Raccoon trapping

[356]

From what I read, the burning pretty much displaces the coons to more favorable food sources - like bottomlands, creek drainages, unburned areas, etc. I trapped a few years, hard, back in the late 70’s and early 80’s - when the timber companies burned a lot. A burn was not a favorable area to trap coons. We didnt have many coyotes then. A burn was not a favorable area to trap anything. The junction between burned and unburned area - as in the firelanes - was a great place to trap. I dont think the food sources for small predators that dont run down their food are as plentiful as unburned areas.

It will be interesting to see how the timber burns and FSI impact predator populations. When managing small properties such as ours (85 acres on the main farm), our primary goal is to make the property more attractive than those around us. While I was thankful to have a hen with poults on camera this year, it was a one-time occurrence and I have not seen a turkey on the property since July. At the same time, coyotes and raccoons are regular visitors to our cameras.

 

[Turkey Creek]

I have caught 1000’s of coons over my 70 years and have never had a coon killed and eaten in a trap. I dont believe coyotes mess with them. We have plenty of coyotes. We have very few mice, cotton rats, turkeys, no quail. You would think with a limited prey base, coyotes would be more likely to eat a coon - but I see no evidence they will even eat a dead coon.

Coyotes around my place feed heavily on piglets - but now that the pigs are gone - I dont know what they are eating.

Rodents, grasshoppers and berries make up a huge part of their diet this time of year. While they definitely prey on things we would like to keep around they do a great job on killing things I don't really care to have around as well. I have necropsied plenty of coyote stomachs and not uncommon to find at least 6 or more mice, voles, gophers etc

 

[SwampCat]

Rodents, grasshoppers and berries make up a huge part of their diet this time of year. While they definitely prey on things we would like to keep around they do a great job on killing things I don't really care to have around as well. I have necropsied plenty of coyote stomachs and not uncommon to find at least 6 or more mice, voles, gophers etc

We have no gophers and very few mice, rats, voles, rabbits - very few small ground living animals. Even snakes are rare. This did not used to be the case - used to see hundreds of cotton rats while bush hogging five acres - maybe three or four snakes. Now see one or two rats and no snakes. I just bush hogged five acres of millet and five acres of sunflowers yesterday and saw two rats. No snakes.

 

[Kooch]

Less this year than last but we are still seeing one or two.


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[Catscratch]

Rodents, grasshoppers and berries make up a huge part of their diet this time of year. While they definitely prey on things we would like to keep around they do a great job on killing things I don't really care to have around as well. I have necropsied plenty of coyote stomachs and not uncommon to find at least 6 or more mice, voles, gophers etc

I find yote scat most days of the year. Very rarely is there deer or calf hair in it. Lots of bug shells and berries. They absolutely love corn too.