Why The Rabbit Population Collapse?

[downsview 448]

Been in areas where buzzards and redkites fill the air plenty of hares on the ground and not a bad head of rabbits either rhd and wet summers are the big factors jmho

[Phil Lloyd 10,738]

Yes,..weather plays a big part, in whether,...a wild critter lives or dies.....

[bigmac 97kt 13,806]

There is not too many farmers that will let you shoot land containing stock, especially with the reputation the rifle boys have for killing or wounding farm animals, a trustworthy man and dog is safest way to go, it can be physically demanding unlike pulling a trigger but real men just get on with it.

3000 acres on one perm.

 

2000 acres on another,

 

1500 on another,

 

800 on another ,

 

1000 on another

 

and all stock farms

 

only one is crops

 

just me my mate and our rifles

 

so stick that in your pipe and smoke it

 

Funny mind never ever wounded any stock in all the years of shooting

 

but iv saw plenty of damage done by 4x4,s that have drove through fences , hedges, and the like so they can let there dogs off to chase hairs

 

im not saying its all the lads but a few do so dont just call us shooters as your not squeaky clean your self's

 

iv got one perm where the farmer wants all the hairs shot just because of this damage

 

the funny thing is he dose not lock the gates on any of his fields

 

atvbmac :thumbs:

[downsview 448]

Lets not pick hairs lol

[Slippery_Weasel 460]

I don't think hunters have any significant impact on numbers when there is an established and plentiful population. Unless one area is hammered repeatedly.

 

Where i live there is no shortage, it's mostly arable and a there are a number of fields with box traps scattered about (not sure how much they're used). I need 3 rabbits per day to break even between dogs and ferrets food. I am out for a walk every night locally when I'm not out further a field lamping and I only take 3 maybe 5-6 times a week (only fit 3 in pockets). I've been here three years and seen no difference in the numbers. This is on a very few areas, maybe around 30 odd fields max

 

Previous address the same although I was there 7 years, same numbers needed and no drop off.

 

Blaming air rifles is just daft, most of them don't take big bags anyway, Dress up in camo roll around on the floor for a couple if hours once a week if the weather is good and come away with 2 rabbits. Most of this is in the summer anyway when in densely populated areas you'd have to spend entire days at it to even scratch the surface. I can only see them making a difference in areas that are pretty sparse already.

 

In areas where there has been a big decline I would look to other factors environmental, farming, predatation or disease or a combination of these with hunters. I don't know anything about the disease mentioned but it sounds feasible to me. We have mixy round here and in the dales but I don't believe it's as devastating to the population as it once was, lots seem to survive it.

[Truther 1,579]

 

I know its shooters round here, and disease don't explain the hares does it..................Idiots in both camps.............i don't like either sort.

Hares are vulnerable to liver fluke and that can kill a lot off if its a wet year.

 

 

Fluke's a parasite mate, a cycle that involves snails and ants, in over 40 years of hunting round here iv'e only ever found a handful of dead/ skinny hares, that could or could not have died from fluke, on the other hand iv'e found plenty with a f***ing great hole in them, is a big hole through the chest a symptom of fluke?................They don't even pick them up.

 

You should have gone for EBHS...............a virus from the same family as RHD..............rabbits are immune to EBHS though..........and hares are immune to RHD.........Both are the same family of viruses that cause gastroenteritis in humans. Iv'e seen EBHS in our hares once, it came through and nearly wiped them out, we found corpse after corpse, early 80's from memory, never seen it again, and the hares recovered.

 

There are hares in pockets here, healthy hares living in fairly small areas, these areas have one thing in common, NO SHOOTING. Viruses and parasites don't respect boundaries do they.............but shooters have to...............The small syndicates move in, the rabbits/hares nosedive, the shooters f**k off....the rabbits and hares come back.............Simple as that.

 

On some land iv'e stocked iv'e had trouble with arseholes using 10 bushers and ferreting every set, i'm not happy with them either, like i said earlier, idiots on both sides.............No RHD at all in the rabbits here.............i know what it looks like, seen it in the Dales. Myxi has taken its toll, but plenty of rabbits were beating it, had a few with old scars from it, specially the rabbits on the land i stocked, mixing the genes up seems to help a lot with myxi, if lands never had any fresh blood the rabbits are very inbred, if a virus kills one it will kill nearly all, mix the genes up and the survival rate is better from what iv'e seen.

 

Shooters never put their hands up, responsible shooters defend arsehole shooters..............Simple reason is they need a licence.......Woe betide anyone saying anything negative about shooting, were under enough pressure Pathetic.

[bird 9,948]

 

There is not too many farmers that will let you shoot land containing stock, especially with the reputation the rifle boys have for killing or wounding farm animals, a trustworthy man and dog is safest way to go, it can be physically demanding unlike pulling a trigger but real men just get on with it.

3000 acres on one perm.

 

2000 acres on another,

 

1500 on another,

 

800 on another ,

 

1000 on another

 

and all stock farms

 

only one is crops

 

just me my mate and our rifles

 

so stick that in your pipe and smoke it

 

Funny mind never ever wounded any stock in all the years of shooting

 

but iv saw plenty of damage done by 4x4,s that have drove through fences , hedges, and the like so they can let there dogs off to chase hairs

 

im not saying its all the lads but a few do so dont just call us shooters as your not squeaky clean your self's

 

iv got one perm where the farmer wants all the hairs shot just because of this damage

 

the funny thing is he dose not lock the gates on any of his fields

 

atvbmac :thumbs:

 

lets be honest here a gun in good hands, will wipe a field out with game = 200yds fox/deer, 100yds rabbits+ hares , where for a good lurcher that's knows the crack might do 100 yds , but as still got to catch it, and some stuff gets away for another day. This why its hard at times to get on ground with a lurcher, more so if the keeper been out with a gun man, he will see how effective guns can be, so want need any lurcher blokes on his ground, a dog carnt compete with a gun. I work a lurcher for the sport, not to decimate the game, and I think a lot of lurcher owners would say the same

[walshie 2,804]

How many shooters come on here bragging about 100+ nights though? I've never seen one.

[Francie 6,368]

Maybe not walshie, but a lad was on last week, shouting about shooting 17 foxes in one night, complete an utter waste, imo

[bird 9,948]

How many shooters come on here bragging about 100+ nights though? I've never seen one.

they don't have to, because they can kill 100 a night easy, if the game there. if there going 2-3 nights a week 300 rabbits is a lot in a week. If your lurcher gets 40-50 rabbits a night that great bag, never mind getting the big ton in a night, that's why people put the achievement up on here its great thing for a lurcher to do , my dog Buck can knock over 40 in a night, and to me that great night, but being honest I rather get other game with him pre ban than , bag of rabbits .

[Truther 1,579]

How many shooters come on here bragging about 100+ nights though? I've never seen one.

 

If you can do 100 in a session with a dog or gun you're on land that can stand it, and very probably should do it before disease kicks in, they'll just go to waste.

 

There's a big difference between that and wiping any area out, the rabbits never build up to nuisance levels round here, even left alone, so no excuse for virtually wiping them out..............When the land round here was a proper estate there was some balance, the old keepers were arseholes, but never wiped anything out...............Its been chopped into syndicates now............and these cretins just shoot everything out, no balance at all.........And after a season or two they don't have any ground game to go at themselves.....

[bird 9,948]

 

How many shooters come on here bragging about 100+ nights though? I've never seen one.

 

If you can do 100 in a session with a dog or gun you're on land that can stand it, and very probably should do it before disease kicks in, they'll just go to waste.

 

There's a big difference between that and wiping any area out, the rabbits never build up to nuisance levels round here, even left alone, so no excuse for virtually wiping them out..............When the land round here was a proper estate there was some balance, the old keepers were arseholes, but never wiped anything out...............Its been chopped into syndicates now............and these cretins just shoot everything out, no balance at all.........And after a season or two they don't have any ground game to go at themselves.....

 

[walshie 2,804]

Maybe not walshie, but a lad was on last week, shouting about shooting 17 foxes in one night, complete an utter waste, imo

 

Possibly, but if a dogman had done a good few (pre-ban) it would have been back-slapping all round and home for tea and medals.

 

I can't speak for others, but I think taking anything to excess by any means is pretty pointless really. One place I shoot he wants all foxes I see eradicated, but it's more fun to me to track 1 or 2 and try to get into a good position to shoot. To me the numbers are irrelevant, I enjoy the hunt.

 

Having said that, I've never shot more than about 30 rabbits on any one night. If it's that easy, it's no fun.

 

Once I get out rabbiting with my dog, just a couple will do me fine. I have no need to publicly measure my (small) knob.

[bigmac 97kt 13,806]

Im not having a go at you lads far from it my son runs lurchers and has rifles to.

 

But its not down to us, iv seen us go out and not fire a shot all night

 

your good at what you do and so are we but the lack of rabbits is not down to the lads with rifles be they pellet or bullet

 

or dogs come to that

 

and if truth be told just how many of you have rifles i bet a few

 

atvbmac :thumbs:

[smithie 2,443]

tjones is better with his dog than i am with my plinker... thats a fact

 

and i dont believe some body shot 17 fox in a night unless hes breading them lol.. after finding 3 or 4 id get board and go home..