Pocket Gopher trapping w/footholds

[Steve Gappa]

Summer Time Fun- Gopher Trapping
By Steve Gappa

After the fur traps are put away, there are few trapping options available. If you are fortunate enough to live in an area where there is animal damage control work available, you can extend your trapping season as a full or part-time pursuit. There are several options available to the off -season trapper. If you live near large metropolitan areas, you might be able to have enough nuisance work to keep you busy. In my rural area however, very few are willing to pay a fee to remove common animal pests such as squirrels, coon, etc. The average area resident simply deals with the problem on their own. Where a trapper can have a good success running an off-season line is with the animals that the average farmer or rancher cannot successfully control on their own. The two most common examples of this are perhaps beaver and coyote. There is however an animal that provides even more opportunities for nuisance work- the lowly pocket gopher. I trap pocket gophers successfully for at least 5 months of the year. My best year was last year, when I trapped around 3400 pocket gophers, plus nuisance badger. With this article, I will explain the methods I use in being a longliner gopher trapper.
I started trapping gophers on just a couple of farms that I found by placing a small ad in the local weekly newspaper. I run a similar ad once or twice a year, and have a total of about 75 landowners, many owning several farms. I keep the ad simple. Its cost is low, and it adds a few customers each year. Most of my new farmers are gained through word of mouth. A happy customer soon tells his friends- but not always, some farmers like to keep me under wraps so to speak so I can spend more time on their farms! I get paid in two ways here in southern Minnesota. I charge the farmers so much per gopher, then am paid a fee for the same gopher from the townships.
After you have lined up your farms to trap, the next step is to drive the fields with the farmer. You will find that gophers will be in three types of areas- pasture, hay land and cultivated fields. If trapping the cultivated fields is convenient I will do so, but usually limit my trapping to the pasture and hay grounds. These are usually the most populated areas, so most problem areas are addressed. At this time ask where and when you can drive. Most of my farmers allow me to drive the pastures at will, and to drive on the hay ground after it is baled. Depending on the weather, I can drive a baled field for a week to 10 days. Also find out how the farmer wants you to drive in the fields- some like you to use the same track every day, some like you to drive in a different track every day. It seems a small point, but my farmers are divided almost 50-50 on this issue. By asking ahead of time, you save any future problems from happening.
If you are only setting out a few traps on a farm or two, you don’t have to worry about making and using maps. If you are setting up 10 farms at a time with 100+ traps, you will need to make and use maps. I try to keep it as simple as possible. I start by drawing out the outline of each field in my notebook. As I set each trap, I make a dot on the map for each set. Try to keep the map accurate in at least two major areas- the order of the traps and what side of the field they are on. As I check each trap, I amend the map as I go. If I catch a gopher, or am going to pull the trap, I mark over the dot with a big X. If the trap is plugged and is reset and I am going to leave it, I draw a circle around the dot. I might use colored pens as a further way to keep track of each set. Even with years of experience and familiarity with the fields, I still get confused and have to backtrack on occasion to find traps. As I finish with each field, I just throw that map away.
Another factor to consider is what types of traps to use, and how to stake your traps. If you think coon and coyote trappers can argue over traps, you should hear a couple of gopher trappers when they get together. There are at least 2 major styles of gopher traps- traps that use some sort of pinchers and footholds. There are many kinds of pincher traps, and all work to some extent or the other. They operate by having the gopher go between two pinchers and setting off a trigger so that the pinchers snap and hold the gopher by the body. There are several brands of this type of trap such as Death Clutch, the Lanesboro trap, Victors and the newer cinch type traps. All work but are limited in my opinion to certain conditions. I own several dozen pincher traps, but they are not my first choice, except on fresh dug unplugged holes. In those cases, I always use a pincher trap. I keep extensive records on the % of plugged traps vs. catches; and day in and day out, I can catch more gophers with the least amount of plugged holes by using pan traps. I use either #0 or #1. I buy most of these traps used- you don’t need much strength in the spring to hold a gopher. Their front foot is shaped like a muskrats, but gophers are not a problem with twist offs. In trapping many thousands of pocket gophers I have had exactly 1 wring off.
When I first started to gopher trap after an absence of 20 years, I found things had indeed changed. When I was a kid, we literally would fight for the right to set a fresh mound. I figured this was still the case, so at the beginning I used small, barely visible stakes to try to keep my trap/gopher lose by theft down to a minimum. Well, I soon found out two things: 1) the last thing kids want to do nowadays is to trap gophers (and real farm kids are much too busy) and 2) I was spending way too much time looking for my mini stakes. I now do just the opposite by using nothing but 4 ft. fiberglass electric fence poles painted florescent red. Each trap is wired to the stake to reduce losses from badger and coyotes. Without the wire, I would lose many each day to these predators. I have had badgers dig up and “check” a whole field of traps for me. As my wife says, how could it get any better for the badgers with “gophers on a stick”?
When you first set up a field, you will notice the pattern of the mounds. It’s impossible to give you the exact number of mounds that belong to each gopher. I have seen as many as 38 mounds from one gopher, but in most cases I would say the average is 6-10. One clue is that in heavily populated fields the mounds from each gopher are grouped roughly in circles or short, staggered lines. In low population areas the mounds tend to string out in a long line. I have seen lines of mounds that stretched 100 yards or more made by one gopher. - all single file. My method is to set heavy when I first go into a field. Lets say that there are 30 mounds in 5-6 groups of 4-6 mounds. Even though I might think that it is only 5-6 gophers, I will set up each “miniseries” of mounds; say each group of 3-4, resulting in 10-12 traps. Now when I check the traps I will have one of three things- 1) a gopher, 2) A plugged hole or 3) an empty hole. With this system, I now pull all empty traps and all traps that have gophers. The holes that have been plugged I dig out and reset the trap. While some series of tunnels at times do have more than one gopher in them, this isn’t common. Except for breeding and kits- gophers are solitary animals- and will fight if meeting another gopher. Most times I believe a new gopher moves into the vacated tunnel system at a later date and gives the impression that more than one gopher was present. I have conducted extensive field tests and the percentage of repeat catches within two days is very low, under 2%. That’s why I very seldom leave a trap in a hole after a catch has been made. Because you have growing hay in the fields, you will have to get in and out quickly. Many times I am in the fields at the same time as the farmer. Remember as a longliner you are trapping gophers in numbers, not individual gophers. If you are just setting a few traps, it doesn’t hurt to leave them in the same hole for a while. I once caught 11 gophers over a two-month period in one hole by doing this. There are some exceptions to not having more than one gopher at a time using a tunnel system, the most notable being when the young gophers are starting to use the tunnels. At this time, the entire litter may be caught one and sometimes two at a time. These young gophers don’t have their adult fur (normally dark brown or black) and are a soft gray color. Whenever you catch one of these “graybacks” always reset the trap in the same hole.
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[Steve Gappa]

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Each day I leapfrog the line over the field, resetting plugged sets and pulling traps that caught gophers or were untouched. When I get down to a few gophers in an isolated area, I will double and triple set it to increase my percentages. My success rate is pretty consistent. On new setups, my success ratio is about 45%. I could increase this ratio quite a bit by not setting as heavy, but then would suffer in efficiency. After the first check the following checks have a success rate of about 35%.
Now to the set itself -while there is certainly no big secret to trapping gophers, like anything else experiences provides efficiency. You will need besides the trap and stake two items- a trapping shovel (a long handled dirthole trowel works great) and a “poking stick”. This stick should be about 2 feet long. Mine is a smooth, ½” T-bar trapping stake with a blunt end. Some people use a blunt tipped arrow or a length of dowel. I like the feel you get with steel, but experiment. You will find one that works great. A good poking stick is needed to find the opening to the tunnel. When you first get to a gopher mound you will find the circular mound of dirt is roughly heart shaped. In the V of the heart is where the hole usually is, going down and away from the pile of dirt. Now kneel in front of the mound and push the piled dirt to the side. You should see a round circle in the sod where the hole begins. This hole will be plugged with dirt, as much as a foot or so depending on weather conditions- the hotter and dryer, the deeper the plug. You now take your poking stick, and use it to poke into where you think the opening is, and to push down and probe with the stick. You will feel it quite easily when the stick breaks through into an open tunnel. (A second but not as efficient way to find the tunnel is to probe with your stick in a line between mounds). After you have broken through, I usually wait a minute or two. That way, if a gopher is right at the tunnel opening, he has time to retreat. I learned this trick after being bitten twice and actually pulling up two other gophers on my finger. A fast way to trap, but not recommended. After a few minutes, use your trowel to open up the hole down to the tunnel. If the “Y” junction is found at the bottom of the entrance hole, this is where you want to set the trap. Widen the hole as needed to place a trap, and try to scoop out a small depression for the trap so the gopher doesn‘t have to step up to get caught. Make sure the opening around the trap is big enough so that the trap has room to close. If the “Y” in the tunnel can’t be found, you can use a pincher type trap, or simply set the long spring in the single tunnel. Try to have the pan or trigger of the trap 6-8 inches into the hole. Now on to the question of whether to re-cover the entrance hole or not. The old school wisdom is to cover pan traps and to leave pincher traps uncovered. I find that covering the hole doesn’t make much difference either way to success rates. If I am going to check the same day, I will leave the traps uncovered until the last check- it simply saves time. Overnight however, I find that covering is needed to stop predator losses- esp., from birds and cats. Badgers and coyotes will dig into the sets with or without a covering.
A board can be used to cover the hole, but the problem with that is when the gopher does plug the hole; it’s a tight plug- right up to the top. I use a wad of grass as a plug, and this is stuffed halfway down the hole. I then cover the grass with dirt, to try to make the plug as air tight as possible. By doing this I limit the plugging by the gopher. I read a study that said gopher know that a hole is unplugged by the differences in pressure and temperature, and that‘s why they return to replug the hole. I don’t care how tight you try to cover the hole to prevent plugging, the gopher knows that the hole has been opened, and will replug it along with your trap if a catch is not made.
You can check gopher traps in two ways. The first method is to set the traps one day and check them the next. This is the way that I usually check my traps, because I may have out over 140 traps over a two county area. I try to check the traps each day, but in a rain it just can’t be done. In years past I tried to continue gopher trapping in the rain, but believe me it has nothing going for it. The second method is to set up farm, wait an hour or two, and then check the traps. Repeat every couple of hours. While I know people that do this regularly, and I do it myself on occasion, the percentages are way too low. Same day checks start out at about 10%, and go down each check.
The problem with setting up a gopher line is that you are always shuffling and moving traps. It’s not uncommon out of 100 checked in a day to have to find new mounds and reset 50-60 traps. If you are fortunate to have a wife or youngsters that like to go along with you, you will find that they are a big help. With a helper to gather grass plugs and do other small tasks, the setting goes much quicker. In fact a helper is so nice to have, that I paid my daughter Jessie to help me trap for 3 summers. Gopher trapping will not make you rich, but many years it pays as much a month as fur trapping does. I also trap badgers for the farmers, and occasionally nuisance coon and coyotes. The big bonus is that my fur trapping territory expands each year. After trapping all summer for gophers, most farmers gladly let you trap furbearers in the fall. A good pain free way to get permissions. In any case, trapping gophers provides me with a good off-season income, and even more importantly it allows me to be able to BE a full time fur trapper in season and keeps me in the best shape of my life. If you have gophers in your area, give em a try.