Them squirrels is too quick!

[Bear Stone]

Hi fellas,
Recently I watched a Ray Mears video in which he shows how to build a squirrel trap (by crushing). Having never tried this I decided to give it a go.
I made it so that the space for dinner to take the bait (a hazel nut) was just a little bigger than my fist.
I went back up to the house and decided to watch for a while. After only a few minutes a squirrel appeared. Now, if I hadn't seen this with my own eyes I would never have believed it! :shock:
Through my monocular I saw the squirrel begin to remove the nut from the trigger and the trap started to collapse. Remember, the trap was collapsing BEFORE the nut was off the trigger! In a flash he was out of the trap (with the nut) and up the tree.
My conclusion; gravity is not enough. The roof of the trap needs additional force to make it close quicker.
Has anyone else used this kind of trap?

Bear

 

[Stew]

:yikes:
:rolmao:

 

[Stuart]

I might be wrong here but doesnt physics teach us that increasing the weight of an object will NOT increase the speed at which it falls,it will only increase the force of impact, so the squirrel will still get away even if you put a heavier weight on the trap

All falling objects near the earth accelerate at
the rate of about 10 m/s per second:
g = 10 m/s2

have you tried a squirrel snare?? these work and are much easier to set up, and they take advantage of the squirrals speed to catch him

 

[Adi007]

Yep, 9.8 meters per second per second.

By increasing the weight what happens is that the trap needs less of a drop to accomplish it's job!

 

[sargey]

and when you catch 'em you have to eat 'em :-D

cheers, and.

 

[Stuart]

I've not yet eaten one yet myself, but Gary tells me they taste like a cross between pork and duck :-? sounds nice

 

[sargey]

sounds better than rabbit!

cheers, and.

 

[Stuart]

I love rabbit! second only to steak

 

[ditchfield]

How about spring powered. Use a sapling. Could work :-?

 

[Powderburn]

sounds better than rabbit!

Hoodoo the squirrel addict will probably disagree with me, but rabbit is much better than squirrel. More meat and way easier to skin, too.

 

[Celtic Dragon]

sounds better than rabbit!

Hoodoo the squirrel addict will probably disagree with me, but rabbit is much better than squirrel. More meat and way easier to skin, too.

Not to mention shoot. :mrgreen:

Simon

 

[Andy]

been veggi i'm not quite sure i want this to work but it sounds a challange. if you tie a piece of cord to the top log then loop it under the bottom part of the trap. this cord it then tied to a sappling causing the string to be under tension this shoukd speed up the trap i can try and draw it if you like but i still cant how it on here. though i will email it if you want

 

[Ed]

How about spring powered. Use a sapling. Could work

Be careful ... that could end up with you on the wrong side of the law :-(
There are certain legal commercialy sold sprung loaded traps for squirrels, but even these become illegal if set. for example, in a tree where they may catch birds.

Ed

 

[Bear Stone]

Hi fellas,
I was thinking along the lines of a sapling putting the roof of the trap under force to make it work. I think the squirrels are to quick otherwise.

Bear

 

[sargey]

any ideas on a source of info for what's legal and what's not? are deadfalls legal?

cheers, and.

 

[Hoodoo]

Pb, I'm not going to disagree with you. That would assume controversy. EVERYONE knows squirrel tastes better.

 

[Ed]

Laws governing Traps and snares include:
Protection of Animals Act 1911
The Pest Act 1945
Abandonment of Animals Act 1960
Criminal Damage Act 1971
Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981
Environmental Protection Act 1990
The Deer Act 1991
Spring Traps (approval) Order 1995

There is alot to trall through there :-( and there is probably more....

Ed

 

[Powderburn]

EVERYONE knows squirrel tastes better.

):

 

[maddave]

There's no doubt that sqwerls is good eating, but for me bunnies have more meat and a better flavour :-D

 

[Wildlife Ranger]

Personally, I prefer squirrels (grey of course) to rabbits, as they have a much nicer flavour, and there is a surprising amount of meat on them.
I would not use killing traps, as they often don't kill, and do catch non-target species. I always use cage traps, but obviously, like other traps, you need to check them at least once (preferably twice) a day - by law.
Bait them with peanuts, maize, etc. No point trying while the hazelnuts are available though!!