I'm starting to believe that animals relay messages to eachother. I haven't seen anything for weeks and I have a huge backyard filled with trees and open space.
No more pest around
- Thread starter SimpleGuy
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Same. Its a double edged sword. On one hand, I'm pest free. On the other hand I'm stuck with shooting groups or steel targets. I'm counting it as a win but not by a huge margin.
I've even started concidering putting in a chicken coup to bring some vermin in (and of course the free eggs)
I've even started concidering putting in a chicken coup to bring some vermin in (and of course the free eggs)
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I hear ya! It's like all I'm doing is finding myself wasting air and pellets shooting tree limbs just to get in some trigger time. I can't stay up late enough or can't catch the knocturnal animals at night. Sihhhh
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That’s why they made hunting seasons and bag limits for game animals. Some guys just don’t know when to say when while on a killing spree. I’m not a wildlife biologist but I always remember what my dad told me when I was little. You gotta leave some seed.
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The spring is usually good fun still. Dandelion heads are always fun to try and shoot off! In the summer and fall I have crab apples that are on the ground and in the trees still. I get my free hand practice with those things
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I'd rather not have those "seeds" digging around my foundation or trying to sneak into my attic
Zero seeds = best seeds. If they stay on my neighbors side of the fence they can do their thing there though. Grow and be free little seed (but not over here!)Upvote 0
It's the same here. I don't remember the last time I saw a starling. The Eurasian doves used to come around regularly and I haven't seen one in several moths. The ground squirrels are slowly starting to come around again. I don't mmd the others coming around, but the ground squirrels have got to go
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If you let the critters alone in your yard, they will repopulate. I selectively take out a few pests on my property. The rest get a pass, on any given day I have over a dozen critters crossing the yard. I do a lot of plinking, almost daily. The squirrels and birds simply go about their business and I plink.
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They're ever evolving technical advances in communication is catching up to ours...LOL! Seriously, I think they do somehow relay messages!
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If they’re truly PESTS then the ideal goal is extermination. Why would you leave “seeds” for a nuisance critter to repopulate? Unless you like shooting animals just for the sake of shooting animals.
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When I was a kid we had a tree in our backyard. I was limited to shoot in the backyard and my targets were sparrows. The sparrows eventually figured out my effective range and seem to keep outside of it. Nature finds a way.
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Think it was JungleShooter who posted recently about becoming a victim of your own success. I told of a large crow colony roosting at a lake about a mile from my neighborhood, a portion of which claimed "ownership" near me. Raucous early morning calls, raided songbird nests and trash pulled from cans, was a daily occurrence. Took me eighteen months, but all, save one, or two, are no more. Enjoyed months of "crow-free" living, only listening to the soulful call of the Mourning Dove with my coffee. Recently a group of "teenager" crows, from the main colony, decided to test the warning they were given to steer clear, by the elders. Cost three of them very dearly, however, peace has been restored. As always, I and my PCPs stand ready. WM
Unfortunately the pest population control versus the pests that require eradication is for a whole other topic. Last year my neighbor saw a rat. I started keeping an eye on my woodpile at night and wound up shooting two. Haven’t seen any this year and you won’t hear me complaining about having no rats to shoot. Definitely don’t want to leave any of those to seed future populations.
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Well, maybe corona has taken its toll also on the pests of the world.... 
This is — in a short time — not just the second but the THIRD thread on this topic of a greatly reduced pest population.....
Today, a hunter in the South of Peru commented to me that during nightly outings he would see half a dozen hares to shoot. And now, post corona, he might see one(!) — if he gets lucky.
Well, I trust they will mate & multiply — so that we get to cull & kill....
Matthias
This is — in a short time — not just the second but the THIRD thread on this topic of a greatly reduced pest population.....
Today, a hunter in the South of Peru commented to me that during nightly outings he would see half a dozen hares to shoot. And now, post corona, he might see one(!) — if he gets lucky.
Well, I trust they will mate & multiply — so that we get to cull & kill....
Matthias
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There are plenty of pests and always will be. To us it’s a hobby, to them (the pests) it’s life and death. They simply altered their patterns when pressured. Seeing pests is highly dependent on ”knowing” their locations and times of high activity, which varies depending on many factors. For example I’m currently having a hard time getting on some rats in a known location. My timing is definitely off. I’ve seen them, but have been unable to get shots off. I will continue to scout that location to get the results I want… dead rats.Well, maybe corona has taken its toll also on the pests of the world....
This is — in a short time — not just the second but the THIRD thread on this topic of a greatly reduced pest population.....
Today, a hunter in the South of Peru commented to me that during nightly outings he would see half a dozen hares to shoot. And now, post corona, he might see one(!) — if he gets lucky.
Well, I trust they will mate & multiply — so that we get to cull & kill....
Matthias
Just takes what we all have so little of… precious time. Last edited:
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Noone said we were hunting
I'm in Columbus, Ohio. There’s plenty raccoons around at night roaming around being disstructive! I sat in my car at the end of my driveway waiting, and saw a whole family of bandits a few houses down having dinner in the trash.Have airgun and night sight, will travel.
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I only take out the squirrels, as they tear up the yard, digging up everything and everywhere! Oh, I took out 1 chipmunk, and haven't seen another since! My coworker gets the tails and sends them in for fishing lures.
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