by the activity of the beaver.
At this point, I began to consider the possibility that the beaver had
simply moved out after its close encounter with the trap. On the other hand,
the animal should have appeared in one of the bodygrip traps if it tried to
exit the ditch.
Mr. Harwood had
also asked me to remove any muskrats that might caused damage to his levee.
I hadn't observed any fresh rat sign, and I reported this to him. He still
expressed some concern, so to maintain good relations I dug a couple of
pocket sets along the ditch and baited them with apple. The water in the
ditch was still clearing so I didn't give much thought to beaver as I cut
some long stakes to anchor the muskrat traps.
Much as I
expected, the traps failed to produce any muskrats over a two-day period. On
the third day, as I went to check the traps, I noticed the water was again
muddy. One of the muskrat pockets was constructed right at the edge of the
barricade on the shallow end of the ditch. As I approached the set, I could
see that the stake was missing. For moment, I was very concerned. The muddy
water indicated that the beaver had probably returned, and I thought that it
may have got tangled up in the muskrat set. My fears were put to rest as I
got closer. The beaver had not got into the trap, but it had gnawed the
stake off at the waterline. I had cut a green limb for a stake thinking that
the beaver were gone, but the beaver had made dinner out of it.
Actually, I don't
think the beaver ever left the ditch. I think it simply holed up in its den
as they are prone to do after a bad experience. However, it was obvious the
beaver had returned to active status and was looking for something to eat.
It also didn't appear as if the beaver was going to pass through either of
the bodygrip traps at the ends of the ditch.
Fortunately, I
had a third tool at my disposal for catching the beaver. I went to my ATV
and retrieved a couple of snares. Figuring it was probably useless to try
luring the beaver into a set and noting its willingness to cut the green
stake, I decided to make a couple of baited sets for the beaver. During
reconstruction of the levee, a low wall of dirt had been left on the edge of
the ditch at the base of the levee. There were several breaks in this wall,
and I hung a snare in one of them. On the other side of the break, I laid
some freshly cut green branches and peeled a few fresh sticks for visual
attraction. I made a similar set on the opposite side of the ditch where the
beaver had previously cut a slot to get to some trees.
Neither set saw
any action for a couple of days. Then, when I closely examined the set at
the base of the levee, I saw a disturbing sign. There was one fresh beaver
track in the mud, right in front of the snare. The animal was curious enough
to investigate the bait, but it would not go through the snare. Rarely do
beaver become snare shy, but this animal would have nothing to do with
anything that appeared contrived by the hands of man.
Time was running
short. I was almost done trapping in this area and had only a couple of days
left to catch this beaver. I had responsibilities to fulfill. I was
responsible for educating this beaver and thereby earned the responsibility
for catching it. I also had a certain responsibility to Mr. Harwood. I had
agreed to remove all the beaver from this lake to preclude any more damage
to the levee. There was still one beaver left.
The beaver had at
least shown some interest in the bait so I decided that I was on the right
track. Walking behind the low wall of dirt at the base of the levee to
conceal my tracks and my activity, I searched for a particular feature which
would help me to make a set. Eventually, I found it. A sapling about three
inches in diameter was growing on top of the wall.
With my ax, I
chopped the sapling off about twelve inches above the ground. The butt end
of the trunk was naturally pointed, as if a beaver had gnawed it off. The
stump, however, was ragged so I got out my pocket knife and whittled upward
on the stump until it too was pointed giving the appearance of a beaver's
work. I laid the butt of the tree across the wall with the end pointed
towards the water. This would hopefully lead the beaver to believe that
another beaver had cut this tree and started dragging it towards the water.
I was careful to
conceal all my activity behind the wall and not disturb the bank where the
beaver might notice it. I retrieved the foothold trap and drowner from the
castor mound set, which had been inactive for more than a week, and used
this to make the new set. I threw the sack, trap and all, over the wall into
the water. I moved down the ditch a ways and entered the water so I could
wade back to the set without creating any disturbance on the bank.
Ordinarily, I am not so cautious in making beaver sets, but this was a
special case.
I dug a trap bed
underwater directly below the butt end of the felled sapling. Fishing the
drowning wire out of the water, I drove in the bank stake, slid the trap up
on the wire, and tossed the sack into deep water. I pushed the trap solidly
into its bed so there was no chance that the beaver could accidentally knock
it out of the way. As a final precaution, I wired an upper limb of the
sapling securely to the pointed stump. This would prevent the beaver from
easily carrying away the sapling in the event that it did not contact the
trap on the first pass. I camouflaged the wire in the leaves and grass on
the bank.
That was a lot of
trouble to go through for one beaver, but it paid off. The next day, a heavy
tug on the drowning wire told me there was a beaver at the bottom. A quick
examination revealed that this beaver had been give a manicure almost two
weeks before. I was both relieved and elated.
All across the
country, beaver populations are expanding. This gives rise to contact and
conflict with human endeavors, as in the case of Mr. Harwood. General
principals of wildlife management require leaving a few animals for seed.
However, leaving seed in cases like this would only reinitiate the problem.
Situations like this require removal of all the beaver. It is not always
this difficult to accomplish, but the job is not over until you have taken
the last beaver.
###
Trapping Nuisance Beaver
by Hal Sullivan
(This was a sidebar to the above article.)
At the turn of
the 20th century, beaver populations were in trouble. Unregulated harvest
had eliminated the beaver from much of its original range leaving only
isolated pockets of beaver in remote areas. Some people thought the beaver
would never recover. Now, a hundred years later, beaver populations are
again in trouble. But this time, the problem stems not from a lack of
beaver, but from an overabundance. As we approach the 21st century, beaver
rank very near the top of the list in generating nuisance animal complaints.
There are a few
basic differences in trapping beaver for sport or for fur harvest as opposed
to trapping nuisance beaver. Primary among these is the conservation ethic
that governs fur trapping. When beaver are harvested as a renewable
resource, efforts are made to assure that a viable breeding population will
remain to replenish the supply. In nuisance trapping, it is often the case
that each and every beaver must be removed from a colony or area to assure
that no breeding population remains to regenerate the problem.
If a fur trapper
encounters a trap-wise beaver, he can simply shrug it off and consider it
seed for next year's stock. A nuisance trapper on the other hand does not
have this option. Trap-wise beaver can be a very real plague for those
engaged in nuisance trapping.
The best way for
a nuisance trapper to avoid trap-wise beaver is to avoid educating them in
the first place. Almost any set that will take beaver during the fur
trapping season will work on beaver at other times of the year. The type of
set used may not be as important as the location and the construction of the
set. Unmolested beaver are not much harder to catch than muskrats, but once
a trapper starts to work on a colony of beaver, things can change
dramatically.
Beaver are
sometimes alarmed by the sight of one member of their colony dead in a trap.
If a trap is placed in or along a main travelway through the colony, there
is a high probability that other members of the colony will cross paths with
any beaver that is captured in the trap. While one incident may not cause
alarm and the set may function to make multiple catches, there is a
cumulative effect on the remaining beaver. After a beaver has passed an area
two or three times and observed one of its defunct comrades each time, it
may very well choose to avoid that location or other similar situations. For
this reason, it may be better to choose a more obscure or less traveled area
for a set.
In the same
manner, it can be very advantageous to keep a trapped beaver out of sight as
much as possible. Using a foothold trap with a slide-wire drowning system
can provide an advantage in pulling a beaver down underwater where it is
less noticeable. Bodygrip traps can be equipped with an extra length of
chain or wire that will allow a beaver to move the trap out of location.
Choosing set locations for bodygrips can also play a part. Narrow channels
through thick vegetation allow little room for a trapped beaver to move out
of the way. It would also steer any subsequent beaver directly over the
catch already made. Selecting a location that is adjacent to deep water or
an open area that is free from entanglement will help to put any trapped
beaver out of line and out of sight.
As often happens,
a professional nuisance trapper is called in as a last resort and is faced
with the task of catching beaver that have already been educated by amateur
trappers. In these situations, the problem has already been created and must
be dealt with. Some fancy sets and fancy footwork may be required to catch
beaver that seemingly know as much about traps as the trapper.
Beaver can become
acclimated to both traps and sets. Educated beaver may recognize, and refuse
to pass through, a bodygrip trap. Beaver that have grown accustomed to
castor mound sets, may refuse to work any type of mound set or any set
employing castor based lure. Where they are legal, snares can be the
salvation of the nuisance beaver trapper. Beaver rarely become snare shy and
they can be blind set using snares. Since snares do not require a lethal
fastening system, beaver can be snared on dry land, which again may offer an
advantage over a standard water set.
Bait sets are
rarely used by novice or amateur beaver trappers, and this may provide an
opportunity for taking trap-wise beaver. Employing a snare or a foothold
trap, a set baited with some naturally occurring vegetation on which the
beaver are feeding, can fool a trap-wise beaver. Extra caution must be
exercised in making sets for trap-wise beaver. It is advantageous to conceal
human activity as much as possible because again the beaver may have become
wary of obviously contrived situations.
Trapping nuisance
beaver is a year-round proposition, and of course those taken during the fur
harvesting season will have a marketable pelt. But even during these colder
months of the year, the nuisance trapper must function under a different
premise. While the tools and methods may be the same for fur trapping as
they are for nuisance trapping, the difference lies between harvesting a
surplus and eradicating a problem.
###
(Posted for November-December, 2009)
The First Word in Dirt Trapping
by Hal Sullivan
This article was first published in Fur-Fish-Game, March 1994
Besides a trap,
there is one other element common to all forms of dirt trapping. It is an
integral part of every set. It can't be ignored or eliminated. It can
frustrate the efforts of the best trapper and cause nightmares for the
novice. It is such a fundamental ingredient in any set that it is often
overlooked in discussions surrounding this form of trapping. It is -- the
dirt.
To most people,
dirt is dirt plain and simple. But, a trapper who chooses to construct sets
in this medium soon finds that dirt comes in many varieties. There is hard
dirt, soft dirt, loose dirt, compacted dirt, and all species in between. The
type of dirt encountered at a set location will influence the ease with
which a set can be constructed, the manner in which the set is constructed,
and sometimes will determine the type of set it will be possible to
construct.
Problems stem
from the priorities in choosing a location for a set. The main consideration
is, and should be, that the set be in proximity of the expected travel route
of the animal. Once this has been determined, the trapper must make do with
whatever soil type is present at that location. Choosing a location for a
set simply because the soil is easily worked is putting the cart ahead of
the horse.
If it were a
matter of picking a type of soil for set construction, rather that picking a
good location for a set, I would choose to make all my sets in the rich
loamy soil usually encountered in agricultural land. This soil is usually
firm but not rock hard. It is easy to dig in, yet it will hold its shape if,
for example, you wanted to dig a hole for a dirthole set. It can easily be
broken up into smaller particles by hand or by running it through a sifter.
Conversely, it can easily be repacked into a solid form as might be
necessary to firmly bed and stabilize a trap.
Besides being
easy to manipulate in constructing a set, this type of soil has a couple of
other advantages. These soils usually extend to a moderate depth and are
firm but not hard. This makes it fairly easy to drive a stake, yet gives the
stake sufficient holding power. Also, this soil is not highly compacted and
will drain well if and when the set is inundated by a rainstorm. These
represent a couple of other factors that must be considered in conjunction
with the type of soil in which a set is constructed.
On the other end of the spectrum, I am often forced to make dirt sets in
locations where dirt is almost nonexistent. Constructing sets in rocky
ground can be maddening. The problems start the minute you try to sink your
trowel into the ground. You just can't dig through rocks.
For digging trap
beds in rocky ground, I use a mason's hammer. This is the same tool that
brick layers use to cut bricks. It has a hammer head on one end and the
other end has a chisel point. The chisel end is designed to cut stone, and
that is the use to which I put it. Granted, if I encounter a rock as big as
a basketball, I'm out of luck, but the mason's hammer will cut through
smaller stones and can be used to take the corner off a rock that might be
protruding into the trap bed. Even if no large stones are encountered, the
mason's hammer will make short work of loosening and breaking up smaller
stones which can then be readily shoveled from the trap bed.
You are likely to
encounter another problem, once you have dug a trap bed in rocky ground.
After you sift out the rocks, there is a high probability that you won't
have enough dirt left over to bed and cover the trap. This can be remedied
by moving a short distance from the set and scraping up some spare dirt to
finish the job. When I am running a number of sets in rocky ground, I often
carry a bucket of dirt with me. This doesn't necessarily have to be dry
dirt. I just gather some extra dirt on the line when the opportunity
presents itself and store it in a five-gallon bucket in the back of my
truck. I carry it to the sets in a smaller bucket.
If you are
extremely lucky, you may actually be able to dig a hole to create a dirthole
set in rocky ground, but the odds are against it. You always have the option
of making a flat set with visual and scent attractors above ground. Often
this is the best move in this situation. If you must have a hole set, try
driving a trap stake at an angle where the hole should be. If you can drive
the stake in, you may be able to wiggle and twist it to create a small hole.
Another option
that I sometimes employ is to make a modified buried bait set. If you can
dig a short ways in where the hole should be, you can place bait in this
shallow hole and cover it with dirt. Since this set does not have the
guiding features represented by an open hole, it is best to use a good
backing. I usually get a large rock and place it halfway over the buried
bait so the animal must come to one side of the rock to dig the bait out.
You can also make this set without burying the bait. Just dig a shallow
depression where the hole should be, put the bait in the bottom of the
depression, and cover it with a large rock. Leave the edge of the depression
nearest the trap open to create the illusion that there is a hole under the
rock.
Driving a stake
in rocky ground is somewhere between hard and impossible. It can be done,
but I suggest using the shortest stake possible that will still insure
adequate holding power. Sometimes it is necessary to employ a grapple in
these situations. This is, however, a two edged sword because if you intend
to bury the grapple under the trap, you will have to dig the trap bed twice
as deep. This is no easy task in rocky ground. An alternative method is to
bury the grapple away from the trap bed. You can scratch a shallow trench
between the trap and the grapple to bury and hide the chain.
Making a set in
very loose or sandy soil is easy, but it offers its own set of problems.
These soils are easy to dig in -- for both the trapper and the animal. The
incidence of dug up traps and dug out sets is apt to be higher at these
locations. If you are constructing a hole set, it is generally easier to dig
the hole extra deep in sandy soil, and this will aid somewhat in avoiding
dug-out sets. A good backing is also beneficial because it will help guide
the animal over the trap where it may be caught before it gets a chance to
start digging around.
Again, a flat set
might be beneficial in a sandy location. Generally, when you present a small
hole containing a food source to an animal, it is a natural invitation for
the animal to dig. Since a flat set does not have this feature, there is
less inducement for the animal to dig in the first place.
One of the
biggest problems is staking a trap in sandy soil. If a single stake is used,
it may have to be two or three times as long as a stake used in normal soil.
Barring this, a cross stake system employing two stakes can be advantageous.
With the stakes driven in at crossed angles and a fastening device that
connects the tops of both stakes, you can gain sufficient resistance to hold
an animal in place.
On the plus side,
sandy soil does not retain much water and usually drains quickly after a
rainstorm. This can hold an advantage if you are trapping in wet weather.
Clay is a third type of soil that a trapper might encounter in creating a
dirt set. This is a very heavy, dense type of soil that, in its pure form,
is used in making pottery and bricks. Fortunately, it is rarely found in its
pure form as surface soil.
Clay can be
extremely difficult to dig in. If it is dry, it can be as hard as one of its
offspring bricks, and I often find myself chiseling away with my mason's
hammer in dry clay soil. If it is damp, you can pierce clay soil with a
trowel, but it does not break up like other soils, and you will probably
find yourself excavating a trap bed in large chunks. Sometimes it is
necessary to dig all the way around the circumference of a trap bed and pry
the dirt out as one whole unit. The same problems can be encountered in
digging a hole for a hole set although it is usually possible to get a hole
in by applying a little effort.
Because it is
hard to break up, it may be difficult to run clay soil through your sifter
to cover a trap. If the soil is extremely dry, it may be impossible. One
trick you can use is to take a fist-size chunk of the dirt and scour it
against the bottom of your sifter. You may be able to shave off enough dirt
to cover the trap. You can also use your hammer or trowel to pound the dirt
into smaller pieces and get it through the sifter. Be forewarned that this
kind of abuse can be hard on a sifter. I end up refastening the screen in
the bottom of my sifter periodically.
When it comes to
staking a trap, clay soil offers excellent holding power. Unfortunately,
clay soil also excels when it comes to holding water. It may take days for
the water to drain off a set made in clay soil. A dirthole set can become a
"water" hole set overnight and remain that way for an extended period. This
pretty much eliminates any attraction the hole may have once had for an
animal. Some trappers advocate using a spare stake to punch extra drain
holes in the bottom of a trap bed and in the bottom of the hole to provide
drainage, but I haven't found this to be of much help in clay soils.
If and when the
set dries out, you may encounter another problem. The water may have
repacked the clay sifted over the trap. At best, the dirt gets heavy and
sticky and will slow the action of the trap. At worst, if you let the wet
clay dry and harden, it can lock a trap up almost as if the trap were frozen
in ice. Generally, if a trap has been covered with clay soil, it is a good
idea to dig up the trap and rebed it after a significant rainfall.
There is one
other type of dirt that bears discussion. Actually, it is not a type but
rather a condition -- frozen dirt. If any type of dirt holds any moisture at
all, it will become rock hard if the temperatures persist below freezing.
Frozen dirt is by far and away the hardest type of dirt to work with.
Forget about
digging a trap bed -- you can't. Sometimes, I am successful at chipping out
a trap bed with the mason's hammer, but generally I forego trying to remove
any dirt when making a trap bed in frozen ground. How do you make a trap bed
without digging a depression for the trap? I still need a depression for
holding the trap, but instead of digging it, I literally beat it into the
ground.
When freezing
weather arrives, I still carry the mason's hammer, but I also carry a short
handled mini-sledge. Dirt has a tendency to swell as it freezes giving some
allowance for compacting the soil. Using the mini sledge, I can pound a
depression into frozen dirt where I want the trap bed. I have tried this
method with unfrozen dirt, but generally the dirt just squishes around,
rising up in one spot as you try to beat down an adjacent spot. Frozen dirt,
being more solid in nature, does not spring back, and it is possible to
achieve an acceptable trap bed by beating it into shape.
Of course, your options for covering the trap with dirt removed from the bed
are nil, so you must employ an alternate covering material. There are a
couple kinds of processed 'freeze proof' dirts on the market that make good
trap coverings under these conditions. Buckwheat hulls are another popular
covering. You may also have your own stash of dried dirt with some
antifreeze compound added.
Depending on the
depth to which the ground is frozen, staking may or may not be a
possibility. Quite often, you will find that only the first few inches of
the ground is frozen. If you can penetrate this to get started, you can
finish driving the stake with little trouble. If you can't drive a stake,
you will have to opt for a drag or a grapple.
It is generally
conceded that dirt trapping is harder than water trapping. Granted, some of
this difficulty stems from the wariness of the critters that are pursued on
dry land, but the biggest factor is the medium in which the dirt trapper is
forced to work. The movement of animals through their habitat is not much
influenced by soil types and conditions, but the trapper is. Learning to
deal with dirt, in all its various forms is the key to becoming a successful
dirt trapper.
Alternatives to Dirt
(This was a side bar to the above article)
While a trapper
has little choice but to construct a set in the dirt found at a specific
location, he does have some options for covering the trap. The usual
procedure is to cover a trap with dirt excavated from the set. There are
times, especially during freezing or extremely wet periods, when covering a
trap with local dirt is not desirable or possible. And there are other
instances when the excavated dirt contains significant debris and does not
yield enough clean dirt to cover the trap.
There are a
number of covering materials that a trapper can import to the trap site.
Buckwheat hulls are a popular trap covering. They are very water repellent.
This makes them a good wet weather trap covering, and because they do not
absorb water they can be used during freezing weather. They are also very
lightweight making them easily transportable. Most major trapping supply
dealers carry buckwheat hulls.
Peat moss is
another good trap covering. It is readily available from garden supply
stores and relatively inexpensive. There are several different types of peat
moss. Some is very fine and dry, while other types are moist and contain
rather large pieces of debris. If debris is present, it may be necessary to
sift the peat moss before, or while, using it as a trap covering. If it is
damp, it cannot be used as a freezing weather covering unless it is
completely dried first. Like buckwheat hulls, peat moss is light weight;
however, it will absorb water.
Another
alternative trap covering is potting soil. Again, this product can be
purchased at garden supply stores, but it is significantly more expensive
than peat moss. Potting soil is generally clean and requires no sifting,
however, some types do contain a significant amount of moisture and must be
pre-dried for use in freezing weather. Potting soil is also considerably
more heavy than peat moss.
Other trap
coverings can be obtained near the trap site or may be collected ahead of
time by the trapper. Thoroughly rotted wood makes an excellent trap
covering. The best source for this material is old, decaying logs that have
fallen in the woods. Select a log that is almost completely decomposed. The
rotten wood can be gathered by digging underneath the log or breaking the
log apart to get at the rotten wood. This must be sifted to remove the large
debris. If it is to be used during freezing weather, it must be thoroughly
dried.
Other decomposed
organic materials can also serve as a trap covering. This could include
rotten leaves, rotten hay or grass, or rotten crop debris. This material can
often be gathered at the trap site and forced through a sifter to break it
into finely divided pieces. A trapper should be cautious in using crop
debris as a trap covering. This often contains waste grains which may
attract mice and birds to the trap site.
If a set is made
in proximity to livestock, manure can make a very good trap covering.
Specimens that are well aged and weathered work the best. These can be
ground through the sifter. Some may find this trap covering objectionable,
but well aged manure from herbivorous livestock is little different from any
other rotted vegetable matter.
There are some
drawbacks associated with using these lightweight trap coverings. For one
thing, these materials are very springy. If the material is completely dry
it is impossible to pack it around the trap. Even if they are damp, they do
not pack well. Another problem can be encountered when the material used to
cover the trap does not match the surrounding area. This may attract
attention to the trap bed and may put more wary critters on the alert. There
are two basic methods for dealing with this problem. One is to scatter some
extra material around the set to blend in the trap bed. The other is to
cover the material with a very light layer of dirt to hide it from sight.
The dirt
excavated from a trap bed is, and will continue to be the most popular
material for covering a trap. However, when conditions warrant, an
alternative trap covering can take the place of dirt and still produce an
acceptable and workable set.
###
(Posted for Sept.-Oct., 2009)
Dirty Trap Tricks
by Hal Sullivan
(This article first appeared in The Trapper and Predator Caller, December
1993)
Without a doubt,
trapping qualifies as a dirty job. And traps, being the foremost tool of the
trapper, suffer the most from this calamity. You can rest assured that as
the season progresses, dirty traps can become an increasing problem. The
ultimate solution is to boil dirty traps to clean them, but this takes time,
which is usually at a premium during trapping season. There are ways of
reusing and recycling dirty traps and procedures to follow that will make
dirty traps a little easier to handle.
First we need to
define the qualities of a dirty trap. "Dirty" is a generic term that
encompasses several different maladies that a trap may be suffering. A trap
can be dirty in the classic sense meaning it is covered with dirt or soil,
usually in the form of mud. A trap can also get dirty through contamination
with a foreign odor or substance; although it may show little or no sign of
being visibly soiled. The final class of dirty traps is those that, through
use, have lost their protective coatings and are in effect out of commission
until they receive special care.
Since the vast
majority of all traps are set in dirt or its derivative, mud, they tend to
pick up these materials. However, dirt or mud alone actually does no harm to
a trap. Common soil or mud may make the traps a little messy to handle, but
it does not contaminate them in the sense of adding foreign odors.
During dry
weather, I regularly pull up sets that have seen no action and return these
traps directly to the box where I keep my clean, unset traps. When I pull up
these traps, I usually take the point of my trowel and lift the trap out of
its bed. Then I shake it and tap it lightly to knock most of the loose dirt
off. Then I dry-fire the trap. If the trap has not been rained on, about 99%
of the dirt will fall away.
At one time, I
had the habit of just stepping on the trap bed to fire the trap. However,
the dirt that was over the jaws and levers often came up with the trap and
got clogged in the works. Also, the pressure of the jaws pushing back
against the bottom of my shoe shoved the trap down harder and tended to pack
the dirt into the trap. I found that my traps came out cleaner, even in
muddy soil, if I dug them up before firing them.
Traps that get caked and coated with mud present a different problem. Again,
these traps may be reusable, but carrying around a bunch of mud-ball traps
makes a big mess. You need a source of water to clean mud-caked traps. This
could be a creek, pond, or even a puddle in a field. The sooner you clean up
a muddy trap, the easier it is to clean. As the mud dries, it becomes more
difficult to get off.
To clean up muddy
traps, I like to find a creek that has shallow flowing water and a gravel
bottom. Often, I can back my truck right into these places, or they may be
found at regular crossings on my trapline. I unload my muddy traps, and
stakes, and dump the whole mess into the water. The flowing water starts to
wash away the mud immediately. Then by pushing, rolling, and dragging the
traps around in the gravel I can scour off more mud. I also carry a
whisk-broom which I use to finish up stubborn traps. I also use this whisk
broom when I have to wash traps in non-flowing water.
Sometimes, you
just don't get a chance to wash off muddy traps, but you should observe one
caution. If you don't wash them up quickly, let them dry and keep them dry.
Hanging a mud-caked trap on a fence, or throwing it in a pile in the yard
may cause severe rusting of the trap. The mud will hold and retain moisture
in the form of rain or dew. This problem can be greatly magnified if salt or
calcium chloride has been used to antifreeze the trap. These compounds are
both highly corrosive and traces of them may remain in the mud on the trap.
If the mud has
dried hard on a trap, you can remove some of it by banging the trap against
a hard object. But, be careful you don't bend the trap in the process. You
may have to soak the traps to loosen the mud. You could soak them in a
bucket or stream, or you could do this chore right on the trapline.
Near the end of
the season, I take an inventory of my dirty, mud caked traps. Since I
ordinarily do a little muskrat trapping at this time, I employ these traps
on the rat line. Since trap size is not a critical factor at a drowning set
for muskrats, I can catch them with these traps and soak the mud loose at
the same time.
Going beyond
plain old mud and soil, traps can be dirtied by other contaminants that are
not as readily removed. When an animal is caught in a trap, it leaves some
of its smell on the trap. This could be simply body odor, or it may be
combined with body fluids such as urine, feces, or saliva. These odors are
not readily removed from the trap.
Odor
contamination can be a factor in land trapping. Canine trappers don't often
use a dirty trap at a clean set. But for other animals and under different
conditions, odor contamination may not be a problem. When a trap is set
completely under water, no animal can detect it with its nose. You can use
any of your contaminated traps in this instance. In many states, canine
trapping season precedes water trapping season, and trappers can recycle
their dirty canine traps on the water line.
Of course, you
can always recycle a dirty canine trap right at the set. If the surrounding
ground is already contaminated with the odor of an animal, the small amount
of odor that remains on the trap will hardly be noticeable to the next
critter that comes along. You can reset and rebed the used trap provided it
is still able to withstand the elements.
That brings us to
the final type of dirty traps, the ones that are no longer fit for service.
Almost all trappers provide some process for preventing rust on their traps.
Dying traps in a tannic acid based compound (logwood, oak bark, maple bark,
etc.) gives them a minimal amount of protection. Most trappers then prefer
to wax, or more recently "dip", their traps to give added insurance against
rust.
Waxing or dipping
is an absolute necessity for traps used with salt or calcium chloride
antifreeze. And this is where you must pay close attention to your traps. If
you make a catch, and the animal removes a significant amount of coating
from the trap, a subsequent dose of anti-freeze will rust the trap
immediately. I experience the most trouble with this during the transition
into freezing weather. I may be using some scuffed up traps at my sets, when
a cold snap hits, and I have to add antifreeze. When I can count on freezing
weather, and count on using an antifreeze salt, I don't put the scuffed up
traps back in the ground.
Fast Forward -- Today I use a lot of propylene glycol for
antifreeze, primarily because it does not rust traps.
If traps are not
too badly scuffed, they can still be used in the water or at other
non-freezing sets. Yes, water will have a rusting effect on these scuffed
traps, but it is not as pronounced as salt. However, if traps have a
significant amount of their coating removed, and are showing signs of
advanced rusting, you should probably retire them for retreatment.
Traps that see a
lot of action, and traps used under certain conditions, can lose their
coating quickly. Coons are notorious for wrestling around in a trap. I once
caught a coon staked solid on a pure sand beach. That trap did not have one
speck of wax or dye left on it, and in fact shined brighter than when it was
brand new -- the coon having spent all night sandblasting it.
Any type of dirt
can have an abrasive effect on a trap and wear away the coating. On the
other hand, traps used on the water line, especially at drowning sets, may
hold up quite well. I fully expect to get a full season's service out of
these traps before they need to be redone.
If you are going
to follow the route of reusing and recycling dirty traps, you have to
develop a plan for managing them. I usually keep a couple extra boxes and
buckets in my truck just to hold dirty traps. If a trap is mud caked and
dirty, I throw it in a bucket until I can get somewhere to wash it off. When
I get most of the mud and exterior grime off the trap, I examine the coating
to see if it is sound. If it is not, I remove the trap from the line.
Traps that are
still serviceable, are placed in a "used trap" box. Now, when I am looking
for a trap to make a set, I first look in the used trap box. Every time I
recycle a used trap, I am saving a new, clean trap.
Very few trappers
have a great love for cleaning and processing traps, and fewer still desire
to stop in the middle of the season to perform this chore. By carefully
identifying and managing your dirty traps, you may be able to recycle them
on your trapline and conserve your resource of clean traps. You can save
yourself time and traps by using a few dirty tricks, and that is no joke.
###
(Posted for July-August, 2009)
Invisible Fox Set
By Hal Sullivan
(This article first appeared in The Buckeye Trapper Nov./Dec. 1991)
If
I had to gauge my fondness for a set by how frequently I construct it, I'm
afraid the Invisible Fox Set wouldn't make the top ten. I catch a majority
of my fox in standard sets like the dirthole, flat, or post set. But I do
have a special affection for the Invisible Fox Set, because where conditions
necessitate or warrant one of these sets, I can use it to fool two legged
critters as well as four.
The
Invisible Fox Set uses the same basic construction as a flat set, however I
use no prominent visual attractor. By eliminating this and completely
camouflaging the trap bed, the set simply disappears into the background. It
is not exactly invisible, but it is undetectable by human senses, and except
for the addition of a lure smell, it should be nearly invisible to canines.
This
is one important factor to consider in constructing an Invisible Set. You
are giving up the advantage of visual attraction. These sets are made to be
inconspicuous and their outward appearance does nothing to arouse the
suspicion of man or beast. The set works on scent attraction alone. This
being the case, the set works best when it is placed right under the
animal's nose. I consider this set to have zero visual drawing power, and I
place it only where natural travelways force or guide the animal within a
very few feet of the trap. I wouldn't use this set in the middle of a
pasture field.
This
set finds its most choice application where fox sign and human sign overlap,
or in dealing with animals that have grown wary of standard sets. I
developed a special affection for this set by using it to catch fox close to
lanes, gates, and other locations that are heavily traveled by hunters. With
no visual clue to mark its location, I can be relatively sure this set will
not be molested by passers-by.
An
Invisible Set is most easily constructed where there is low, uniformly
cluttered ground cover. They can be made in grass, leaves, short weed
growth, or in fodder left from a mowing machine or crop harvest. In this
type of cover it is fairly easy to place the trap and restore the finished
set to some semblance of natural order.
Again,
because the Invisible Set has no visual attraction there can be some
difficulty in centering the animal over the trap. Invisible Sets will work
on placement of the trap in relation to the lure alone, but they are much
more effective if they take advantage of every natural feature of the site.
I never arbitrarily plop an invisible set in the ground.
If
you study any location closely, you can determine minor features that can be
used to help guide a fox into your trap. There may be clods of dirt they
have to step around, or a large weed stem or twig they would have to step
over or around. These can be used advantageously as forcing points. You can
take advantage of edge cover, placing the set close enough to this cover to
prevent animals approaching from the back side. Study these natural features
of the location carefully before deciding an exact location for the trap.
If
necessary, I will slightly modify a location with some forcing objects if it
can be made to appear natural. If there is a tree nearby, I might add in a
couple of the freshest fallen branches to look as if the wind had blown them
there. Or, I might knock over a bushy weed to help create a place for a set.
I might also arrange a couple of small stones, burrs, dirt clods, or other
items naturally occurring at the trap site to guide the fox's foot on trap
pan.
In
conjunction with finding an exact spot to set the trap, I also look for an
insignificant yet individual object for placement of the lure. Take a long,
hard, and close look at the immediate area you have chosen for the set. Put
your nose to the ground at the fox's level. Let your eyes scan the area and
you will notice one, or several small objects that attract your attention.
It may be a dime size stand of rank grass, a weed stem, a pebble, a seed
pod, or just the upturned end of a leaf. These are insignificant from an
upright human vantage point, but they take on new meaning when your nose is
only a foot off the ground.
While
visual attraction is not a feature of this set, it does come into play on
this microscopic level. Even though I rely on the lure to draw the attention
of the animal, I still like to have a small visible object for it to focus
on when it seeks to discover the source of the odor. In other words, I use
the fox's nose as the main guidance system, but when it approaches for a
landing in the trap, I like to give it a little visual object as a runway
beacon.
I
construct the set with the trap pan eight inches from this small visual
attractor. When I determine the place for the trap bed, I remove the ground
cover, in an area just the size of the trap, raking it to one side. I create
as little disturbance as possible in the surrounding ground cover.
I
line the bottom of my dirt sifter with leaves, grass, or other material that
will prevent the dirt from sifting through and disturbing the set area. Then
I dig a bed no larger than the trap, placing the dirt in the lined sifter.
When the bed is sufficiently deep, I stake the trap in the bottom. The trap
must be firmly bedded, and I use some of the loose dirt from the sifter.
Depending on how sparse or dense the cover is, I may or may not finish
covering the trap with dirt. For example, if the cover is thick leaves, I
might just rearrange the leaves I had previously removed to form a solid
layer over the trap. When I do need dirt over the trap, I pull out the plug
on the dirt sifter and carefully deposit the dirt. When extra dirt builds up
around the trap bed, I carefully take my trowel and rake it back in.
I
keep the set as clean as possible and when the trap is buried, I replace the
ground cover as I found it. If there a few too many crumbs of dirt around, I
compensate by giving the area a light dusting of dirt to blend in the set.
When
I have the trap site restored to a near-original condition, I apply the
lure. My preference is to keep the lure on or slightly below ground level.
On a small grass clump, for example, I apply the lure at the base, where the
stems are packed together. If I'm using a post, like a weed stem, I apply
the lure at the very bottom allowing it to run on the ground. Other times,
will use a stake to bore a small shallow hole at the base of the visual
object for the lure. I fill this thimble-size hole with an absorbent lure
holder, like dry grass or sheep's wool, and apply the lure to this.
Usually,
I use a food or a curiosity lure at this set. Gland lure will also work, but
at this set I am not really trying to simulate the presence of another
animal. The most important aspect of luring this set is not to over do it.
In order to have the animal positioned properly to step in the trap, I want
it to touch, or nearly touch the lured spot with its nose. If the lure odor
is too strong, this won't happen. You can use a strong smelling lure, just
limit the quantity. One of my favorite lures for this set is rank enough to
gag a maggot, but I only use two drops per set.
Since
this set functions entirely on lure odor, wind direction is a critical
factor when selecting locations. The prevailing wind must carry the odor to
the animal, or it will miss the set entirely. If I am forced to make a set
against the wind, or wind conditions might be variable, I add a call lure on
the side of the travelway opposite the set. I put this on a tall object so
the fox cannot readily locate the source. If the wind is blowing from the
wrong direction, the fox may pick up the smell of the call lure. It may
circle the area trying to locate the source of the smell and if it ranges
out far enough, it may come in contact with the Invisible set.
The
Invisible Set is not as easy to construct, or as flexible as most standard
fox sets. And with the elimination of a visual attractor, it requires a
certain degree of self-confidence to take fox in this set. Despite these
drawbacks, there are places and times when an Invisible Set proves its
worth. Since it gives no outward appearance of being a trap set, it provides
a practical alternative to passing up those hot locations where fox cross
paths with foot traffic.
###
For lures and other scent attractors visit the
Lure, Bait, Urine department at the Supply Line
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