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Post by trapperjoemo on May 19, 2009 21:04:34 GMT -6
Have you seen much/any cannibalism in moles? I`ve seen it several times this year. I don`t recall noticing it in past years. But, when I see it now, I reset the trap in the tunnel (behind) the last mole, and often have a second mole in a day or two. Of course, I don`t get to check most traps on a daily basis, so some "seconds" might have been caught a few days after the first. I rarely catch a second mole in the immediate area of another catch, unless one has been chewed-up!
Joe
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Post by robertw on May 20, 2009 7:23:53 GMT -6
Joe, I'm kind of new to trapping moles but I have had at least a dozen or traps this spring take moles two days consecutively. I have probably only caught 50-60 moles this spring so......am definitely NOT a long liner!
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Post by trappnman on May 20, 2009 7:44:02 GMT -6
the moles I catch as I said, are in pocket gopher tunnells- and almost never, do I see mole style hills or sign. Always wondered what was going on-
not uncommon to catch a mole then gopher next day-
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Post by Bob Jameson on Jun 3, 2009 18:36:51 GMT -6
Moles are carnivores and I have seen many moles partially eaten after capture on a 2-3 day check over the years.Shrews are also predators and omnivores like moles and run the mole tunnels as will voles.Shrews will also eat moles that are dead and motionless that they run into when traveling thru their tunnels.Shrews can be aggressive little predators for their sizes and will patrol the mole runs for left overs like grubs and worms that they find in the runs. The dead moles are just a bonus.
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Post by northof50 on Jun 4, 2009 22:26:18 GMT -6
13 liners are ticking time bombs, they will eat what ever meat they come across. 13 's will consume all the red meat to the bone. A shrew eating will be a round spot in the carcuss once it has made a hole. The shrew waste will be a black slick around the prey. If you have long tailed weasels they will consume but usually have a exit ground hole close by the capture site.
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Post by trapperjoemo on Jun 7, 2009 9:41:30 GMT -6
Thanks for the responses. Here in central Missouri we have no ground squirrels, and very few weasles. We do have a few shrews, and I had thought of them. Seems like a mole would make MANY meals for several shrews? The deal is, I usually catch a second mole in the same tunnel a day or a few days after the "eaten" mole. I always reset behind that old location when I find a chewed-up mole. I think I`m catching more moles closer togather, and quicker than in past years too. Lot`s of variables though.
Joe
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Post by robertw on Jun 7, 2009 22:06:35 GMT -6
This has definitely been one heck of a mole year so far!
Granting I am kind of new to the mole trapping but....WOW! This has been one wet spring and the moles just seem to keep coming!
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Post by yoteguts on Jun 7, 2009 22:37:22 GMT -6
Same here. They are everywhere.
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Post by pat on Jun 11, 2009 6:34:17 GMT -6
Have any of you ever watched a Mole come out of the ground after a worm? In more than 14 years of commercial mole trapping I have only seen it twice. In the first incident I was taking a short break under a shade tree in an otherwise totally baked lawn while I figured out how the moles were getting in and out of this huge feeding/hunting area when all of sudden I notice worms just bubbling out of the ground in a real hurry to vacate the area. All of sudden the grass moved and here comes this mole out of the ground with its mouth wide open and grabs this large night crawler size worm. Instinctively I smacked it with my shovel. This happened right next to my boots. It was something out the movie "Tremors". One of the neatest things I've ever witnessed while trapping moles. Like I said, in 14 years, and with close to 10,000 moles killed, I've only seen it happen twice.
Have any of you ever caught two moles in the same trap facing each other at the same time? Or how about two moles in the same trap, at the same time, and both of them are going in the direction? I know I have, and one of my mole trapping students has done it also. In my case, both of the incidents happened on the same lawn within 20 feet of each other and within two weeks of each other. Those were some first for me.
Moles built my wildlife control business.
Pat
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Post by pat on Jun 11, 2009 6:36:49 GMT -6
The trap I was using at the time of the above specified incidents was the Victor Out-O-Sight. To bad they aren't made in America anymore.
Pat
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Post by pat on Jun 11, 2009 12:32:10 GMT -6
Before I get into trouble cast shadows on my honesty, I am getting real close to 10,000 moles in my mole trapping career. I currently sit just shy of 8,000. The next 2,000+ should come easier than the first 2,000 did.
By the way, I would like to give credit to the gentleman that taught me how to trap moles - Mr. Art Lawson, who used to live and operate in the Indianapolis, IN area. Thanks Art.
Pat
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Post by trappnman on Jun 12, 2009 11:05:17 GMT -6
lori wnts to set for moles- so set 2 traps day before yesterday, got one yesterday
we were kind of excited to see it sprung when we drove up
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Post by Gerald Schmitt on Jun 14, 2009 16:24:50 GMT -6
Pat, that is a lot of moles. Steve, what do you think your lifetime total is on pocket gophers?
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Post by trappnman on Jun 14, 2009 20:36:33 GMT -6
just added it up the other day- over 45,000 since 1995- I suppose another couple thousand as a kid.
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Post by Jarhead620 on Jun 16, 2009 19:49:09 GMT -6
Here in central Missouri we have no ground squirrels
Joe, The Wild Mammals of Missouri by Swartz, 1959 shows both 13-lined and Franklin's ground squirrels ranging from Central Missouri northward. Has their range receded since then?
I spent eight years in Missouri at Mizzou and at Mingo and Swan Lake NWR's. I recall seeing 13's from Columbia northward. I don't remember seeing Franklin's there although they were fairly common where I grew up in N. Central Illinois.
Larry
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Post by trappnman on Jul 4, 2009 11:08:46 GMT -6
another mole question-
in hay fields, we often get mole mounds of dirt, but no visible tunnels- every so often is al ittle volcano pile of dirt, but when you dig into them, the tunnels are 6-12 inches down, not just under surface as "normal".
is there a trap that can be set in these mounds, and if yes, how so?
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Post by trapperjoemo on Jul 4, 2009 21:45:25 GMT -6
Guess I should say I`ve never seen a ground squirrel in Randolph county. Or anywhere else in MO that "I recall". Saw a few chipmunks in some south-central MO. campgrounds years ago.
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Post by sRc on Jul 6, 2009 22:36:50 GMT -6
"is there a trap that can be set in these mounds, and if yes, how so?" Yes, I use the Woodstream Out-o-Sights for this purpose. I go to the freshest mound and pull back the dirt. You should feel/probe the ground and you'll find a tunnel but this one is vertical. Take your digger and expose that-look around and you'll find a horizontal tunnel. Here's where you plug in the OOS. Works well.
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Post by trappnman on Jul 8, 2009 18:02:17 GMT -6
thanks! Im getting vibe OOS is best overall mole trap?
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Post by sRc on Jul 8, 2009 20:26:24 GMT -6
i've tried a few on the market and it is very durable and reliable for my conditions
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