Pine Martins and Squirrels

[Janne]

If the population in Uk is ready to accept an eradication, it has to be a multi pronged one. Shooting, trapping, chemical, with predators.
Costs big money, so I do not think any government would have guts enough to propose, or invest.

There are other, worse invasive species in Uk.
Japanese Knotwed for example.

 

[Nomad64]

That was kinda my point: the difference in species there vs here make comparisons difficult at best.

Sadly, its a bit like Marmota Monax Day. Every time someone starts a thread on here about efforts in the UK to re-establish the red squirrel or other native species, the discussion almost immediately gets dragged to the other side of the Atlantic.

Last time, to give those of us with a genuine and active interest in UK conservation initiatives a bit of respite, the mods kindly created a thread to enable non-native members to chew the fat on conservation issues from an overseas perspective.

Link below.

https://bushcraftuk.com/community/i...-natural-balance-americas-and-exotics.148970/

 

[santaman2000]

Sadly, its a bit like Marmota Monax Day. Every time someone starts a thread on here about efforts in the UK to re-establish the red squirrel or other native species, the discussion almost immediately gets dragged to the other side of the Atlantic.

Last time, to give those of us with a genuine and active interest in UK conservation initiatives a bit of respite, the mods kindly created a thread to enable non-native members to chew the fat on conservation issues from an overseas perspective.

Link below.

https://bushcraftuk.com/community/i...-natural-balance-americas-and-exotics.148970/

Yeah; and I usually get sucked into them. For the moment I’m more interested in how successful this program to preserve an existing small species is.

It’s only when somebody starts talking about reestablishing long gone species (such as wolves, bears, or wild swine) that comparisons to North America become relevant.

 

[petrochemicals]

My gue

Like most animals, they keep to where the food is. Maybe they could be trained a bit, semi domesticated?

But then, of course, shooting them off should be very easy in a park, then introducing the Reds.
Not sure what many of the inhabitants would say though. We do not want another Metoo or Extinction Rebellion....
Culling Rebellion.
So for that single reason, unworkable.

My guess is stoats and weasels could perform a similar role, they are already domesticated. All we need to do now is find something to eradicate the mink, I think the crayfish problem will be removed by people !

On the Metoo movement, me too started as a tag for things where people either jumped on the band wagon or wished to get recognition for something someone else had said, not really what I would have called the movement in question.

 

[petrochemicals]

They released some in the forest of dean while back , I actually was living in Monmouth and went to the talk in Chepstow few years ago when they said about releasing some, but that's quite a journey.

I saw one in the snowdonia national park about 10 years ago. They are prolific breeders and no natural predators in England or wales, so they should spread if the food source is there.

 

[Dogoak]

I remember my father telling me of how the town council used to pay folks for grey squirrel tails, I think it was a shilling a pop, probably late 40's-1950's?
Times have changed with air gun laws!

 

[TLM]

Chasing squirrels with a crossbow would be quite sporty. Now that the EU prohibition is not in force anymore.

 

[santaman2000]

I remember my father telling me of how the town council used to pay folks for grey squirrel tails, I think it was a shilling a pop, probably late 40's-1950's?
Times have changed with air gun laws!

I don’t know about the councils, but the fishing lure companies here used to pay a nickel each for squirrel tails. They used the hair to tie artificial flies. As far as I know they still do.

 

[Broch]

I don’t know about the councils, but the fishing lure companies here used to pay a nickel each for squirrel tails. They used the hair to tie artificial flies. As far as I know they still do.

I've had good success using grey squirrel tail; it's also an easy material to tie

Chasing squirrels with a crossbow would be quite sporty. Now that the EU prohibition is not in force anymore.

To avoid any misunderstanding, it remains illegal in the UK to hunt with a crossbow (it never was part of any EU prohibition; it's the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 that makes it illegal).

 

[Nomad64]

Chasing squirrels with a crossbow would be quite sporty. Now that the EU prohibition is not in force anymore.

 

[TLM]

Actually EU did prohibit hunting with crossbow. I did not know of your apparently earlier legislation.

 

[TLM]

it never was part of any EU prohibition; it's the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 that makes it illegal).

Several sites reference to the Bern Convention 1979 as the source for crossbow prohibition. I don't know when UK adopted it. As the system works such EU legislation is taken into national legislation. In Finland it was adopted into legislation 1993 or -96 but the reference is made to the Bern Convention.

So even if is written into UK legislation it very well might have originated in some EU directive. That is just the way it works. Or did for the UK.

 

[Nomad64]

Several sites reference to the Bern Convention 1979 as the source for crossbow prohibition. I don't know when UK adopted it. As the system works such EU legislation is taken into national legislation. In Finland it was adopted into legislation 1993 or -96 but the reference is made to the Bern Convention.

So even if is written into UK legislation it very well might have originated in some EU directive. That is just the way it works. Or did for the UK.

https://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Don't_feed_the_Troll

 

[Broch]

If you say so - we are bound by UK law as defined in the act I referenced. Now let's get back to the topic of the OP.

 

[Janne]

Maybe if some Tv chef showed people how to cook Squirrel, That would help too.

 

[Woody girl]

Must admit I've never seen a red squirrel though it's on my bucket list.
I've only ever seen greys and they can be fun to watch which I regularly do.
I'd rather they were reds though.
I don't know how I'd feel if the greys I watch were culled without immediate introduction of reds. I'd miss my sqizzles dreadfully. They do cheer me up despite knowing they shouldn't be here at all.

 

[Janne]

The Reds are just like the Greys. Playful, jump around, chase each other up and down trees, twitching tails.
Great fun to watch!

What is not fun per se, but interesting, is to watch the males fight for the females. Again, very similar behavior between them!

We have plenty of Reds in Sweden ( Norway) , and no Greys. When I saw my first Greys ( in UK) I thought it was a UK specific version of the Reds. So similar!
Greyish and larger.