To: North American Fruit Explorers <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
Subject: Re: [NAFEX] squirrels
Date: Thu, 31 Jul 2008 09:25:12 -0500
Alan,
It may be necessary to initiate a diversity of approaches in the
running battle with the bushy-tailed tree rats. Some may not meet
the 'humane' standards some folks might want, but after all, they are
VERMIN; they don't share, and they're not an endangered species.
Marksmanship practice with a shotgun, .22 rifle, or powerful pellet
rifle works well when you're on-site, and a good dog can sometimes do
quite a number on them.
I forwarded an email I'd received recently about the Kania squirrel
traps - www.kania.net - I've seen favorable reports on those, both
here and on the GardenWeb Fruit & Orchards forums, from folks who've used them.
My friend, the late Doc Lisenby, had some success with the big Victor
rat traps on big trees adjacent to his orchard - he'd build an
'L'-shaped platform, fasten the upright leg of the L to the tree
trunk, with the horizontal leg sticking out 3-4 ft from the trunk,
with the baited rat trap fastened at the end of the horizontal
leg. It seems that the squirrels coming down the trunk could not
resist the temptation to run out to the end of that nice new 'branch'
to investigate, and 'WHAM-O', they were caught.
My old friend Gordon Nofs put me on to
"peanut-butter/Plaster-of-Paris" bonbons - you mix PoP powder into
cheap peanut butter until you reach a 'stiff dough' consistency, then
fashion it into little balls - I usually make mine peanut size - and
place these in strategic locations such as the crotches of trees,
etc. Be sure that they're placed in a site where pets or small
children might gain access to them
I never saw the squirrels in the act of eating them, but in instances
where I was experiencing squirrel depredation on pecan & oak
seedlings, the squirrel problems ceased soon after I put out the
PB/PoP goodies. The original thought behind this one is that the PoP
'set up' in the squirrel's GI tract, but I don't think that's the
case - actually, I think it either causes a wild derangement in their
serum calcium:phosphorus ratio, or the PoP reacts violently with
gastric acid, causing gastric distention and rupture. I think the
danger of secondary poisoning of non-target species, like
raptors/foxes, etc., which might be catching or consuming PoP-treated
squirrels would not be an issue, as opposed to the anticoagulant or
Vitamin D analog rodenticides.
A water barrel, with board leading up to the top, but with water
level low enough that they can't escape once they get in can take out
some of the miscreants.