I know I will have to change how I trap as winter moves in. And we are expecting 1-3″ of snow tonight and tomorrow. I’ll just pull it when the weather turns bad… And I don’t mind the cold weather that much. It’s just part of winter in this area.
I don’t try to keep decoys overnight in the cold weather. Maybe it’s possible if I brought it in to the garage, as at least they would be protected from the wind and some of the cold. Your idea of an old quilt might work too, but right now, I’m starting each day with an empty trap.
I’ve been trapping them with the trap set on a couple of concrete blocks with a small sheet of plywood underneath, and it has seemed to work good, at least in the warmer months. I’m still catching one a day, so I think I’ll keep it where it is. I tried setting it near my feeder, and caught none, as they were more interested in the feeder. I moved it to an area near where they perch, and started catching them.
Of course, this time of year, I’m catching a few more other birds. I have a couple of wrens that have not got trap-wise yet. I release them almost every other day. Juncos are now a little more problem too, so that’s why I thought I’d try to keep it elevated. And I had a tufted titmouse the other day that when I grabbed him with a gloved hand and pulled him out of the trap, was more interested in attacking my glove than flying away! He attacked that glove for close to 30 seconds in my open hand before he realized that he was free. :TildeSmirk:
Chris
Toledo, Ohio