Fisherman Mike Posted October 29, 2004 Report Share Posted October 29, 2004 There appear to be more rabbits about in my neck of the woods than at any time I can remember in the last 30 years ( since ive been shooting them ). This has also had an incredible effect on the Buzzard population ( rabbits make up over 80% of their diet ) and only last week I saw 11 in the air at one time. You used to see the odd Buzzard in the 70,s but no where near as many as now. I think both population expolsions are a good thing and another indication of how proper control of rabbit populations by shooting rather than chemical and bacterial warfare can benefit the wildlife of Britain. I still see cases of Myxy nearly every spring but the colonies I keep in check appear to have inbred a certain immunity to it. What have you other Bunny Bashers noticed in your areas ? FM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piebob Posted October 29, 2004 Report Share Posted October 29, 2004 Rabbits used to be in reasonably high numbers where I shoot but I don't even bother now as I rarely see any. I ALWAYS see at least two buzzards though.............. What else do buzzards go for? Would they take pheasants? Piebob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fisherman Mike Posted October 29, 2004 Author Report Share Posted October 29, 2004 Poults perhaps and Chicks... but often road kill or Carrion is their staple along with earth worms believe it or not! They are not great hunting birds like falcons or other hawks. FM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
webber Posted October 29, 2004 Report Share Posted October 29, 2004 FM I agree that many rabbits now have a form of immunity. I shoot the rabbits once a year on a farm in Scotland. Earlier this year the farmer was telling me that he reckoned that the numbers were back around to those prior to mixy. webber Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Browning Posted October 29, 2004 Report Share Posted October 29, 2004 Same in my neck of the woods, both for rabbit numbers and Buzzard numbers. We can't seem to find anyone locally that ferrets (and is sensible with it), so we've put in a couple of drop boxes this afternoon to see if we can slim down the numbers where it's difficult to shoot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ollie Posted October 29, 2004 Report Share Posted October 29, 2004 the buzzard is really common in my neck of the woods, I saw 7 in the air at one time one day. The rabbits are starting to make a comeback, lets hope they are now imune to mixy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lurch Posted October 30, 2004 Report Share Posted October 30, 2004 ****** all rabbits on my land Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elma Fud Posted October 31, 2004 Report Share Posted October 31, 2004 At the start of the season the land where I shoot was heaving in young rabbits. Then came along mixy and wiped most of them out. I'm now struggling to supply my local butcher with 15 head shot bunnies a week. I sometimes have to cover two or three local farms :thumbs: just to get my quota.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aled_cky Posted October 31, 2004 Report Share Posted October 31, 2004 thousands on my farm, me and dad going out soon.. the arsenal : Remington .22LR 15s S/A for him Browning Citori 12g 1/4 1/4 O/U for me should have a good round, will have a pic of the results again, unless we through them all as we kill them :thumbs: bit of vermin control to be done. Aled Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digger Posted October 31, 2004 Report Share Posted October 31, 2004 the farm i shoot on is smothered in them and always has been.we night shoot after the harvest,ferret in winter and do our best to keep on top of them.if we went out three times a week it would make no difference to their numbers they are that prolific.there are too many badger setts on the land for us to ferret the bigger warrens.it would probably help if i could hit bolting rabbits,put me on the back of a pick up and im mustard.give me a bolting rabbit,a days notice and its exact route and i will still end up ploughing a furow :*) this year we are going to try stinking them out and after a couple of days having a walk around with dogs, semi driven rabbit shooting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beezer Posted November 18, 2004 Report Share Posted November 18, 2004 I've never used a drop box. How do they work and can I make my own? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ollie Posted November 18, 2004 Report Share Posted November 18, 2004 Beezer The October issue (I think) of sporting gun had a great article on drop boxes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crowblaster Posted November 18, 2004 Report Share Posted November 18, 2004 Just curious...where I used to go shooting if there was a boom in the rabbit population sooner or later the foxes or coyotes moved in on them. Then in turn there would be alot more sightings of foxes. Are there no foxes in the areas y'all are talking about? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ckbraider Posted November 19, 2004 Report Share Posted November 19, 2004 I agree FM i went out last night into an area of my shoot i had not ventured and bloody hell the place was crawling, in the 300 or so yards that i walked i must have seen upwards of about 60-70 rabbits i kid you not, and they must have been the dullest rabbits i have ever come across, we managed to take 9 between the 2 of us in about an hour, good job the car was close by, we could easily have taken a lot more but the cold got the better of us, it was absolutley bloody freezing last night pics will follow shortly when my mate emails them to me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pigeon master Posted November 19, 2004 Report Share Posted November 19, 2004 Its true the rabbit population has also increased up north , its the reason I'm getting a rimmy because the numbers are vast. We did have a easy winter for them though and breeding does go on throughout in certain areas. lets hope mixy is a thing of the past. PM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fisherman Mike Posted November 19, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 19, 2004 Are there no foxes in the areas y'all are talking about? There is plenty of them also mate but not so many Coyotes in the Cotswolds.. And there will be even more when the hunt ban comes into force ! fm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tiercel Posted November 19, 2004 Report Share Posted November 19, 2004 This part of the woods had hundreds of rabbits up till august then a mutated strain of mixi hit and since then i have seen only 5 rabbits. Mixi is a virus much the same as flu. It is a disease that occurs naturally in south american rabbits and because of its ability to mutate, will never be totally erradicated. So the scenario goes like this the rabbits start to build an immunity to mixi, less and less succumb each year. Till the rabbits hit plague proportions, then a new strain will hit and the cycle starts over again. Bit of a pain but alas a fact of life now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tiercel Posted November 19, 2004 Report Share Posted November 19, 2004 Take it the speling polise are out in fourse again!!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ernyha Posted November 19, 2004 Report Share Posted November 19, 2004 Take it the speling polise are out in fourse again!!!!!!! Apart from one too many "R's" in "eradicate" your post looks OK to me TC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digger Posted November 19, 2004 Report Share Posted November 19, 2004 went out last monday and shot thirty in a little over an hour.was due to go out again tonight but yesterdays rain and clear skies tonight put paid to that.oh,and the fact that at the moment it is hovering just above freezing and i am a soft southerner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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