Good report today. Went in with Charlie Brown and Mike, his son. They wanted to help put out some new traps. I had seven of them to finish off the Elizabeth Line. So they carry some heavy stuff and I have a little chainsaw plus two traps. They much younger than me.
Off we go down to coalmine and then up onto the new line. We have Baxter with us as well. Spaniel dog. Very excited and all over the place. So we make it to trap A70, trap T52 and trap 100. There is a little cluster where we had the camera a while ago and saw possums, rats and a cat! To my great surprise under the automatic trap 100 for possums there was a possum! Not in the yellow box where I would have expected. Just shows that the automatic traps can and do work! Great beginning. I have an eye out for the two followers. See how safe they are. A bit slow in places but not too bad. Then we pass the traps A71, A72, A73, A74, A75 and A76. They all connected to my phone and reported kills. Five in all. Very good. Then I thought 76 was the last one we had down there because it was the last one on the map. So we start measuring the distance to put in a new trap. I go first to investigate where the trees are and suddenly I come across a blue marker and a trap labeled A79! How was that possible. I am the only one putting traps into there. Then I remembered last time the traps we deployed did not connect to phone because of new app thingy. Yes that was it. But it meant that we missed two traps between 76 and 79. So we go back and find them after some search and connect them too to the phone. 77 and 78. Then we pass 79 again and look out for the other two. 80 and 81. Found them without too much trouble. All is well now. We start measuring and find good trees all the way up and install all seven new traps and all of them connect no problem and are now ready for the rats and stoats. We make it back by 3 o'clock. Long day. Started just 10.45.
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First report for year! Not a bad beginning. Was out nearly five hours. Glorious day. Started with Norther Line, nothing, then Circle Line and trap D85 had a very old rat in it. Ghastly. Job for Taximus once he gets here! Then on to find some lost traps and found them in tall grass. Must put them in better positions. Then D80 had another old rat. You try to get them out of box and the tail just comes off and then you have a slushy mess to take out. And maggots.
Then on I went down to river and along embankment. Someone from the Botanical Society in Christchurch told me of a very rare plant down there. It is a kind of daisy. So I went to investigate and I believe that I might have found it. The same location anyway. So I took picture and they can now evaluate what I found. Very interesting. Also while down there I removed three old traps A12. Have been no good. So send them back. Such a shame. Then up I come again and nothing. But when I stand near trap A3 suddenly my phone peeps. I thought it was trap A3 but now when I got home it was A61. That trap is right across the gully on the other side! And it connected such a distance. Astonishing. It tells me of six more kills in that trap which is excellent. It is on Route 66 and I have not been down there for a while. Must go soon. For all these plants I have now a new app. It is called iNaturalist. I take picture of plants put them on the website and someone out there will find it and tell me what it is! Miraculous. Have a look robbiekoller's Profile · iNaturalist NZ Tomorrow out with Tom. He young boy and is on holiday here. So he comes out with me to deploy the 20 new traps which are still behind the garage. They go around the golf course. I just hope that at least someone from the golfers will have a look at these traps now and then. Then some new neighbours came today and talked to Christine and they told her that one of them, Andy, had fifty traps at the prison where he works. The boys in the prison made the traps and the person ordering them never came to collect them. They are for free! So of course I say yes I take them all. |
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