squirrel control

[Sciurus]

@Mice- some good numbers there Kev👍

I have had a few mornings out with singles or complete blanks- not seeing many and not catching many in the loan traps.

This morning started badly… I have a nice 10 acre wood, that I am allowed to shoot the greys when the owners daughter is away. I got the all clear on Wednesday and set out early with the 20b, unfortunately when I got there, there was a gang of tree fellers clearing branches along the power lines. 
This is the second time in a fortnight, I have had to pack up because of felling (so many widow makers left over from previous storms).

I went back home and picked up my Daystate and headed to my nearest permission which is unfortunately a very popular tourist destination .

Another volunteer had told me the greys were on the witch elm on his permission, so I kept my eyes open and sure enough I saw a tall sapling shaking in the walled garden below me, one- two and then three greys running and eating in the canopy! The only problem there wasn’t a safe backstop, there were two concealed footpaths running parallel below me and a school further on. 
I carried on and did a large detour and entered the wall garden from below, immediately a young grey ran up a nearby trunk, which was quickly shot and picked up. I managed to position myself practically under the witch elm, which was now shaking with 4 greys running about. Taking  my time waiting for a clear safe shot I downed two of them.

Turning round I could hear another calling 50 yds away,  I crept closer, the sound was echoing round the garden walls and it took a while to finally spot it in a yew. Four down. Returning to the wich elm, I spotted a grey with the thermal sitting in the crook of a pine. Five down in about 30 mins, which is good going for me (although I could only pick up three- the badgers can have the other two!)

By 9 am, it was just too busy with noisy walkers in groups of five and six and assorted dogs and time above and below, so time to go home for a well earned coffee.

If any of you have witch elm, perhaps it is worth a look.

The greys were in the taller saplings to the right of the picture.

[Mice!]

6 hours ago, Sciurus said:

Five down in about 30 mins, which is good going for me (although I could only pick up three- the badgers can have the other two!)

By 9 am, it was just too busy with noisy walkers in groups of five and six and assorted dogs and time above and below, so time to go home for a well earned coffee.

If any of you have witch elm, perhaps it is worth a look.

Well done mate, great morning out, especially as I know where you are!

I read a post this week saying the squirrels were on the Witch Elm, straight on Google, but not sure I have any, at least I've not seen them 👍

[Sciurus]

58 minutes ago, Mice! said:

Well done mate, great morning out, especially as I know where you are!

I read a post this week saying the squirrels were on the Witch Elm, straight on Google, but not sure I have any, at least I've not seen them 👍

This was the walled garden near where we park. The usual shooting area was deserted (apart from rabbits).

Wych elm was described to me as looking like a hazel bush with large flowers. I had never taken notice of it before, it is so insignificant, but the greys were on it like a rash. They took very little notice of me approaching and knocking them off one by one. I have never seen anything like it as they normally run a mile before I park up! The thermal was very helpful. Every day is a school day.

I will get out over the weekend before the feeding frenzy finishes.

 

 

[Sciurus]

I meant to add that if an impatient B. like me can shoot 5, goodness knows how many Hawkeye mice would have shot!😂 These were all mature greys not young and stupid ones. - I went last week and saw nothing.

[Mice!]

57 minutes ago, Sciurus said:

I meant to add that if an impatient B. like me can shoot 5, goodness knows how many Hawkeye mice would have shot!😂 These were all mature greys not young and stupid ones. - I went last week and saw nothing.

😅😅😅 there must definitely be something about the Witch Elm then if they were just sitting there getting shot, I'll probably find one once the big feed has finished 🙄

[Sciurus]

I popped out this morning and shot two more, not easy shooting as they really shake and bounce in the branches.

The woodland trust website have a good section on wych elm.

My trees are only tall and leggy saplings, the flowers are lighter green with a seed in the centre.

 You can just see the lighter flowers in clusters

a typical leaf

Flowers with small seeds discarded by the greys

This tawney owlet was quite undisturbed by my presence and shooting.

[ratchers]

Was out early yesterday morning after topping the flip top the day before which was empty again, got there and there was a grey on the box, whether he heard or saw me but when I looked up from getting the gun out of the slip he was gone. Didn't have long to wait as a youngster popped up and was squirrel number 1. A wait ensued until I heard a rustling and looked to my right and about one yard away through the camo net was grey, no chance to do anything just hoped he was on his wait to the box, whether it did or not who knows as it was another wait for squirrel 2 to eat his last peanut. Now the next grey was not happy and flitted about until he stopped on is way down giving me a shot where typically hung on till he dropped, classic head shot. Squirrel number 4 was definately not happy looking at his fallen comrades and just would not settle, took him about five to ten minutes to eventually take a peanut where another head shot got him, so four greys in four hours sort of all equally spaced out, all young, not like the one last week which was a mature boar.

[London Best]

It is odd that squirrels are edgy about fallen comrades, but rats don’t seem to care one bit.

[jall25]

10 minutes ago, London Best said:

It is odd that squirrels are edgy about fallen comrades, but rats don’t seem to care one bit.

Hi LB - i have never noticed them to car one bit up here 

I had 15 down on 1 feeder last week - one on top of another - all adults too 

Im pretty on top of them in the wood really but this was just a tin piece that had got "forgotten" - just shows how numbers ramp up if we are not on them all the time 

[Mice!]

3 hours ago, London Best said:

It is odd that squirrels are edgy about fallen comrades, but rats don’t seem to care one bit.

Sometimes they bother, sometimes they don't,  as soon as they start to react then I'll go and clear the floor. 

10 hours ago, ratchers said:

Was out early yesterday morning after topping the flip top the day before which was empty again

How small are your feeders? I can't imagine a feeder being emptied in a day, they'd be pointless on most of the ground I'm shooting?

[London Best]

1 minute ago, Mice! said:

Sometimes they bother, sometimes they don't,  as soon as they start to react then I'll go and clear the floor. 

I have never shot squirrels in quantity myself. I was only basing my statement on what yourself and others have posted on here. 
Last time out ratting I shot the thick end of forty (HW77k). From where I sat I could count exactly thirty still visible in the yard through the thermal but more and more were emerging and feeding all around the fallen. 
I couldn’t carry on shooting because I had run out of ammo, so I picked the thirty and made for bed.

[jall25]

28 minutes ago, London Best said:

I have never shot squirrels in quantity myself. I was only basing my statement on what yourself and others have posted on here. 
Last time out ratting I shot the thick end of forty (HW77k). From where I sat I could count exactly thirty still visible in the yard through the thermal but more and more were emerging and feeding all around the fallen. 
I couldn’t carry on shooting because I had run out of ammo, so I picked the thirty and made for bed.

 

I have done this with squirrels LB and as you say rats too - I was out this winter and my pal said the rats are using a run from the wood to some feed - lots of rats - i looked through the thermal and spotted a few moving further down the wood. I said to my pal move me down there -we were in the 4x4 - but he was reluctant as he thought they would head for the feed - as i saw a few move moving i pushed and we moved - In the next half hour i shot 70 in about 3mx3m area - As i shot more - more came to look ! Most odd

 

When we shot hares in the past on hare drives i have seen hares bucking dead hares. I dont think animals (most) animals see mortality as we do - the same can be said when culling deer - shoot one from a herd and many just stand and watch as you shoot a second third or even fourth 

[Mice!]

9 hours ago, London Best said:

Last time out ratting I shot the thick end of forty (HW77k). From where I sat I could count exactly thirty still visible in the yard through the thermal but more and more were emerging and feeding all around the fallen. 
I couldn’t carry on shooting because I had run out of ammo, so I picked the thirty and made for bed

I've never managed to run out of pellets yet, at least there's always more in the car, I'd have thought you'd had enough just loading a 77 40 times 😅

The lads who shoot rats do say that the blood attracts other rats, there not picky when it comes to an easy meal.

[jall25]

52 minutes ago, Mice! said:

I've never managed to run out of pellets yet, at least there's always more in the car, I'd have thought you'd had enough just loading a 77 40 times 😅

The lads who shoot rats do say that the blood attracts other rats, there not picky when it comes to an easy meal.

 

I think its the urine / scent that attracts the others - they use it to follows each other trails dont they - like squirrels 

[ratchers]

11 hours ago, Mice! said:

How small are your feeders? I can't imagine a feeder being emptied in a day, they'd be pointless on most of the ground I'm shooting

I didn't explain that well, it had been emptied in a week from one visit to the next.

[London Best]

2 hours ago, Mice! said:

I've never managed to run out of pellets yet, at least there's always more in the car, I'd have thought you'd had enough just loading a 77 40 times 

It won’t happen again! I had just chucked about fifty in my pocket, thinking that would be enough. I did miss a few. 
The biggest problem with loading the 77 is doing it in pitch darkness whilst sitting on a low seat. A mag fed repeater is definitely an advantage in that situation, but I don’t have one.

[Mice!]

2 hours ago, jall25 said:

 

I think its the urine / scent that attracts the others - they use it to follows each other trails dont they - like squirrels 

They'll follow the scent path yes, but once you start shooting a good few they'll get the scent of blood as well, watch enough videos and there's always rats dragging other rats away or licking at the blood.

53 minutes ago, London Best said:

won’t happen again! I had just chucked about fifty in my pocket, thinking that would be enough

😅😅 I've normally got two loaded mags and another 10 in my pocket,  if I get through that lot I've have a great day or a lousy one 😅

2 hours ago, ratchers said:

I didn't explain that well, it had been emptied in a week from one visit to the next.

👍👍

[Sciurus]

As I get older, it is harder to get out of bed early in the winter months, but with the lighter mornings it is much easier and as it was a dull morning I thought it would be a good opportunity to revisit the two wynch elm trees for an hour before breakfast.

Arriving at the walled garden, there were no greys having breakfast in the canopy but plenty of evidence of elm disc and leaves on the ground from previous feeding sessions.

Sitting down on a convenient bench, (luxury!), I set up the trigger sticks and donned the camo face mask. Scanning the area, there was already a grey hunched on a post, giving me the evil eye, an easy head shot through to the chest. I retrieved a large pregnant sow, as I sat down there was a grey immediately above gorging on the elm discs, a more difficult shot as I contorted beneath the trigger sticks- another large pregnant female.

Half an hour passed and a small grey then slowly crawled up the trunk 5 m in front of me. I caught up with it by the time it settled down for a snack in the canopy, making a quick adjustment for its close proximity, it was another easy shot.

Perhaps, another 10 minutes passed and there was another grey on the discs, this one clocked me moving the trigger sticks and hid in the branches. With the help of the thermal, I spotted just its head peeking out and again another easy shot all from the comfort of my bench.

It then started to drizzle so packed up and was home for breakfast by 8.30.

With the 4 today, that is 11, I have had in a week from two scrawny elm saplings. I am used to huge oaks and beeches and wary greys. I just can’t believe just how attractive the wych elm seeds are to the greys and how oblivious they are to me. I’ll be back…..

 

This mornings haul and my luxurious bench!

 

[Mice!]

@Sciurus brilliant mate, nice to see you getting the results with the air rifle, I'm expecting to find an Elm tree the week after they've stripped it 😅😅

[ratchers]

Out again between the showers and scored two in three hours but saw seven in total so some to go at still.

[Mice!]

A good day so far, I couldn't get out last week as I was on a course, but I was out as always topping up my feeders which are getting hammered at the moment. 
I shoot on a couple of places where I have to let the land owners know I'm coming so they often get left as I'll not msg if its getting later on.
I topped two up Sunday night, and another Monday, I'd not been to one for 19 days and it was very empty.
I put a camera up and expected it to be quiet till next week having ran empty.
But checking the camera last night showed squirrels straight on it Monday,  plus pheasant, ducks, Jays, deer and lots of other birds 😳

I set up the night before as usual and shot the planned feeder that's big but getting hammered,  even if a lot of feed is thrown on the floor, people say use wheat 🤣🤣 well it does grow well, unusually here nothing seems to eat it, other places it gets eaten off the floor?

I shot 8 here in about 3hrs, mix of mature males and juvenile females,  so there are still mature females out there, packed up and went for a long hour at the next spot.
It's a bit exposed when my brolley isn't up, but I was just having a look, definitely 4 maybe 5 squirrels about, I did around 90 mins and shot 3, very happy with that and I'll have a proper session here next week.

The odd thing here is the colour of the squirrels, these look very different to the first area, and there not that far apart.

I also had to shoot each youngster twice today, shot placement was spot on, but the heavies were zipping straight through, squirrels were down but still twitching so I just started hitting them twice. 

Couple of pictures of fresh tree damage and last year's damage on young Beech trees, I can only guess its young squirrels, as it happens each year near the feeder, then I shoot them and it stops, I've thought it was down to being dry last year but no issues with that this year.
Then the two feeders I shot this morning,  including the wheat field 🤣🤣

[Sciurus]

@Mice! Another good day out👍-(not quite your target of an empty magazine at the 1st feeder but very impressive!)

No midges up here yet.

I was Interested in your thoughts on youngsters needing a second shot. I have often found that when culling greys at very close range in a trap , that a second shot is needed (although brain dead they have a tight grip on the mesh). I guess the 1 shot passes straight through without much distortion?

[Mice!]

12 minutes ago, Sciurus said:

@Mice! Another good day out👍-(not quite your target of an empty magazine at the 1st feeder but very impressive!)

No midges up here yet.

I was Interested in your thoughts on youngsters needing a second shot. I have often found that when culling greys at very close range in a trap , that a second shot is needed (although brain dead they have a tight grip on the mesh). I guess the 1 shot passes straight through without much distortion?

Cheers mate, the youngsters didn't seem to know they were dead today, I doubt they needed a second shot really, but when they are still twitching after hitting the floor it seemed the best thing to do.

I do think a full power shot at point blank range just zips straight through,  especially in .177, I've done a few times and won't do it again,  .22 Bisley Pestcontrol is better, but if I was doing regular trap dispatch I'd get a pistol.

All set to go again in the morning,  camera says I'll be busy 🤞

[Mice!]

Took another 7 yesterday,  I lost 1 and MISSED 2, very unusual, I'd just shot a couple then missed, then took 3 in the time it takes to reload but missed a twitchy one, thankfully ended the morning with a perfect shot hitting where I aimed.

I'll still be checking the gun this weekend,  put some shots over the chrono just for peace of mind. 

Red dot is a bird feeder, the three shots wwnt red, white,  yellow,  yellow should have gone higher!

The three females all had ticks and fleas

The final shot,  I was about to pack up when two more were spotted coming in with the thermal. 

[Mice!]

Fair to say things went well yesterday, much better than expected actually, I kept thinking that'll be it and they kept turning up.

The camera was showing 2 and 3 squirrels a lot, so I was expecting a few.

I didn't shoot this wood in May, work and Stalkers meant I was just topping up, I started in here last summer and took 38, I'd only shot ten here this year so far and haven't seen much, but the last couple of weeks the feeder has been getting hit hard and now I know why, I shot 11 this morning!! Several pregnant females and females that had weaned young.

Plus there were another two in the canopy calling, but the thermal had died.

I'd checked my gun over the weekend,  did some zero checks and chrono and everything was spot on, I never missed a beat today,  shots were taken from the ground, wall, feeders and tree.

 

I left here for a quick hour over the hill, thinking I'll have a check and top up, well the feeder was almost empty despite shooting 7 last week 😳😳 that's 4kg in a week, shot another 3 here, another female that had weaned, male and a kit, it's not nice but they grow into big squirrels. 

The day finished with 4 Jets entertaining me and leaving my ears ringing.

Like I was never there....