3&1/2 miles....

[Sausagedog 7,381]

....and seen nowt but hares and rabbits!

Where have all the fox's gone?

For a five mile radius around me I am not seeing any fox, not even my ghost fox anymore!

What's going on?

[Stavross 13,720]

You will of shot them all

[Sausagedog 7,381]

Perhaps word got out, " no point dropping them around *****"!

[nick703 446]

Same ere, seeing nothing on my local permissions,but the land I travel to , plenty but with the amount of birds on there that’s understandable ( commercial shoot) , unless they’re getting thermal shy

[Sausagedog 7,381]

6 minutes ago, nick703 said:

Same ere, seeing nothing on my local permissions,but the land I travel to , plenty but with the amount of birds on there that’s understandable ( commercial shoot) , unless they’re getting thermal shy

Well I have clean thermals on so it can't be them!

[nick703 446]

3 minutes ago, Sausagedog said:

Well I have clean thermals on so it can't be them!

Never washed mine that’s probably the reason I’m not seeing any, I’ll send a message to Scot country,ask what temp to wash it on

[BenBhoy 4,706]

https://www.gwct.org.uk/news/news/2019/november/new-study-shines-light-on-fox-control/?utm_source=All+Contacts&utm_campaign=86ef07aeca-Morning+Briefing+211119&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_dd843c5cb6-86ef07aeca-27467671&mc_cid=86ef07aeca&mc_eid=10c03a2993

[Sausagedog 7,381]

12 minutes ago, BenBhoy said:

https://www.gwct.org.uk/news/news/2019/november/new-study-shines-light-on-fox-control/?utm_source=All+Contacts&utm_campaign=86ef07aeca-Morning+Briefing+211119&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_dd843c5cb6-86ef07aeca-27467671&mc_cid=86ef07aeca&mc_eid=10c03a2993

Chuffin Eck lad. I will have to read that when I get flu and am stuck in bed for a week!

Thanks though. Could you bring some points out if you have read it, please.

[BenBhoy 4,706]

I've only read the brief version (but have download the main one, geek!)

Basically it proves that on area with regular fox control the ground nest birds in spring did much better, on average there was 47% less foxes in the controlled areas. Interesting bit about immigration of new foxes into an area, big variation but on one estate it was 2 foxes a week.

[Sausagedog 7,381]

Yes, I read that and can vouch for it too.

I have witnessed first hand a boom in small ground nesters on land that was crawling with fox. I have watched foxes catching ground nesters.

One estate we started seriously on in the first year we shot 147. The following year 135 and the third and last 116. Then the new keeper arrived!

When the new isolationist gamekeeper arrived he was plagued again in no time and was having to tip 5000 more birds out just to feed fox's!

Another gamekeeper I had helped for years made a mistake once by accusing me of poaching his birds. I told him I will keep off the place until he called me.

That was December. By the next November the phone rang!

First visit in daylight shot four in 2 hours!

And so it goes.....

[FLATTOP 3,659]

Mr Sausage I’d love to see some hares and rabbit was out again yesterday all I see was seven herons all standing together and a few pigeons no squirrels rabbits and no Fox it’s like a barren wasteland lol....

[Baldcoot 2,352]

Last year flooded Warren's removed the surplus food for foxy .this year lots and lots of new bunnies, loads of food still on the bushes but foxes few n far between here at the minute weird 

[BenBhoy 4,706]

Going by my trail camera footage, we have a hell of a lot of brock but only few glimpses of Charlie. 

[Meece 1,957]

7 hours ago, Sausagedog said:

Yes, I read that and can vouch for it too.

I have witnessed first hand a boom in small ground nesters on land that was crawling with fox. I have watched foxes catching ground nesters.

One estate we started seriously on in the first year we shot 147. The following year 135 and the third and last 116. Then the new keeper arrived!

When the new isolationist gamekeeper arrived he was plagued again in no time and was having to tip 5000 more birds out just to feed fox's!

Another gamekeeper I had helped for years made a mistake once by accusing me of poaching his birds. I told him I will keep off the place until he called me.

That was December. By the next November the phone rang!

First visit in daylight shot four in 2 hours!

And so it goes.....

Yes.  I've experienced The same with new keepers.  They obviously think that the regulars know the ground and are going to be out poaching !!  The fact that pheasants don't have any real value and that you cant give the things away doesn't seem to cross their thought pattern. On the Fox drives the regulars know the bits where Charlie will come to and the ditches and hedges where he will slip out the side. Instead of taking this knowledge and using it They bring in blokes from elsewhere and they sustain heavy losses from Charlie because Charlie knows the ground and checks it out 24/7.  As to no Charlies being seen. I have encountered this before.  It could be down to the fact of lack of natural food caused by rabbit haemoraging disease and Charlie's have moved in and around human habitation for hand outs and discards from fried chicken and chip shops ect. A neighbour of one of the daughters fed the foxes every day and there could be as many as eight foxes lined up down her garden waiting for the dinner bell. they got so tame that they layed out on her lawn during the day and even came to the patio doors looking through when the daughters family were eating.  Other than that we have lamped round many hundred of acres and seen nothing. We have come in had a coffee and a warm up and then gone back round and shot several. We have left carcases on sticks to see if there is any activity around the woods. Just keep going things will change.

[Baldcoot 2,352]

7 hours ago, BenBhoy said:

Going by my trail camera footage, we have a hell of a lot of brock but only few glimpses of Charlie. 

Brock gone round here Ben ,8 weeks of Badger cull just finished in Staffordshire and its made a brock free zone