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Post by bigjohn on Jun 25, 2014 8:22:17 GMT -6
Mike,just one more reason to hones one's skills as a trapper.Trapping is all about learning to adapt.Be it a change in changing technique or target species.
I ,for one,love the harsher conditions when trapping predators.Makes em have to move more to aquire foot to stay warm.Ice on the creeks funnels the otter and mink to what little open water is available or to certain places to access the water under the ice.
The worse part is being able to get around for us trappers.Roads are more prone to drifting snow due to removal of roadside vegatation,but high water is far worse.
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Post by tjm on Jun 25, 2014 9:33:45 GMT -6
Now we'll hear (again) about pregnant 'cats... Dale Well, OK, NTA suggests that bobcat mating occurs in Feb./Mar.; so I'll argue that they can't be very pregnant. On the other hand Defenders Of Wildlife states that mating may occur at any time of year; so I'll argue that orienting bobcat season around possible pregnancy would eliminate trapping of them altogether. One argument for cage trapping bobcats is to release all kittens and pregnant females; but it is also argued that releasing these would seriously damage the jaw study of the makeup/recruitment rate of our cat herd. |
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Post by tjm on Jun 25, 2014 10:02:59 GMT -6
So nobody has given a good reason to end season at the end of January. To me thats like saying you have to quit deer hunting at 3 pm.....It was just getting good. The obvious reason is so that we can all get our fur into the Feb. sale. No that won't work, because of last receiving dates; must be the Mar. sale. But, wait; there is also a June sale... Local fur buyer told me his reason for wanting a Jan. end is because if he buys after 10 Feb. he runs the risk of fur bugs. Also talked about getting ready to farm in Mar. I suggested he could lock his door and put up a closed sign any time he didn't want to buy fur; he didn't get it. Looked at me like I was an idiot. Fur Dealers permit should be printed in BLOCK letters "Not mandatory to buy fur just because you have this permit". In a nut shell; people that think the season should start or end on any arbitrary date do so for one of two reasons either they think it's mandatory to use the permit every day or they think trappers are so stupid they can't tell good fur from bad and need to be limited in opportunity to make a mistake. Thinking about it, there may be a third reason; maybe they think that if I start in Nov. I'll catch all the possums before they start. |
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Post by krank on Jun 25, 2014 14:51:14 GMT -6
I don't want to hone my skills and adapt. I already do too much of that. When its snowing outside, I want to know that we have plenty of time after the snow melts. Furs still prime.
Working a full time job makes for a short season too.
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Post by tcrooks on Jul 26, 2014 17:40:01 GMT -6
I sure hope this gets back to the OP. Sure would like to see the seasons straightened out.
I do know that when Jeff took over and came to the Cape G. Randy the issue of extending the otter season to coincide with beaver season was spoke about. Those who were at the meeting about fell over when Jim Weibery and myself agreed that by the end of beaver season the female otters are pregnant and all it would take is the wrong person getting pictures or video of a pregnant female dead and the anti's would have a field day. However we all also agreed that it would easier to coincide the seasons , but was it really worth it. It was to be addressed at a later date. I guess this is the later date.
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Post by trkyslyr on Aug 1, 2014 11:44:53 GMT -6
pregnant my BUTT... so what if they are?  ? When is the extended DOE SEASON? ?? When do deer Breed? ?? How long does archery run till? ? When is Alternative methods season? ? Heck, even more, when is Modern Gun Season, right in the middle of the RUT..... When do coon Breed? When do Most furbearers breed? Shoot, by the end of beaver season most FEMALE BEAVERS ARE PREGNANT.... Get my point.... Pregnancy should have nothing to do with the season, common sense should prevail in this one... |
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Post by bigjohn on Aug 1, 2014 14:12:50 GMT -6
The extended doe season was designed to reduce the number of deer.What better way to do that than targeting the sex that actually produces more deer?
Towards the end of the season is when animals are in the least numbers,so any destroyed after that has further impact on their numbers the following year.
I'll bet if you checked with most game wardens in the state,that beaver are one of the top 2 or 3 animals that generate damage complaints.Coons are probably number one right now,but the distemper the last 2 years have probably lessen the complaint calls.
Pregnancy does have alot to do with the season and wellbeing of next years crop,that's common sense.
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Post by tcrooks on Aug 1, 2014 17:22:04 GMT -6
Don , I do understand what your saying , but as John said that's next year's crop and at that point in time when Jeff first took over we didn't have all the issues with otter we have now statewide. The were still doing a lot of studies and we're just starting to get the complaints about them.
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Post by tcrooks on Aug 1, 2014 17:26:47 GMT -6
The only major complaints at that time was from the small mouth bass assoc. I didn't see why we needed to give up the next crop of otters just to please them especially if memory serves me correctly we were just starting to see decent harvest statewide. I didn't think it was right at the time.
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Post by tjm on Aug 1, 2014 18:31:31 GMT -6
And now?
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Post by tcrooks on Aug 1, 2014 18:46:44 GMT -6
I have mixed feelings about it. I would love to see the season run the same as beaver so the incidental catch wasn't wasted. However I still personally would not target them for all the reasons stated above.
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Post by Walleye Joe on Aug 1, 2014 19:01:24 GMT -6
I'd like to see everything run through the end of March too! About the only ones left trapping are the die-hards anyway!
Most either get burnt out or don't want to fight the weather any longer. And the die-hards are the ones that really take fur condition seriously and will quit when the fur is no longer worth it!
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Post by tjm on Aug 1, 2014 20:14:19 GMT -6
Incidental waste is one of my concerns. Otters apparently have no problem with population. My research shows that bobcats can be pregnant at any time of year and that they prime late, so Feb. or early Mar. would not likely harm them and fur might be better.
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Post by bigjohn on Aug 1, 2014 21:14:08 GMT -6
Cats are definitly one of the animals another couple of weeks,fur wise,would be nice. Otter here are starting to singe towards the last of the season,so I wouldn't trap them into March myself.Pretty easy to avoid them in conibears by moving your trigger wires all the way and tight to one side.
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Post by krank on Aug 3, 2014 18:18:38 GMT -6
But January 31st? Eeesh.....
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Post by bigjohn on Aug 4, 2014 6:16:41 GMT -6
Mike,otter season runs thru till Feb 20th and I had a couple of females with fetus at the end of the season.
I can't see why a trapper would hate otters.They are the "new coyote" as far as getting permission to trap.Farmers around here hate them and that gives the trapper an"in" as far as getting permission.
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Post by ozarkmountainman on Aug 4, 2014 7:06:39 GMT -6
John, I HATE otters... Because I LOVED my smallmouth bass (and largemouth, spots, crappie, sunfish, suckers, etc. etc. etc. etc.). I'd trade those otter any day to bring back my creeks to where they were fifteen years ago. In a heartbeat.
Otter are vermin, no different than coyotes. They need to be legal all year 'round with any method. If you don't think so, then you don't have them in your area yet.
Or you're not a creek fisherman.
Dale
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Post by bigjohn on Aug 4, 2014 7:14:01 GMT -6
Dale,if you think otter are so destructive to your creeks,wait a couple of years until the asian carp have taken over.They are now in about every river and creek around here now.If your creek enters any tributary of the Mo. river,you will have them!
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Post by ozarkmountainman on Aug 4, 2014 7:21:34 GMT -6
At least I'd have some fish...
Most of my creeks are too small for the carp to make it up in any numbers, at least very far.
I still HATE otter. Doesn't make me a very good trapper, I reckon.
Dale
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Post by trkyslyr on Aug 4, 2014 9:41:01 GMT -6
it doesn't matter if they're pregnant because pregnant or not they are gonna die.... if ya catch 20 a year average and 10 are female, that's 10 females, pregnant or not... I don't think extending the season will increase on the catch number significantly enough to hurt the population.... there will still be some for seed, if ya really want the seed...
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Goodbye 2020