Lack of chucks

[Brians356]

They get sick, die or move away from GMO crops and all the chemicals. Same goes for humans, we thrive eating natural foods and minerals with no chemicals the same as the woodchuck. Sad state of affairs.

Do you know of anyone dying or getting ill from eating GMO food?
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[carnivore]

Do you know of anyone dying or getting ill from eating GMO food?
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Let's not let data stand in the way of a great sea story. LMAO

 

[Tim s]

I used to think coyotes were the biggest culprit but they are likely not the biggest factor.
I have a good buddy that is a fanatic and hunts chucks in several states in the midwest and northeast.
He did lots of research that yeilded a little known fact. Starting in the midwest a few years back there has been spreading a particularly tough strain of hepatitis that chucks are sensitive to and this is thought to be the biggest factor. Checked with a veterinarian buddy of mine that said it's fairly credible .

 

[K22]

There is no doubt that coyotes do have an effect on the chuck population but IMO it is the number of folks who hunt them now that is having the greatest impact on them. In the past decades there were not nearly as many varmint hunters as there are now. To a degree the same thing is happening with prairie dog and ground squirrel hunting, they are all finite populations while the number of folks who hunt them is growing every year.
I am old enough that varmint hunting was more of a casual thing or targets of opportunity, very few people actually hunted varmints. Now we have magazine articles about it, web-sites dedicated to it, specialized equipment for it, etc. I remember the first time I heard of someone actually doing a Prairie Dog Safari - my first thought was that "this will never sell", was I ever wrong on that one.

drover

That's a good point - I started in the late 60's and my best friend and I were definitely on the fringe of the hunting community. I lived in Western PA in those days and there were tons of hogs and we saw very few ghog hunters if any most of the time. We were both using our father's deer rifles with low power scopes because that's all we had.

I wanted a 222 but my Dad insisted that he buy me a "qualified deer rifle" so we struck a compromise and he brought me my first center fire rifle, a Model 70 Winchester in 243. I thought I died and went to heaven, it was perfect combo rifle. Kill many a ghogs with it using a 3x9 Redfield scope and several white tails. No range finders in those days but boy did we have fun.

After graduating from college I gradually started to build a varmint rifle battery and now have a whole safe full of dedicated varmint rifles but I still have fond memories of those early days when there were ghogs every where.
















there

 

[stosh]

All good info, I will just say I am sure Coyotes are not the only factor, But when I see a lot of Coyotes, I don't see a lot of chucks. When I see a lot of chucks, I don't see a lot of Coyotes.

 

[Changeling]

Interesting post. I live near Frederick MD, I've only seen several coyotes in the last 10 years, so basically we have no population of them.
Three years ago there was twice as many GH in my area then is here now, especially the last 2 years. This year is the lowest count I have ever seen. There are not many at all seen on the roads as usual and the road kill is way down.
Rabbits are all but completely gone from my area, can't even remember seeing one dead on the road.
The little orange and black tortoise’s that used to be seen every where are totally gone!
Quail that you used to hear singing their song every day are all but gone.
Pheasants completely gone about 8 to 10 years ago.
Dove population is now half what it was 10 yrs ago.
Robyn's are definitely down quite a bit.
Deer, something really has happened to there population, way down. I see very few road kills any more in my area.

What' remained the same/increased in my area for the last 10 years.
Geese have steadily been on the rise.
Fox population seems to be about the same to a small rise (figure that one out!)
Squirrel population seems to be about the same to a small decrease.
Skunk population down about 40 percent.
Turkeys about the same. meaning very few, stocked by county.
People who drive like fools, cops that do nothing, and local and Federal government that don't want to be bothered
on the rise at alarming rate.

I am a firm believer that no till farming is one thing causing the major part of wildlife problems , it's poison to wildlife, just think about it! That includes the harry homeowners who dump all the chemicals they can on their lawn every week end! I was one of them up till 3 years ago.

 

[WyleWD]

Interesting post. I live near Frederick MD, I've

I am a firm believer that no till farming is one thing causing the major part of wildlife problems , it's poison to wildlife, just think about it!

The county I live and farm in is 98% conventional tillage. We now have nearly zero chucks but a very goodly amount of coyotes. There is a county 50 miles east of me that has PLENTY of chucks and coyotes, and easily over 60-70% is no till. The major difference between the two is that they grow a lot more alfalfa and clover hay compared to the county I live and farm in. Also, the same herbicides are used in both conventional and no till farming. Not calling you specificly out, just sharing knowledge. WD

 

[superlite]

My Dad lives in S.E PA on a small horse farm in an area with a lot of tree growing nurseries, no real crop farming only a few small corn or bean fields. The hogs are thick there (and deer for that matter), it is fairly developed with no area I would even feel comfortable with a .223. We use an HMR and .22lr. Occasionally we see coyotes but he says he is seeing more and more. My point being I didn't know anyone near me that would "hunt" ground hogs. Sure they may pick one off if they see it but they weren't going out for a slaughter. Lack or predation and large fields that are left mostly undisturbed except for occasional mowing and a tree spade in the spring and fall seems to be a recipe for a large population. A few years ago my dad was having a problem with them and I killed tons of them that spring and summer. It seemed that the population took a while to re-build. I barely saw any the following years, either they got skittish and hid better or they don't do well when over hunted. Possibly the populations just wane certain years depending on food and ???

 

[fredo]

I hunt in central NY, so we can't call coyotes during the prime times to decoy them with a dog. Willing travel to NE/SE PA to get my dog on some summertime coyotes. Coyotes can be very callable/killable this time of year, if you've got the tools...

If you really have a coyote problem on your land & want it handled, shoot me a PM.

 

[6MMsteve]

The county I live and farm in is 98% conventional tillage. We now have nearly zero chucks but a very goodly amount of coyotes. There is a county 50 miles east of me that has PLENTY of chucks and coyotes, and easily over 60-70% is no till. The major difference between the two is that they grow a lot more alfalfa and clover hay compared to the county I live and farm in. Also, the same herbicides are used in both conventional and no till farming. Not calling you specificly out, just sharing knowledge. WD

Ol Alfalfa is a hog magnet

 

[markT]

Local crop farmer just spread fertilizer on a field that he plans to plant soon. I think it is chicken litter and he has used human waste. ( highly regulated)
I would tend to think that is not good for all types of critters..

 

[Changeling]

The county I live and farm in is 98% conventional tillage. We now have nearly zero chucks but a very goodly amount of coyotes. There is a county 50 miles east of me that has PLENTY of chucks and coyotes, and easily over 60-70% is no till. The major difference between the two is that they grow a lot more alfalfa and clover hay compared to the county I live and farm in. Also, the same herbicides are used in both conventional and no till farming. Not calling you specificly out, just sharing knowledge. WD

Interesting, crops around my area are alternated somewhat, usually it is winter wheat, corn and soybeans, there are some hay fields but they are somewhat smaller and not as much. Their is a field behind my house that buts into a large field of about 150 acres are more. They plant soybeans every year except for a few years in some corn. Ideal for GH's , deer and birds of all kinds. Every year since building here I've shot 15 to 20 are so with revolvers in the spring, this year I've shot a few but haven't seen one now in a month or so. I glass the pastures and wood line every day, nill ! it's like someone threw a switch and they disappeared! Usually I will have up to 10 small herds of deer or so working the area, this year only one small herd of 5 deer!

Not upset with you at all, it's information like we all are giving that might help in finding out what the heck is going on, it's really strange, and been to quick to be ignored!
Probably Hillary Clinton and a wild pack of Democrats running wild

 

[Conaso]

Geez, guys. It's been in the news, called "Gentrification." They're moving to the suburbs - hunting banned, plenty of succulent plants, inhabitants scream for Animal Control if a predator is seen.

 

[357Mag]

All -

A little light reading about " Gramaxone ", a chemical used to provide " burn down " of vegitation in-association
w/ " No Till " farming.


With regards,
357Mag

 

[357Mag]

All-

OOops !

Try this link: ww.panna.org/sites/default/files/Paraquat%20monograph%20final%202011-1.pdf


With regards,
357Mag

 

[357Mag]

ALl -

A blurb about " Roundup ": http://earthopensource.org/gmomyths...p-safe-herbicide-low-toxicity-animals-humans/


With regards,
357Mag

 

[357Mag]

All -

Hazards to small mammals is mentioned, including decrease in their reproductive capabilities.....

2-4-D: motherearthnews.com/organic-gardening/hazards-of-the-worlds-most-common-herbicide.aspx

Other: motherearthnews.com/organic-gardening/hazards-of-the-worlds-most-common-herbicide.aspx


With regards,
357Mag

 

[rogn]

I live on the eastern Shore of MD.We have never had GH here until very recently, since we are flat land w/ a high water table. Mostly row crops, corn , wheat, rye, soybeans and a lesser amount of truck crops. I do the corn and soybean routine. Last year I killed 3 groundhogs on the property(only 80+ acres). 90% of farming on the shore is no till and we are seeing GH proliferation at a surprising rate. We have lotsa raptors, great horned owls , eagles and too many hawks to list. We have a few coyotes, but they are pretty secretive, i did loose a deer to one last year overnight. We have most of the negatives here but the hogs are making themselves at home. Hard to figure. Also, dont just believe that conventional farming doesnt use chemicals. It uses as many or more than no till. One of the reasons we dont see the level of activity in press or research is that anti-GMOs have become a cause for academia.

 

[Eddie Harren]

Interesting, crops around my area are alternated somewhat, usually it is winter wheat, corn and soybeans, there are some hay fields but they are somewhat smaller and not as much. Their is a field behind my house that buts into a large field of about 150 acres are more. They plant soybeans every year except for a few years in some corn. Ideal for GH's , deer and birds of all kinds. Every year since building here I've shot 15 to 20 are so with revolvers in the spring, this year I've shot a few but haven't seen one now in a month or so. I glass the pastures and wood line every day, nill ! it's like someone threw a switch and they disappeared! Usually I will have up to 10 small herds of deer or so working the area, this year only one small herd of 5 deer!

Not upset with you at all, it's information like we all are giving that might help in finding out what the heck is going on, it's really strange, and been to quick to be ignored!
Probably Hillary Clinton and a wild pack of Democrats running wild

Did you get my PM?

 

[LHSmith]

IMHO, based on my locale, NE PA -Pocono region, #1 population control of GH's is the farmers use of poison gas and traps due to most areas being considered not safe to use firearms. Next would be hawks and eagles as I have witnessed them in the act. Coyotes and fox are low on the list as with the population density (people) is high enough to force them to hunt nocturnally when GH's are not active.
As to when no-till became standard practice, I believe the last deep plow my field (which is leased to the local farmer) saw was late '80's and if any affect it had it forced more of them to make their borrows in adjacent woodlots. I see as many GH's now as when I spent my entire school summer vacations ('60's) on my families farm (same property -only subdivided now) hunting these critters.