We are in the middle of a glowing debate tonight and I want to see how out of line I am.
Do you property owners in turkey country kill ever nest predator you see? Coons, Possums, "birds", bobcats, etc.?
I am in the kill them all camp. But the question of "how to manage the hen population" came up.
Curious...
I shoot varmints that I like to shoot or feel like shooting when I feel like shooting them. I don’t care if anyone else does or does not on his place, I’m not on a crusade.
With few exceptions, pigs being one, all of those creatures were here making a go of it together for a long time before anyone was “managing” anything.
I feel pretty much the same way about deer “management” as well.
If your trying to grow your herd don’t sell your cows= don’t shoot your hens and shoot every predator you see but highly unlikely you will put a dent in them unless you have a relentless trapping program.
I’ve been holding off brush hogging until after nesting season to try to safe a few nests also.
Invasive animal and Predator control are a big part of good Land and Wildlife Management , Control does not mean eradication of all Predators they in most cases are Mother Natures vacum cleaners, but their numbers can get out of control, if they are where there is a large food supply, Invasive Animals are another problem and need strict control, Pigs, Feral Cats And Feral Dogs, just to name a few. YMMV Rio7
Shoot every coyote we see if we can. Trap egg eaters and coyotes/bobcats pretty hard. Trap pigs as soon as they show up - currently don’t have any. Would like to shoot some hawks and owls but that’s a no-no
Shoot every damn one you see. I'm a Quail hunter in nw oklahoma and I pop every one I can. I call coyotes year round. Bullsnakes are egg eating suckers too. Coons, opossums, skunks, they all get lead. A coyote is the best bird dog you'll find and they do it year round. Not a fan of turkeys either. We have big flocks on our farms and they will clean a pasture up. They eat 100 times as much as a Quail, and it's the same forage, seeds, insects. I wish they'd let us bust hawks and owls too, but it ain't worth the fine. Feral cats are good Quail predators too. Have to keep them in check. I keep a rifle in my truck year round for predators.
I was calving one spring in a large grass trap we had and killed 22 coyotes off that one field. That's just one pasture. Lost a few calves and a mother to coyotes. That will make your mind up real quick on what to do with coyotes. Coyote rut is here right now and you can call them easy with a few female howls. Had a neighbor call the state trapper up in the canyon country and they killed several with cyanide bombs.
Manage your hens by providing nesting cover.
Roost trees help as well.
Shoot every damn one you see. I'm a Quail hunter in nw oklahoma and I pop every one I can. I call coyotes year round. Bullsnakes are egg eating suckers too. Coons, opossums, skunks, they all get lead. A coyote is the best bird dog you'll find and they do it year round. Not a fan of turkeys either. We have big flocks on our farms and they will clean a pasture up. They eat 100 times as much as a Quail, and it's the same forage, seeds, insects. I wish they'd let us bust hawks and owls too, but it ain't worth the fine. Feral cats are good Quail predators too. Have to keep them in check. I keep a rifle in my truck year round for predators.
I wish we could take out some of these golden eagles as they are hell on dall sheep lambs and caribou calves.
you need to trap every year and BURN small parcels in a checkerboard type application. For example, if you won 50 acres, don't bur it all at once. Burn a couple of 10 acre parcels and then burn the remaining the next year. Fire is your BEST tool.
Yep we do this too. Burned about 40 of 350 acres this year
Death to varmints, I kill everyone that I can. Trapping has become a big part of my varmint management plan.