Yet another report. This one Saturday. A friend of ours wanted to have a look at the traps and he also gave us 150 dollars just same day! Very nice. Naturally they wanted to see where their money goes. No problem. I take them on a grand tour. Ross and Anne from Australia. So no good for trapper status. Too far away.
That is we went down to Central Station and then along Piccadilly Line. First trap we encounter is all dislodged and on side of walkway. Possum? Maybe. Maybe somebody. Never know. Put it all back again. Then off along track and got to D12. Nice juicy rat! So they can see first hand what happens to rats down there. They be dead. From there down to coalmine but nothing. Then up along Circle Line and not much for quite a while. But then we get to the new traps from two weeks ago and D80 has another rat. Now they are a bit more impressed. Then further along in D84 is another rat! Both traps had never anything before so that is good for that area. Then we return via Northern Line to car and I look over and very unexpectedly I see a trap overturned and see it has been triggered. Getting closer I see that it is a huge possum! In trap T16! Very impressive for them. Good day with three rats and one possum. And having been able to show off! Ha but then wait. The good news is that we saw four pigeons! Four Kereru! Two were definitely a pair! And then two more. Then loads of bellbirds and loads of grey warblers. Such a good sound through the forest. But the Kereru were so exciting. They must be nesting somewhere in the trees. We only saw them because we scared them off. Too much talking. So when I go by myself and keep quiet I do not disturb them and therefore do not see them. Maybe I should have some loud music playing to scare everything out of their wits. But no. So that was a good day. Three rats, one possum, four kereru! Tuis are coming soon!
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On Thursday I did Circle Line along with Northern Line. All quiet on the possum front. There must be more. Then down to the trap numbered 20 to 30 and then T22 had a hedgehog! Next one T25 had another hedgehog! And then T27 yet another hedgehog. Horrible. They not nice to move out of trap. Very smelly.
But good I checked because while hedgehog is in trap all dead no possum can go in! So a good day. Set out with Dr Who and Jeremy, his brother who is over here from Sydney. 11.15. Very windy but no problem. Cold too. Go along Northern Line and no possums. They have all gone now. But the idea today was to check the new traps from last week. But on the way there at trap T34 we got a hedgehog.
Then over stile and down walkway and first trap had nothing. Also next four had nothing. Then D85 had a rat, then D84 had another rat! Then nothing until we got to sign for the river access. There is a trap number D62. It was triggered and it was a mouse! Then D64 was triggered too and had another mouse! Then D65 same thing. Yet another mouse. But then next one D66 had another rat. So three rats, three mice and one hedgehog today. Quite pleasing really as we now want the rats to be gone. The highlight was the little bellbird. We walked along and I can hear this little voice of a bird in a tree. Just could not see it looking up into the canopy. I suspected it to be a bellbird. And then just as I wanted to leave I saw this young fluffy baby bellbird right in front of my eyes. How beautiful is that. Tried to take photograph but my camera not very good in dark forest. You can see it in attached photo. So breeding is on the way and babies are around! There were also loads of calls of bellbirds and loads of calls from Grey Warblers. Have not heard so many last year or ever really. Something must be happening. Today lovely day. A bit windy. Sunny and warm. Decided to do Waterloo Line. Have not done it for a while. Not since I put fresh peanut butter into all of them. So nothing on Central Station. Turn left onto line and have to go until D41. Has been triggered but nothing in it. Marcel said the same of the other traps that many were triggered. School kids!
Then onto D43 and also triggered but this one has nice rat in it. Then onto D45. Triggered again and another rat! Very good. Then walk all the way to end and T44 has a hedgehog. Nasty thing. So that is good. Did not expect any more. Then I do three traps on Central Station and see a family right down there having a picknick. I surprise them and say just looking at trap. They did not even see it and were almost sitting on it! Nothing in though. Next one nothing either. Apple still there. Then I get to T3 down the side and we have a possum! Number 34 for that trap! Amazing how they just turn up again and again. Then decide to do Lakeside as well. First trap T150/1 is triggered and it has a little weasel! Then on to the others and the last one DOC250/3 has another hedgehog. Very pleased with this haul. Double report today. Yesterday and today. Our friends came out yesterday: Niall, Jan, Sue and Jon. Keen trappers all of them. The idea was to get the new traps down to the walkway. Craig actually drove them down on Saturday as far as he could but from there it is still quite a walk to the lookout point.
So we set out about 1.30 and were also able to drive down to the pile of traps. Then we loaded them on to our packs. I had three, Jan had three, Niall had two, Sue had two and Jon, who was a bit behind came in the end with five! Crazy. I told him not to take this many. Three at the most! But no he had to take five! So that meant with one go we had already 15 traps down there. So only one more trip. By 2.30 we had them at the lookout point! They want to do more work so we start taking them down onto the walkway. Each trap we measured how far we went so all are in same distance. I hoped we would make it down to the other traps so that the trap line would all be joined up. But when we deployed our last trap we were three short! But it was enough for a day and we headed back where I cooked dinner. And we had good wine too and a whiksy after by the fire. Great day. Plus on the way down we also got a possum! Then today we headed out a bit earlier in fact 10.30. I decided that we take the first three traps at the top down to the bottom and join it all with the ones already there and then work our way up and maybe space all the other traps a bit more so the whole of the walkway would be covered with traps. It was great team work. I showed them the first trap and what to do and then Jon and Jan were in charge of baiting the traps with egg and peanut butter and set the mechanism plus label the trap. Then Sue and I went ahead to next trap and I put trap on phone with GPS and numbered it. Niall was in charge of distance. So from each trap he would measure 60 steps, then make a mark and go further up and fetch a trap and bring it down. Then he also made little platforms for the traps to sit on. Then Sue and I would come along do again GPS and I would nail a blue marker thingy on to the trap for Jon then to put the number on to it. So it took a while and the line stretched more and more and in the end Niall caught up with the traps from yesterday only now he had to take them further up again because his 60 steps were a bit longer as our measurements yesterday. In this way we made steady progress and almost reached the top of walkway! But then I counted the traps and we were at number 88 but the last trap should have been 89! Niall must have missed a trap somewhere. He decides to go down in search of it. Then Jan follows him a bit later and she finds the trap not far away! Niall had walked right passed it again. Anyway Jan brings the trap up and I put it basically at the top of the walkway. You see it in the photo. Then Niall turns up again and he had gone all the way to the bottom. He deserves a beer tonight. So magically we have covered the whole walkway up to the lookout point now with traps! What good work that all was. Now they have gone home and we have quiet evening. You can see the traps on website numbered 70 to 89! One rat! Did Waterloo Line to reset and rebait all D traps. Done it now. D47 had a rat. No possies. Now it took three days to visit all D traps and put in fresh peanut butter. Have to see how good it is to get more rats.
The rat I got today I put close by the trap so next time when I go past I can check whether it is still there. Most likely not. Nothing else to report. Tomorrow I go and check D traps on Circle Line if possible. I also have to mark all those traps with a number and date deployed. Did not do it when we put them all out. Another job. Then Monday Dr Who is coming out and we deploy our new 20 D traps. Will take a while. They are quite heavy and one can only take two at a time. Today was such a fun day. Jon came out with his three grandkids and daughter in law. The day looked reasonably good and we decided to go for a look at some traps. We did Waterloo Line as Charlie Brown is busy on the other side. Off we go and the little one, seven years old I think, first running down towards Central Station and the stile followed by the second one, nine years and the third, eleven years. He was the oldest. Do not ask me about their names. They all have Gaelic names. Like the boy is spelt Ruadhrí, Aoife one girl and Méabh the other. I tell them to wait and then we cross stile and I tell them to walk behind me just for safety. It works for a while but then they suddenly are first. Well we get to first possum trap and I look down and there is a possum in it! I call out and we all look down and they all say can we go down. Jon volunteers to go down with them and remove the possum. Only the head left really. But all very excited! Then I let them run first. I explained that the wooden boxes are for rats and that when the ribbon and bottel top is hanging out then there is nothing in it but when it is close to the lid then most likely there is something in it. So then they go off and not long I hear screaming and shouts: there is something in it! and then a rat, a rat. I give Ruadhri the key to open the box and nice large rat in it. They all ask can I touch it. No I say and Jon removes the rat and resets the trap. Then all of them have a close look at the rat and Jon throws it into the bush. Off they go and another scream and another we got something. Well it was another rat just in the next trap. We do the same but one of the girls wants to open the box. Why not. All done and dusted and they off again. And scream again. We got a possum! And true enough the next possum trap had a possum. I go down to remove the possum and they want to come and look. Can I see its face? So I have to lift it up and turn it around so they can see the eyes! Then I throw it into the bush. Then we make our way to the end of line and nothing more. Back to stile and it is only two o’clock and I suggest to go down Piccadilly Line for a bit and they want to. Off we go and in the second box they discover another rat! This time the smallest girl wants to open the box. Again we remove rat and reset. Then I go off with the two oldest ones and just around the corner they spot the next trap with the ribbon sucked in and of course scream again. Another rat! Then we go some more and again trap looks activated but when we get there nothing in it. By now we have gone quite far along line and we call it a day. It started raining as well by now. So two possums and four rats! Very cold day. While sitting in dining room it started to snow! But then it cleared a bit and I thought why not. Do Waterloo Line. Have not done it for a while. And I did re lure all traps with fresh peanut butter not long ago. So good time to check.
When I get down to Central Station and check T3 it had a possum! Number 33 for that trap!! Then on I go over stile and get to D41. It was triggered and it had a rat! The first rat for that one since deployment in August last year. Then I go to D42. Triggered again and had another rat! Then I get to D43 and yet again triggered and another rat. What a good day this was going to be. Alas it was all down to T45 where I turned back. Then I go back over stile and check other traps on Central Station and T5 had another possum! So good day. In between I had to re deploy two traps that the lumberjacks had moved. They were just by the walkway. So one I put a bit further down into bush, T41 and the other I moved further this way also in the bush a bit. T40. So have to see what happens now. Maybe good places. Tomorrow heavy snow forecast. Have Dr Who scheduled to come out and deploy traps. But I do not think it is going to happen. One more huge possum. Really big. Almost like a sheep! Then we got also three rats. Possum was in TR6! On Northern Line. The rats were in D61, D12 and A26. Good numbers.
Was reluctant to go out. Windy and cold. No rain though. Christine dropped me off down by gates and went shopping in Methven. To pick me up again at 1.30. That possum was quite a shock. Did not see it until I was just there and saw it hanging in the trap. Poor thing. Took it out and threw it over the fence into the bush. Maybe a hawk will get it. After that there was nothing. My new three traps had nothing. And I was so hopeful to get the tally up a bit. But not sure. Maybe possum have gone. Now it is only 12 possums for the month of June. Last year it was 35! Then first new wooden trap had the rat. D61. Then I came across the boys again. They were walking all the way around to find sycamore trees. Then I got to birdfeeder and again nothing. All that sugar water still in bottle. They will find it one day. Then I got to near end and D12 had another rat. Very pleasing to get the rats because they do lots of damage to the birds. Also heard a lot of bellbirds and saw some fantails plus never seen before two yellow hammer. They are lovely birds with a yellow head would you believe it. Very nice. Then across stile and back up to gate. Christine was there and it was spot on 1.30. Not a big report. I set out to do Waterloo Line. Have not been there for a while. All the D traps, the wooden boxes, need attention. Fresh peanut butter and a bit of cleaning. When I open the first box, D36, to my surprise it had a nice rat in it despite the bottle top and blue ribbon not sucked in! When I checked it all the ribbon had been torn just inside the box! Anyway that was a good beginning.
Next trap had been triggered but nothing in it. I think it was the boys cutting down the trees. So I continued all the way and put peanut butter into them. When I got to T42 I got a bonus in the form of a possum! What a good location that is too. I also checked the other trap T36 which had two possums in three days. But today nothing. Then made my way to T45 at the end of the line but nothing more. Returned home via Central Station and nothing either. So one possum and one rat which is not too bad. Now for June we have 11 possums only. Last year it was 35! I was also out a lot more last year. Almost every day. The weather must have been better. I cannot remember. Maybe July will be better again. |
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