The UK Squirrel Season Is All But Upon Us

[Alantoo]

View to a cull: is grey squirrel the ultimate sustainable meat?

Restaurants serving up the furry rodent are seeing a rise in demand as customers look for wild meat sources

www.theguardian.com

Alan

 

[Klenchblaize]

Chefs will soon loose interest after deboning 10 of the wee critters as I'm sure do butchers if skinning.

K

 

[shakey jake]

more demand means more supply, any thing that kills more is good

 

[Longstrider]

Curious ... isn't every month Squirrel Season ?

 

[Pine Marten]

It's been a slow season so far. Partly because I've not been able to be that assiduous about it, partly because there's been some tree cutting, but also possibly because I'd removed about 30 a year for the past two years. Anyway, still, number six yesterday morning, caught raiding the raspberry buds.

 

[Cullachie]

Well, here's two less, courtesy of Fenn Mark4 trap. Got them (the traps that is) on a special from www.trapbarn.com

 

[Bavarianbrit]

I do - when my parents moved to their current house in 1982?there was in the attic several boxes of guns and ammo magazine from 1960s to the mid 1970s. These were read repeatedly through my teenage years. So much so that when I bought my first gun it was a Yeoman with beaver tail and pistol grip. Accounted for lots of squirrels!

I discovered guns and ammo magazine in a secondhand bookshop in Coventry in 1965 so must have been an early 60"s issue. They had such a sense of freedom in them before the law change 1968 happened in the USA. With dewat"s & all sorts for sale in the back pages, happy youthful days.

 

[FISH BOY]

I just checked a trail cam after a three week sit out.

Of the 9414 pictures, half were of nothing (branches blowing) a couple of deer and fox @rses and the other flaming half were of Kardashian fecking squirrels!

 

[Pine Marten]

Second one today, stretching out from a branch on the vine, reaching for slightly rotten grapes. Little bit of holdover above the tips of the ears. Nice.

 

[Klenchblaize]

Another 14 days and then I hope to be after them for at least 4 days each week until early December.

K

 

[Cottis]

I will begin in earnest again shortly. The trees are starting to look nice and barren.

I did dispatch a good few last year and this year a local guy who helps me with some other stuff has asked me to thin them out in his small copses. Thermal and air rifle approach for me mostly I think on his land and the .222 on my own as the approach is somewhat different there.

 

[hedge hunter]

I do NOT shoot squirrels up here as so far we only have the native Red squirrels in this area, but keep an eye open for any of the grey tree rats, and definately encourage all of you guys to decimate the grey tree rats

Cheers
Ray

 

[hedge hunter]

Not yet = wait for the squirrel rut

The squirrel rut has truly started at my end.truly a sporting icon

 

[hedge hunter]

Klenchblaize: no conetrol plus, please (Says me who has them on his rifle...)

Please a picture

 

[Ade8mm]

Unfortunately North of the Border greys are well established in the Tweed Valley. Killed one up the Cairn Water (D&G) and sent in blood sample. No Parapox antibodies so not a threat but quite annoyed they had got that far. The Duke of Buccleuch's Estates were very hot on grey squirrel eradication 10 yrs ago, hope they still are. I've only had forty+ so far but looking to top the ton by March.

I was fishing on Bucchluech's estate last April. I met one of the keepers and he told me he was occupied pretty much full time eradicating greys using live traps ,due to the Reds, along with shooting .

 

[hedge hunter]

The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs advocates controlling grey squirrels and encourages land owners to do this on their website. Although they also say that it's not everyone's "cup of tea". You will always have land owners who are against anything being killed, so you are never going to totally eradicate them. They are so widespread that it is probably not possible to eradicate them from the British Isles anyway, as the Anglesey thing shows. However, that shouldn't stop us trying, especially in areas with reds and nearby areas.

I never used too mind the grays.always used too think of them as very interesting. But one day I was sat in a high seat in a forest in Kelso. A red squirrel jumped onto the rifle rest .beautiful little thing.i now shoot every gray I see .rats in fancy dress

 

[TomT3]

Had my best outing last year between two good friends and my self we managed 35 odd (a few got hung up in he trees, there is 31 shown) out of 3 little woods all with sub 12 air guns on a farm that used to be controlled more but has been left to its own devices for a few seasons.

The woods was literally crawling with the little blighters!

 

[Klenchblaize]

As another Squirrel Season and Year comes to end its time to reflect on the joys of Autumn culling, ponder the in-the-field lessons learned and plan ‘operations’ for 2019 in a land free from the tail-flicking EU!

Apparently.

K

Well it looks like I may have got that prediction wrong! But then maybe not as my woodland operations continue beyond 31/10.

K

 

[FISH BOY]

Lol who can I call