Otter trappers

[trappnman]

We have a marginal otter population around here- I did tag 2 this year in 330s set for otter. Creeks are small trout type creeks, and the otter aren't so much hanging out in them, but travelling through.

Next year, I plan to set up every small stream around here with a 330s or two, to see what I can pick up in otters- but here is my problem.

we have a 3 day check which is nice, but these creeks are spring fed, and fairly fast- and water cress and other bottom weeds are the norm- and its flat out amazing on how much of that crap break off, floats down, and either covers or snaps a 300- I get them knocked off stands dues to the accumulated weeds. I've tried various natural things like logs projected out as wing dams, stakes up stream etc none work well or at all. pinch points in the small creeks are apparent- but impossible to keep open

but next year, I want to run 50-60 330s specifically for otter, and I need to figure out a way to keep them in operation over the 3 day check.

my best thought is a chicken wire screen maybe 2" x 2" staked with rebar on each side, a distance up from the trap making it a sort of catch all- where the otter would go around, and funnel into the pinchpoint 330s

any thought pro r con?

or any better idea?

[RdFx]

Whoa on the 50-60 traps for otter, Mn isnt NC. lol.... I only set a couple otter sets out or else i would catch way more than one tag. What is the otter limit per trapper? With Laurie and you, double of course. As far as if you have massive junk coming down and pushing off holders, there isnt much you can do. One can put a heavy duty rubber band over dog on body grip to keep from going off with light debri but otter will set off. If one sets multiple sets close together for otter you can double, triple or quad otters from familys. Pinch points will always plug up Unless you have a shallow spot upstream of pinch point which collect debri but allows water to come thru and if possible a deep point where pinch pt is after shallow spot. If your allowed five otter per person less the marten and fisher , you have a good system to work with. Any place where a stream leads to bvr ponds off stream or even cross country fm stream are good spots. The bvr ponds of course are good even if dead and you can make bottom edge sets without plugging except maybe with rats, which isnt bad unless otter eats rat....LOL....

[redsnow]

Honestly, I don't know much about otter. I do know a little bit about water. Here, in the fall of the year, leaves are floating down our creeks/streams, they'll screw up slide wires, bodygrips, everything. I assume you meant a 2X2 foot section of chicken wire? Instead of 2 inches? I really believe, once that wire loads up, the rest of the crap will swirl around it, and right into the pinch point.
About the only thing I can think of, is to set your trap below the pinch point. Correct me if I'm wrong, but chances are the water current, will kind of fan out downstream. An animal swimming upstream, would normally stay in the "slack" water as long as it can. Maybe 2 feet?, maybe 5 feet? But all the junk coming down the creek, well most of the trash, should blow on past the trap. Like you said, there's a lot of water under the bridge, after 3 days.

[Deleted]

Fish in the bottom of a bucket set ,with the right location and depth this set holds up well for me,and catches otter.

[blackhammer]

They don't move as much as you would think up these trout streams in December. I had about ten locations set up mostly bottom edge or channel type sets and left them stubbornly for a month and caught one otter. Similar results the year before. If you get in their kind of home range earlier there hard to keep out of your sets. I do believe if a guy used big legholds more it would be easier to limit out. They in my opinion some are wary of conibears or reluctent in being forced to swim somewhere. I think later season the closer to the Mississippi the better also. As far as traps getting plugged I guess I just unplug them every trip through. Got a hanful of colony traps out still and midwinter it is amazing how much crap gets in and plugs them up.Too bad we don;t have more beaver dams a few crossovers at every dam would make it simple.

[ColdSteel]

RdFx post on the ruberbands works some I have tried that I also spread my triggers out in a very wide v that seems to help.This year had a hot location with strong current and I had trouble keeping the trap set from current.I had some terminator triggers which are tension adjustable takes alot to set the trap off.There are also triggers out called species specific that I havent tried yet that work the same way.I will warn you be careful on adjusting the triggers and having them too tight as you may end up with hip caught otter or even miss a few.I tried 2 660 superbears this year for wide creeks and they will knock dust on the beaver.I attached a 1/8 ferrell on the end of triggers and made a loop with 1/8 galvanized wire to add to the strike zone and have caught otters in these as well.Here in North Carolina the big males are looking for love now good to have alot of creek runs blocked now

[blackhammer]

On triggers in some spots I will set them in last notch so they spring less easily. The trouble is you don't want to catch otter by the flanks ,so setting them together and off to the side isn't an option.

[trappnman]

Lee- our limit is 4, so 8 combined but the otter are so scattered, that I'd not be worried by having 50 blind 330s out.

ColdSteel- our season closes first sunday in Jan, so no late otter for me.

Blackhammer- were you set up on 10 different streams? I couldn't agree more on how little they are running the trout streams- but year after year I see nothing all winter, then one came through. And then its a day late to set up. Up until this year, all my otter have been in either beaver sets ,or coon sets on slides wires. some of those were deliberate, being beaver sets left in after the beaver, as "just in case otter sets"

that first year after we got a season, I could really see the wagon wheel spread from the main nursery (the Whitewater/lower Zumbro) and from the pocket of them on the northern Zumbro (Oronoco/Pine Island), but I'm seeing it less and less each year- that is, less sign and almost no hanging around/hotspot type sign.

but this year, did take 2 in deliberately set 330s- both on same creek, but a few miles apart. After the first, I had out 5 I think here and there, on creeks close to the Zumbro thinking sooner or later one will come through- but it was a constant battle to keep that traps open- seldom did I come back when a trap wasn't covered and/or knocked down.

yes, meant 2foot by 2 foot- thinking that each day the trap gets covered more, and that on a 3 day check, it might be enough. Would have to clean off each check, but I'm doing that now at the trap. Trouble with the spring creeks and the pinch points (and I mean literally room for a 330s ) is that the water around them is either too shallow, or its a chute type channel.

I didn't make any BE sets- I think they would be hard to have a good success rate, because when they do come up the creeks, its helter skelter and out of the water as much as on it. very sporadic as to where they go, and I've tried to think of how to quick set them up over the years, and can never seem to find any pattern. So really have given up, except for my incidentals-

thus my thought to set up 330s on a vast amount of tight pinch points (thinking I should get a few rat/beaver/even maybe a mink incidentals)- but back to the weed problem. BE sets would, by being in slack water many times, not gather the weeds- but I just have no confidence in them and your experiences BH seem to bear that out.

I usually have a few beaver dams- never saw so little beaver sign- usually have 5-6 locations with a few beaver, this year found 1- if I have a lot of dams, I hate em for messing up the rat/mink locations, if I don't have tem I curse the shallow water...lol

[blackhammer]

I try to basically think like an otter with be sets and I think I can guess pretty well were they swim. But most times it's a pain to figure out how the heck to get your trap were you want it, be it deep water or blocking it proper. Before we could keep them seemed to catch a few in pockets every year . Now that we can keep them I think I have two accidentals in a pocket. It's fun to catch them in an otter specific set though. They are random travelers that's for sure. But I do believe if a guy scouted preseason and found tracks they would be back sometime during season.

[musher]

If your water has any type of loop or ox-bow, check for land cross overs.

What frosts me is how they travel cross country in the first snows. You'll find trails through the bush that will never be used again. Obviously, when they are going through the bush they are no where near your sets.

[ColdSteel]

Tman I am sure u know this but those beaver dams you mention are great otter sets especially if beaver are scarce and don't try to repair the dam break .I catch alot of otter just be putting a break in the dam to create current(which a otter loves) sometimes I can double set the break and alot of times I have to set the low side of the dam break.As far ar the shallow water I have taken a shovel and created a trench through small creeks and swamps to submerge my conibear.If the streams are shallow I usually have no trouble creating choke points.I carry a set of lopers with me and can narrow one up pretty quick with logs and branches.I have read your post about catching rats in streams you trap.You would be surprized about how many incidental rats I catch in 330's.I usually catch 20 to 30 a year in them and yes I have trouble with fired traps I had 2 by the tail 3 days ago.I have a good number of 330's so I usually set 4 traps on each creek run in case of beaver or rats plugging my traps or debris to keep my sets open when the otter come through.

[trappnman]

wish I had more dams- I've caught several otter just in under ice 330s set against bottom of dam.

musher- one interesting thing I noticed during the otter trapping program, when I was out there a lot of days, was that the depressions, shallow trenches etc where they travelled during summer and spring cross country- they also ran when the landscape was under snow. very much creatures of habit I thought

ColdSteel- you take quite a few otter, year after year- I'm suspecting you have been a 100 year man a time or two- how do your populations maintain year to year- and do you find (as in mink) that a good location is a good location until floods etc obliterate it- and even with mink, I find a good singular location that's been there for years, continues to be a good producer for a year or two, even though nothing there indicates it should.

[ColdSteel]

Tman you are dead on with the hot locations,I even used my same prop sticks year after year in some locations.I have creeks that I block for a three months especially when I am running my land line and I can bail out and check quickly.Overall as long as I have a good water source and several beaver ponds and swamps I don't see much decline in otter population in my area but I am blessed to have good otter populations to.I have hurt them before when I set up small fish ponds that are only feed by small streams and here what happens I think I just took out the family group and other otters just dont know the pond exist.What helps me more otter trapping is knowing where my creeks are coming from and what they feed into. I block as many as possible and always give my sets about 2 weeks to produce naturally some will be better than others.I have one trap on my line now that has taken 10 otter dont know where they are coming from but it keeps producing.I found that one sweet spot under a log about 2 foot deep cupped out about the size of a basketball and the 330 fit it perfectly with no blocking and for the life of me can find another choke point or good set anywhere else on that creek

[lumberjack]

Why not try 330s baited w/ large artificial fish just off to the side of the current? It will be far enough off the channel to miss the debris but close enough for otter to see it. Probably not a high percentage set but would get rid of the debris problem.

[trappnman]

I was thinking of using a fresh fish as such- anyone tried that?

going back to the buckets mentioned, I have read of that as well- but thought I also read a very low % set?

[ColdSteel]

I can answer to what the bucket set did in my area did it work yes but as Tman pointed out very very low % set.If I couldn't block the creek or worried about current I would resort to castor mound sets before the bucket set.I have caught 5 this year in castor mound guarded with 330's this year.I had a discussion with RobertW on this a few years ago and he said what some lures had in them to attract otter but I cant remember the name of it.I was using dobbins backbreaker when I caught my otter

[wbg]

Setting Your triggers on the bottom and bending the wires into a T shape will let a lot of debris float through. Even better to cut wires short instead of bending,as these will stay in operation even longer than traps with the bent wires. I don't believe they get conni. shy but they do become location shy. Another good reason for multiple traps per stop, or move trap a little ways up or down stream from time to time.

[GaTrapper]

Find your toilets and blind set the deep holes in the creeks. In the early season when leaves are falling if your traps aren't set deep the leaves will clog them. If you can't set them deep you can go out several feet in front of your trap and bring some stakes and chicken wire to block debris. It's a hassle but it works.

[blackhammer]

If beaver and even coon can get conibear shy, otter sure as heck can too.

[trappnman]

otter not only get trap shy, they get location shy pretty quick as well, at least when its a live otter there

Setting Your triggers on the bottom and bending the wires into a T shape will let a lot of debris float through. Even better to cut wires short instead of bending,as these will stay in operation even longer than traps with the bent wires.

it does for sure- but that watercress stuff, completely covers the trap in 3 days- and if you stand there watch the flow for a while, it seems like the debris would be minimal at best

I've found a lot of stuff attracts otters (if my coon pockets are any indication)trouble is otters are so scatter here, hard to keep lured sets open for otter.