Sound Lures: Domestic Cats: Modifying trap deployment review DS1

Having spent two weeks deploying the sound lure by exposing it to Autumn elements a variation has been made, with the same sound profile, to see what affect that this has on the images. 

Cat standing on sound lure box

A second trap box has been deployed adjacent to the first.   This is in place with two small mouse traps held inside.   There is clear evidence that a small animal is entering the larger tunnel and stripping off the peanut butter that is placed on the larger trap.  The animal is such that it is not causing the rat trap to activate, nor the trail camera to detect it as when there is clear evidence that this is occurring (bait is missing) the camera has not deteceted as image, on a twenty second delay.   To deter this smaller mouse traps have been placed in the second box, the result of this has seen three small mice being removed from the environment.

The major change is placing the sound lure inside the tunnel box.   This has been done to test how this affects interactions with the lure.   For the first two nights of this there was two significant differences one which was illustrated in the photographs.    On the first night an animal of some description moved the second box one metre or so away from where it was placed.   Unfortunately due to human error there was no recording of this event or animal.  It would have to be either a possum or a cat (perhaps jumping onto the box).   

cat returns to sound lure box 

The second nights major activities are highlighted here in the case of the domestic cat. 

In a series of photographs the cat can be seen interacting with the box - but in this case climbing over the box (instead of as has been typical with this cat previously interacting around the base of it). 

This cat is one of two domestic cats at this location, which also includes a large dog.    As has been noted repeatedly on this blog the reason that the testing of the units needs to move away from this location is the factor that these animals are present.   The cat shown here is regularly approaching the site where the lure is, either on camera or waiting in the area.   There is a direct correlation between the first arrival on camera of the two domestic cats, after five days and a 118 activations of animals (typically rats and mice) to a further twelve days and another 28 activations which are almost exclusively cats.   The featured cat has had interactions with the lure over a number of months, since the start of the first trial with the sound lure but is continuing to interact directly with and spend considerable time in the area where the sound lure is deployed.  Feral cats are an issue in a number of areas and this would suggest the lure would be useful in attracting them. 

In addition to the sound lure trap area at the house/field area nearby there is a further DOC2000 Stoat trap (baited with an egg which has had no activations since being deployed).   There is another monitored trap on the property outside with a temperature probe (no activations during this deployment) as well as six internal traps at various locations in either outbuildings or the main house (none of which has recorded any activations during the latest testing phase).    The final trap at this location is a live capture trap.   This has been deployed baited with fruit over the past three years.  It has resulted in the capture of sixteen brushtailed possums, 13 in the first year, two in February of this year within three days and a further capture on Friday.    This possum was identified as regularly raiding the compost bin and was targetted for capture with the trap.  The sound lure was not used in conjunction with this capture as the sound lure would have been at a location where it would have been clearly heard at the house.

The lure will be delpoyed for another two weeks at this location inside the tunnel.  It does need to be pointed out that this tunnel is not custom made for the lure (as will be constructed at some point) it is simply able to fit inside the lure so there has been little thought to acoustic noise, design of the tunnel etc.   This is another project for another time.