This is to update my report of my efforts, past and projected on the small game and vermin of the county. Squirrel season ends tomorrow and my take was 2 and 1/2 bushels, about 75% of which were the smaller, tender grays. About a half bushel each fell to the .32 caplock and the .25-20, the rest were .22 lr kills. Rabbit and quail season run until the end of February and while I've seen a few coveys, I haven't seen any rabbits and little sign of them. Our lease is now nearly all in some stage of tree growth, including planted pines. Hawks, owls, cats, and bobcats are abundant, and I've seen a dozen bird/rabbit kill sites. Two bobcats were killed on the lease by others. The season on them runs a bit and if possible I plan to bait and call for them, foxes, coons, and the coyotes moving in. The paths were full all deer season with black scat from all the predators eating deer meat. With coyotes, wounded deer no longer survive. Just before last week's snow and freeze I had a groundhog report, but I don't think I'll see one till green up. Beavers are open for a while yet and I've been wanting one to eat. Maybe in late winter. Got one crow as the leaves were falling, while squirreling and they will come to a predator call, so who knows for the next while, always carry one. Box trapped 6 cats in my back yard. I did get a nice little 4 point deer who turned into sausage. Donated the cats to the "Save the Starving Buzzards" campaign at my deer lease. Turkey season starts in early April and I ease out of the above into "turkey looking" in mid-March. Usually find it neccessary to dispatch a couple of dogs still starving in the woods, left over from the fall deer dog hunting. Ever hear of dog hunters with such large packs they don't name their own dogs and spray paint numbers on them, using unmarked collars? That's about it for now. ned

Sounds like a pretty fair year Ned, good shootin' with the caplock BTW. The bait approach for Bobby may not be too productive, but if your good with a mouth call(squeaker) in the bottoms you'll bag a few. Too, that is prime country for 'yotes and fox, especially in the spring. Try pup sounds, both kit and 'yote, as they like to eat each others young in the spring. Coyotes are getting to be a serious problem here in the Southern woods and they are a trial to hunt in close cover. I'd suggest wire snares, both chokers and spring foot snares, along travel paths with the use of attractors such as cow bones or scent. If you set the choke snares between a couple of small sapplings with the center of loop about 12" above the ground(10" loop) they become very specific to coyotes because of stature and travel habits. This minimizes the hazard to non-selected species such as deer. Good luck!

Hey Dan,how about a VC style "gate" for them yotes. derf

Ned Good report.Haven't had squirrel in ages.Bait for bobcats works good.I have used a bird wing or feathers hang from a branch.I use leghold traps and snares on coyotes(that's were wolfer came from)use to trap 4 different grazing associations and about 2 millions acres of private/public ground.Be real careful where you hang snares as they are nonselective.Called lots of coyotes,used a Tallyho call.Good luck with the rest of the season.I heard there were close to 1000 deer yarded up on some haystacks not far from the house.Gonna get the Studebaker thawed out and go do some videoing.It's -38 degrees out right now.I might wait a couple of hours.

derf, an excellent idea! Geez, how did I overlook that'n?

Wolfer, you are right about the feathers, forgot about that trick. Was thinkin' like 'gut pile', don't think you'll get a lot of mileage outa that. Anyway, maybe it's different here in the dark woods, but you really can be selective with snares, even to the point of sparing the fox to get the 'yote. It's all in the set up. Their movements are very channelized in heavy brush or southern forests and a snare at the right height rarely gets confused as to quarry. Don't know squat about it out in your part of the world though and would be first to say so. Keep your knife sharp Wolf Man.

Dan, you need not apologise,you weren't a grunt! As to the coyotes being channelized,that might be the perfect place for the "Malay Gate". Just think, the gate set,you in your tree stand with a video camera and preditor call, and the gate on an electronic release. There just might be a market for vids like that,like say in AIT. That would get a grunts attention. derf