squirrel control

[Accuspell]

Good one.

[jall25]

On 13/06/2023 at 11:50, Accuspell said:

1. Thanks guys. Mostly before dawn to mid morning. I expected first light movement but saw none, so then I tried late afternoon to twilight. I expevct I am going to have to bite the bullet and get one of these new fangled camera traps. It is knowing how to work it that worries me.

Its very easy to see if its squirrels taking the nuts - they chew them on the feeder so there will be bits all over 

[Mice!]

2 hours ago, jall25 said:

Its very easy to see if its squirrels taking the nuts - they chew them on the feeder so there will be bits all over 

I never seem to find any mess from peanuts,  not even the red shell, but sunflower seeds are a great indicator. 

I was out bright and early this morning,  I didn't have much choice.

I'd checked the camera last Friday and it only had 30 pictures,  taking two at a time, by the time I went back Monday evening it was up to 288!

With squirrels on the feeder from 5:30 then pretty much all day, with two's and three's showing up.

 

Game on!!!

 

So as usual for this wood, I set up last night,  struggled to get the brolley in the ground because its so hard and was back in there this morning at 5:45.

As I walked in there was a squirrel waiting for me, and it just sat there! I got my sticks and gun out, put my hand in my pocket and didn't have any mags 😱😱 I'd tapped my pocket and heard/felt the rattle but it was the little box of extra pellets. 

So I walked the two minutes back to the car 🤣🤣 ( I deserve this some of the places I end up) then back and shot squirrel number 1, probably 5:55

 

It was then an hour and a half of squirrels coming from behind and in front of me, a few were within bayonet range, but they just scrabbled past to the feeder.

A couple just went straight up, some were a bit nervous as the numbers mounted,  some stayed on the floor, only the last one took an age to commit and start eating,  six side on shots and one through the crown, I saw every pellet exit as the dust kicked up behind the shot squirrels looking like a miss, except for the twitching squirrel on the floor, only the crown shot didn't exit, that will no doubt be in the body somewhere. 

 

I got up and cleared the bodies,  one more did come in, but it skirted the area completely and kept on going.  I gave it half an or so then decided to pack up, but while I was waiting it turned into a scene from the Birds, the field outside the wood was suddenly covered in Rooks and Gulls  , no idea why, they were in and out, landing then off again? Probably lasted ten minutes then they were gone.

 

I know some folk question taking pictures of the quarry we shoot, but I'm now splitting the squirrels into Male and Female,  even adults and kits because it makes keeping my records straight much easier.

5 males 2 females, all mature animals so I've no idea where there coming from?

 

And just for fun, here are the dogs guarding a bag of squirrels when I dropped them off.

[Mice!]

Sometimes I can definitely over think things, or miss something that should be obvious,  chatting to @Mick C tonight and he said with the molasses being sticky they'll be taking that scent away with them, on them, so while I'm just thinking of adding scent to the feed to make it more attractive,  the squirrels are taking it away with them, adding to their scent trails 🤔🤔🤔 now that's definitely got me thinking 😳

[jall25]

15 minutes ago, Mice! said:

Sometimes I can definitely over think things, or miss something that should be obvious,  chatting to @Mick C tonight and he said with the molasses being sticky they'll be taking that scent away with them, on them, so while I'm just thinking of adding scent to the feed to make it more attractive,  the squirrels are taking it away with them, adding to their scent trails 🤔🤔🤔 now that's definitely got me thinking 😳

Im on my ground a lot Mice - the other thing i do if im sitting on a feeder or two in this weather is "bait" with fresh water for a few days 

[Mice!]

21 minutes ago, jall25 said:

Im on my ground a lot Mice - the other thing i do if im sitting on a feeder or two in this weather is "bait" with fresh water for a few days 

Read that a few times but I've not tried it, I got a dog bowl out last week and tried to get a bottle to somehow slowly release the water like a drinker would, but it just overflowed,  you watch I'll put it out and it will finally rain 😄

[Accuspell]

16 hours ago, jall25 said:

Its very easy to see if its squirrels taking the nuts - they chew them on the feeder so there will be bits all over 

Thanks for that. I haven't noticed any bits lying around.

Loads of useful information for me in the latest replies, the water thing - I wonder if a nipple drinker like used in hutches would work. Squirrels are clever blighters and I bet they would soon switch on to one of those. It is a great idea and I shall try it.
I called in on a gamekeeper/shooting agent on my way home the other day and have got my old shooting on a big estate back. I have a couple of 15kg feeders I can set up, one needs some work on it, but that is only a new bottom putting on. All these bits of information I will able to incorporate into the new shooting. Thank you - hopefully i can be successful.

[jall25]

4 hours ago, Accuspell said:

Thanks for that. I haven't noticed any bits lying around.

Loads of useful information for me in the latest replies, the water thing - I wonder if a nipple drinker like used in hutches would work. Squirrels are clever blighters and I bet they would soon switch on to one of those. It is a great idea and I shall try it.
I called in on a gamekeeper/shooting agent on my way home the other day and have got my old shooting on a big estate back. I have a couple of 15kg feeders I can set up, one needs some work on it, but that is only a new bottom putting on. All these bits of information I will able to incorporate into the new shooting. Thank you - hopefully i can be successful.

 

13 hours ago, Mice! said:

Read that a few times but I've not tried it, I got a dog bowl out last week and tried to get a bottle to somehow slowly release the water like a drinker would, but it just overflowed,  you watch I'll put it out and it will finally rain 😄

Best thing to do to get water to use as "bait" is to get a 5 gallon drum 

Fill it - but drill holes towards the top of it

Then get another cut it in half horizontally 

Then stand the one full of water in the "tray" you have just cut out

The water will run out until it gets to the drilled holes 

This will easily last for a week plus 

[old man]

FWIW, I tried a drip water bottle but had to change to a more open site before I  could evaluate it,

At present they are totally ignoring the feeders?                                    

[mick.c]

On 15/06/2023 at 19:42, Mice! said:

I never seem to find any mess from peanuts,  not even the red shell, but sunflower seeds are a great indicator. 

I was out bright and early this morning,  I didn't have much choice.

I'd checked the camera last Friday and it only had 30 pictures,  taking two at a time, by the time I went back Monday evening it was up to 288!

With squirrels on the feeder from 5:30 then pretty much all day, with two's and three's showing up.

 

Game on!!!

 

So as usual for this wood, I set up last night,  struggled to get the brolley in the ground because its so hard and was back in there this morning at 5:45.

As I walked in there was a squirrel waiting for me, and it just sat there! I got my sticks and gun out, put my hand in my pocket and didn't have any mags 😱😱 I'd tapped my pocket and heard/felt the rattle but it was the little box of extra pellets. 

So I walked the two minutes back to the car 🤣🤣 ( I deserve this some of the places I end up) then back and shot squirrel number 1, probably 5:55

 

It was then an hour and a half of squirrels coming from behind and in front of me, a few were within bayonet range, but they just scrabbled past to the feeder.

A couple just went straight up, some were a bit nervous as the numbers mounted,  some stayed on the floor, only the last one took an age to commit and start eating,  six side on shots and one through the crown, I saw every pellet exit as the dust kicked up behind the shot squirrels looking like a miss, except for the twitching squirrel on the floor, only the crown shot didn't exit, that will no doubt be in the body somewhere. 

 

I got up and cleared the bodies,  one more did come in, but it skirted the area completely and kept on going.  I gave it half an or so then decided to pack up, but while I was waiting it turned into a scene from the Birds, the field outside the wood was suddenly covered in Rooks and Gulls  , no idea why, they were in and out, landing then off again? Probably lasted ten minutes then they were gone.

 

I know some folk question taking pictures of the quarry we shoot, but I'm now splitting the squirrels into Male and Female,  even adults and kits because it makes keeping my records straight much easier.

5 males 2 females, all mature animals so I've no idea where there coming from?

 

And just for fun, here are the dogs guarding a bag of squirrels when I dropped them off.

Bloody good going mate, I'll say it again did you get them with a 177 and did you get any over 10yds and any gut shots....just asking 😉

[Mice!]

I had a session on some new woodland yesterday,  I put two feeders up in April but unlike other areas I'm in they've not been hammered. 

Monday I changed the feed in one to sunflower seeds and put up a camera,  o was going to move the other because its not in the best spot, but there was a squirrel there so for now it's staying. 

There was no wind or breeze, or squirrels it seemed,  nothing came to the feeder, but they were in the area, I shot 3 around the feeder with the highlight being a buzzard dropping straight in as I dropped the first, but a Jay spooked it so it didn't take the squirrel. 

The red marker on the second picture was where the first squirrel was, the Buzzard must have been watching it the speed it came in?

I shot another walking out doing its best Meerkat impression, so 4 females is a good start.

I moved on to the second feeder but saw nothing then moved again to BIG wood, by now it was 11am so it was late but I was passing so thought I'll give it an hour.

there were squirrels about but they were only interested in playing chase, I was sat on my phone when I look again and there's a squirrel on the feeder 😳 gun up and it moved to the top of the feeder, it should have gone further, Pfft Whack and number 5 is down,  first male of the day, and strangely none of them had any ticks today!

 

BUT THIS MORNING a squirrel came up the garden,  bold as you like and straight up onto the bird feeders, helping itself to the sunflower seeds 😳😳 I've not seen one in or near the garden for months now, out with the Rapid, 22 seems quieter because there isn't the same crack as the pellet hits, but it's the same result. 

Then dozens of birds all over the feeders, Bull finch pair, Gold finches, blue tits, Robin's and Dunnocks, that's much better. 

[old man]

Outsmarted again today.

Last visit I identified a tree that seemed of feeding interest in the canopy, decided to move position a bit to increase my chances? Didn't go well, no interest shown but twice had kitts climb the tree I was under within a foot of my right elbow to vanish in the canopy above. Another skittered about on the floor in an open grass field for an hour 50 yds, ok for the 410xtra if it had paused?

Eventually one came out of nowhere from the brash into the open to jump back behind the unclimbable fence when it saw the gun move, obviously thought it was invisible? Wrong, a 30m chest shot did the job leaving another snack for the night cleaners.

[Mice!]

17 minutes ago, old man said:

Last visit I identified a tree that seemed of feeding interest in the canopy

But what was the tree??

[old man]

2 minutes ago, Mice! said:

But what was the tree??

A mature Beech, bud.

[Mice!]

2 hours ago, old man said:

A mature Beech, bud.

Cheers I've got a lot of Beech in one wood, I'll be keeping an eye on them 👍

[old man]

A different day today, seemingly lots of silly kitts around.

First off one at 50 yds trying to recreate a log climb 35 yds up, stopped for a breather. The next one discovered no hiding place in the brash the other side of the fence. The next 3 were playing kiss chase at 30yds. One dropped vertically from the canopy 10yds to the floor to escape a good hiding, a sticky end courtesy of the xtra. The other 2 decided to decamp into the next canopy, one hiding by flattening itself on a horizontal branch, wrong decision. The impact slap made the final one hide in the upper branches, took me 5 minutes to find it and give it the  long drop. The final one appeared from the brash, came through the fence to sit on top of a fence post at 20yds, pop went the xtra.

Final count, 4 for the night crew, 1 sow kitt and 1 mature lactating sow from the fence post. Not a feeder in sight.

[Mice!]

3 hours ago, old man said:

Final count, 4 for the night crew, 1 sow kitt and 1 mature lactating sow from the fence post. Not a feeder in sight

Nicely done 👍

I shot Wednesday morning and evening,  I shot feeders and walked around,  plenty of squirrels high up in the Oaks in the evening. 

Then I shot again this morning covering 3 areas, squirrels again in the canopy but also on freshly filled feeders.

Total for the week was 18 with a couple of pregnant females. 

I'm still not seeing many kits though?

Highlight of the week though was seeing an Osprey on my way home Wednesday night,  I turned around and parked up watching it for twenty minutes,  it didn't try and catch anything but it was great to watch. 

[old man]

18 hours ago, Mice! said:

Nicely done 👍

I shot Wednesday morning and evening,  I shot feeders and walked around,  plenty of squirrels high up in the Oaks in the evening. 

Then I shot again this morning covering 3 areas, squirrels again in the canopy but also on freshly filled feeders.

Total for the week was 18 with a couple of pregnant females. 

I'm still not seeing many kits though?

Highlight of the week though was seeing an Osprey on my way home Wednesday night,  I turned around and parked up watching it for twenty minutes,  it didn't try and catch anything but it was great to watch. 

A fantastic week!

[ratchers]

Out this morning at 6.30 with the sun shining and very little wind, and nothing even though the feeding box was down a third in two days, then it started raining, I wasn't getting wet due to the full foliage cover so waited it out and had three customers in twenty minutes, then it faired up and with it the greys as I saw no more in the next hour.

[Mice!]

2 hours ago, old man said:

A fantastic week!

Cheers mate, been a fantastic month, 62 altogether,  I shot as many in June in one wood as I did the rest of the year, other patches didn't get going till May.

1 hour ago, ratchers said:

Out this morning at 6.30 with the sun shining and very little wind, and nothing even though the feeding box was down a third in two days, then it started raining, I wasn't getting wet due to the full foliage cover so waited it out and had three customers in twenty minutes, then it faired up and with it the greys as I saw no more in the next hour.

I'll bet they were back in the tree tops once the rain stopped,  but a good 20 minutes 👍

[old man]

Out again this morning, dozens of small birds and only 2 tree rats playing hard to get at 50yds.

One made an error after about 2 hours by thinking it was invisible in shadow. A snack for the night crew.

[ratchers]

Out this morning as it wasn't raining,first time for ages due to the weather but it was very windy which I never find is very good for shooting the greys but it wasn't a wasted trip as one turned up and was the first grey I've shot with the newly tried .22 hades,it didn't get up!

[Mice!]

I didn't manage to get out properly last week because I got called home, but I had feeders still getting hit and plenty showing on camera. 

So with terrible weather over the weekend and it being nice today I expected great things!

I did an hour and a half at the first feeder for one young male and saw nothing else, but the birds kept me company, especially the Robin's flitting around my head in the Holly tree.

So by 8am I'd moved on up the road, made my way into the feeder, but both woods were very quiet. There was a squirrel at the feeder, which came back shortly after I'd arrived. 

I've still not quite got a comfy spot to shoot from here yet, so I was lay prone and took a good sized female off the feeder. Then it was watching the woodpecker for an hour!

I did see two other squirrels walking around but I just couldn't get a shot I was happy with. 

Both woods were seriously quiet today, far different to previous weeks,  so with not much doing I went to work for the afternoon and some OT 😅

[old man]

On 17/07/2023 at 15:44, Mice! said:

I didn't manage to get out properly last week because I got called home, but I had feeders still getting hit and plenty showing on camera. 

So with terrible weather over the weekend and it being nice today I expected great things!

I did an hour and a half at the first feeder for one young male and saw nothing else, but the birds kept me company, especially the Robin's flitting around my head in the Holly tree.

So by 8am I'd moved on up the road, made my way into the feeder, but both woods were very quiet. There was a squirrel at the feeder, which came back shortly after I'd arrived. 

I've still not quite got a comfy spot to shoot from here yet, so I was lay prone and took a good sized female off the feeder. Then it was watching the woodpecker for an hour!

I did see two other squirrels walking around but I just couldn't get a shot I was happy with. 

Both woods were seriously quiet today, far different to previous weeks,  so with not much doing I went to work for the afternoon and some OT 😅

Can't shoot them twice bud?

[Mice!]

46 minutes ago, old man said:

Can't shoot them twice bud?

I've only taken low numbers from these two woods, I've been neglecting them for other spots, but I've kept the feeders going, but there are a lot of Hazel's in both of these woods so that might be why it was quiet?