Author Topic: Gopher Gold  (Read 14675 times)

spaugh

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #25 on: May 26, 2019, 09:45:26 PM »
Nice kill with the bare hands.  I cleared an acre of weeds and found the mounds.  Killed 4 in one day and a couple more since and am now gopher free for a few weeks.  8) And I found this guy yesterday and moved him into the center of the yard in some nice boulders with tunnels under then.


Brad Spaugh

Oolie

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #26 on: May 27, 2019, 12:30:20 AM »
What its the damage they do?Here they are protected by law and in somme place on the Danube ,they made holes in the earth dams wich caused catastrofic flooding.They are still protected even on those dams.They eat small herbs not trees.If they were on my land i wouldnt worry about them just as i dont worry about squirrels.In fact i even mounted houses for squirrels in somme of my trees.

The ones here eat tree roots. They will take an established tree with 20cm diameter trunk and eat every root on it back to the main stem, which will fall over. As a result to get any lasting reprieve we have to plant all trees in home made baskets fabricated from 0.5" hardware cloth with complete bottoms. The baskets are dipped in zinc, so they last about 4 years, depending on the weather, after that, you have to protect them from gophers or they will die.

The squirrels here are nightmarish as well. The local school leaves their trash bins available for them to feed, and they don't remove them from the grounds. They come through the neighborhoods when they run out of food, and will defoliate a peach tree in a day or two. They start with the unripe fruits, then they eat the leaves, then the bark.

It's a miracle if we get any kind of fruit here.

clannewton

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #27 on: May 28, 2019, 03:19:48 PM »


At least you don't have gopher turtles robbing your fruit ;D

DurbanDude

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #28 on: May 30, 2019, 08:30:11 PM »
Last year I posted about Gophinator (Trapline) traps and at the time I wasn't that impressed with them. After catching 9 gophers with some new gophinator traps I can say they are much better than macabee traps. Every feature of the gophinator trap is better but one feature that stands out is the trigger bar. I can only make educated guesses on why the trigger bar is better than a trigger plate (macabee) but I suspect that when a gopher sees the plate they see an almost filled in hole so they figure they will just fill in the rest resulting in many empty traps. When they see the bar I think they inspect it to see how they should deal with closing the hole which results in more trapped gophers.

Last year I caught 30-50 gophers with Macabee and Cinch traps. This year I won't even waste my time putting anything but a trapline product in a gopher hole. Cinch traps work but they are so inconvenient to setup and the corrosion resistance is horrible which causes even more setup issues. 

spaugh

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #29 on: May 31, 2019, 04:40:03 PM »
I might have to order some of the trapline traps to test them out.  Hate to do it since Ive already got 20 macabees. 

These hori hori knives work good for opening tunnels.  If I could find one slightly wider it would be perfect.   


Brad Spaugh

spaugh

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #30 on: May 06, 2020, 12:07:08 AM »
Hows the gooher hunt going Oolie?  I probably caught 15 so far this year.  They havent damaged anything though, as soon as I see a mound the traps get put out and within a day or 2 thry are usually caught.  Been using the gophenator stainless steel traps for a year or so now and I do like them.  Ive got 2 mole and 2 gopher sized traps and have them attached to steel wire and a PVC pipe piece as a handle.  My neighbor rigged up the lines and pipe.
Brad Spaugh

Oolie

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #31 on: May 06, 2020, 12:46:57 AM »
They're getting the best of me as I haven't had much time to target them this year.

I got 72 last year though, and have put serious consideration into the use of oxy-acetylene to explode the runs, as it seems most runs contain several gophers.

On a positive note, with the schools shut down, all the squirrels have gone dormant, they can't sustain the reproduction rate of previous years due to lack of food.
« Last Edit: May 06, 2020, 12:49:05 AM by Oolie »

spaugh

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #32 on: May 06, 2020, 01:29:33 AM »
That sucks the school is so sloppy with the dumpster when they are open.  Doesn't it have a lid?

You only live once, may as well go for the gopher blasting setup.  Please video that if you do it. 

My neighbor has been using a new trap that's like a big spring loaded dagger thing that sticks straight up out of the tunnel.  He seems happy with it.  I'm hoping he will donate or sell me his trapline ones.  They are a step up from the macabee.

Heres a pic of the gophenator on the steel string.  Handle makes it easy to pull out. 


« Last Edit: May 06, 2020, 02:01:30 AM by spaugh »
Brad Spaugh

roblack

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #33 on: May 06, 2020, 08:09:32 AM »
Thought I had it bad with squirrels and rats. Forgot about gophers.

Of about 62 mangoes grown to ripeness on one tree, 21 have been lost to squirrels or rats.

I'm okay with sharing a few, but not 1/3 of my fruit.

Will check on gopher snakes for you Brad. I know a guy who knows a guy...


ScottR

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #34 on: May 06, 2020, 10:32:32 AM »
I live on very old sand dunes and we have been using Trap line products for quite a few year's ( maybe 6-8yrs.)
and we love them the big trap like in you photo is for gophers but we also use same design trap but smaller which they call there mole trap and it's great for small hole's the little juveniles gophers we have traped this year 43 and counting last year we had 117 they work!!! ;) Best thing about these trap's is that they are all stainless steel and never rust and back wind spring is great too!

spaugh

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #35 on: May 06, 2020, 11:32:09 AM »
Thought I had it bad with squirrels and rats. Forgot about gophers.

Of about 62 mangoes grown to ripeness on one tree, 21 have been lost to squirrels or rats.

I'm okay with sharing a few, but not 1/3 of my fruit.

Will check on gopher snakes for you Brad. I know a guy who knows a guy...

Theres been a few non venomous snakes around lately.  Also a few venomous ones.  They all just woke up from sleeping all winter. 


Brad Spaugh

SHV

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #36 on: May 06, 2020, 12:08:26 PM »
There was a massive gopher population explosion in my area over the past 2 months.  This year, I have already killed 50+ gophers on my property, many of them juveniles, with the Macabee traps.  These traps last forever if you keep them clean.  The only time I have to replace them is when I'm not consistent in checking the traps and coyotes dig them up and run off with the prize. 

I planted 50 mango seedlings last year and lost ~20 to gophers with 10 succumbing to winter chill.  I now plant all of my seedling trees in a makeshift gopher cage from hardware cloth. 

The damn gopher network is so extensive on my property, I had water bubbling out of a gopher hole for a week after our last big rain from water running down the hills.  I thought I had a broken main water line the pressure was so strong and consistent.  Of course, all the gophers survived the tunnel flooding.  If I tried to run gas through the network and explode the tunnels, my whole property might drop down a foot  ;)

SHV

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #37 on: May 06, 2020, 12:16:33 PM »
I might have to order some of the trapline traps to test them out.  Hate to do it since Ive already got 20 macabees. 

These hori hori knives work good for opening tunnels.  If I could find one slightly wider it would be perfect.   



I may have to get one of these hori hori knives.  I can't tell you how many times I have used my paws to clear a gopher hole and a scorpion comes walking out.  I always wear gloves now when messing around with these damned gopher holes.

spaugh

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #38 on: May 06, 2020, 04:03:21 PM »
There was a massive gopher population explosion in my area over the past 2 months.  This year, I have already killed 50+ gophers on my property, many of them juveniles, with the Macabee traps.  These traps last forever if you keep them clean.  The only time I have to replace them is when I'm not consistent in checking the traps and coyotes dig them up and run off with the prize. 

I planted 50 mango seedlings last year and lost ~20 to gophers with 10 succumbing to winter chill.  I now plant all of my seedling trees in a makeshift gopher cage from hardware cloth. 

The damn gopher network is so extensive on my property, I had water bubbling out of a gopher hole for a week after our last big rain from water running down the hills.  I thought I had a broken main water line the pressure was so strong and consistent.  Of course, all the gophers survived the tunnel flooding.  If I tried to run gas through the network and explode the tunnels, my whole property might drop down a foot  ;)

Is there open space around your property for coyotes and snakes to wander freely or is it all surrounded by other farms?

I think my gopher problem isnt that bad because theres lots of open space for predators surrounding the orchard here.  And the neighbors kill their gophers. 
« Last Edit: May 06, 2020, 04:04:56 PM by spaugh »
Brad Spaugh

SHV

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #39 on: May 06, 2020, 08:16:05 PM »
Not too much open space for coyotes to roam in my area, with farms and vineyards back-to-back.  We do have a ton of coyotes nonetheless as we are reminded every morning and evening.  We also have a lot of gopher snakes, racers, rattlers, and king snakes. At least there is minimal impact from ground squirrels as the raptors do a great job keeping their populations under control. Snapped this pict in December of the professional rodent exterminator on our neighbors property.



strom

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #40 on: May 06, 2020, 08:36:47 PM »
I grew up on a ~2 acre property in so cal (south OC, near where I am now), and we had a gopher problem but nowhere near this level (maybe 20-30 a year).  We used a combination of traps, gas, noise beeper stakes, and poison at the time, but continued to have problems.  In an act of desperation, in the mid-late 90s we bought a bunch of those "gopher plants"... the plant multiplied on its own, spread around the property, and we noticed the gopher mounds began shifting away.  After 3-4 years, the gophers just.. disappeared... 

This may of course just be a coincidence, there could be other factors at stake, but perhaps it might be worth a shot to look into this plant?

SeaWalnut

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #41 on: May 06, 2020, 09:36:29 PM »
I grew up on a ~2 acre property in so cal (south OC, near where I am now), and we had a gopher problem but nowhere near this level (maybe 20-30 a year).  We used a combination of traps, gas, noise beeper stakes, and poison at the time, but continued to have problems.  In an act of desperation, in the mid-late 90s we bought a bunch of those "gopher plants"... the plant multiplied on its own, spread around the property, and we noticed the gopher mounds began shifting away.  After 3-4 years, the gophers just.. disappeared... 

This may of course just be a coincidence, there could be other factors at stake, but perhaps it might be worth a shot to look into this plant?
Euphorbia Rigida.
Another idea its to grow a few sea onions wich its probably the best rat poison in the world.
But you loose the eagles,the owls,coyotes and snakes as they will have to move.

These little american rats also have beneficial roles because they store organic material from plants deep into the soil wich acts like a fertiliser.

TheWaterbug

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #42 on: August 25, 2020, 06:40:50 PM »
I got 72 last year though, and have put serious consideration into the use of oxy-acetylene to explode the runs, as it seems most runs contain several gophers.


Be sure to get the explosion on video.
Sunset 23/USDA 11a, Elev. 783', Frost free since 8,000 BC. Plagued by squirrels, gophers, and peafowl, but coming to terms with it!

Lovetoplant

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #43 on: August 26, 2020, 02:55:45 AM »
I use Gopher Hawk trap.  It works well for me.  No need to dig into their runway.

bovine421

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #44 on: August 26, 2020, 11:24:02 AM »
Not too much open space for coyotes to roam in my area, with farms and vineyards back-to-back.  We do have a ton of coyotes nonetheless as we are reminded every morning and evening.  We also have a lot of gopher snakes, racers, rattlers, and king snakes. At least there is minimal impact from ground squirrels as the raptors do a great job keeping their populations under control. Snapped this pict in December of the professional rodent exterminator on our neighbors property.



Birds of Prey are totally awesome maybe someone with a gopher problem should sponsor some young person with an aptitude for such an endeavor
https://www.calhawkingclub.org/falconry-apprenticeship/steps
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spaugh

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #45 on: August 26, 2020, 01:46:05 PM »
The gophers live underground. 
Brad Spaugh

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #46 on: August 26, 2020, 02:05:41 PM »
Gophers have been weird on my property this year. They had TONS of activity in spring and now I can't find any new mounds or signs of them. A pomegranate my landlord has planted is rapidly dying though, and I wager the gophers are underneath it. All the plants I put in this year have baskets. Bummer it's only 4 years of protection.

I'll keep working on trapping... Gopherhawk hasn't gotten anything.

Do people ever use bait to attract the gopher past the plate? I dig a hole when I find a mound and put two traps in it, one facing either direction - but maybe putting something that smells and tastes good in the middle would work. Tried micro carrots from the garden, no difference.

spaugh

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #47 on: August 26, 2020, 02:07:04 PM »
Stuff green weeds behind the trap then cover the hole to block the light and they will walk in the trap.  Works every time.
Brad Spaugh

bovine421

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #48 on: August 26, 2020, 02:34:48 PM »
The gophers live underground.

What about a trained ferret or .17 cal I'm just trying to help

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bovine421

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Re: Gopher Gold
« Reply #49 on: August 26, 2020, 03:29:59 PM »
I put this problem to the cannabis forum and this is the answer that they came up with. Feed them Rice-A-Roni



« Last Edit: August 26, 2020, 04:11:09 PM by bovine421 »
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