The marten is a common fur-bearing animal of the mustelid family, the hunt for which brings profit due to the beautiful, expensive and popular fur coat of the animal. The marten is an unpretentious animal, so its residence extends over the entire European territory, in deciduous and mixed forests.
Marten hunting begins in October-November and lasts throughout the winter. At this time, the marten is preparing for winter, and its fur becomes thicker and fluffier.
The marten is a very dexterous, intelligent and strong animal, so hunting it is not so easy. The marten's diet consists of small birds, rodents, eggs of domestic and wild birds.
Important! Hunting for fur-bearing animals is carried out exclusively under licenses and in ways that are permitted by law.
Popular methods of hunting mustelids are the use of traps, self-catching, and catching the animal with a dog and a hunting rifle.
Hunting
Despite the fact that this is an energetic predatory animal, it nevertheless loves to feast on berries and is not averse to pampering itself with the larvae of wild bees and the “product” of their vital activity. Apparently, this is why catching martens with honey traps is very productive.
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In general, this animal belongs to one of the most difficult objects to hunt. In those days, when uncontrolled marten fishing was carried out, its population in the European part of our country was reduced to almost zero. And this despite the fact that hunting this animal requires the highest endurance, hardening and professionalism. However, today such a “deplorable” situation has changed dramatically, the marten has become a common inhabitant of Russian forests, it has already been removed from the list of fur-bearing animals, the capture of which is subject to licensing.
Fishing methods
If the weasel has already visited the chicken coop once, you need to take drastic measures. To combat the pest, you can use one of the methods suggested below.
Important! Representatives of the mustelid family are repelled by strong smells and loud sounds. This feature must be used to protect poultry from weasels.
Repellers
You can get rid of weasels using different methods. First, you should try special repellers.
- Electronic products. The operating principle of such mechanisms is based on the production of low-frequency sounds that the human ear cannot perceive. They also do not cause harm to health. But the weasels are panicked by these sounds and run away.
- Flashlight with motion sensor. When an animal approaches, such a device reacts to the slightest movement by turning on bright lighting and emitting a sound signal. This scares Laska and she runs away.
Selecting a trap
Traps are iron devices for catching animals. They have special springs that are triggered when an animal hits them. At this moment the trap slams shut, and the body is crushed in half. For martens there are zero traps, No. 1 and No. 2. You need to choose depending on the possible size of the predator. The new trap needs to be wiped and washed from grease. Then it is boiled in spruce needles. If you are in doubt which one to choose, take No. 1, you won’t miss. A large number may not always be suitable. The animal breaks the bone and hides.
Traps for martens are divided into:
- Plate. It looks like a metal plate with two arms. The base is attached to the spring. When triggered, the plate moves, the arcs hold the beast.
- Frame. Looks like an iron frame with canvas. When the marten touches the canvas, the guard releases the arcs. They slam shut and grab the animal.
- The bag is homemade and factory made. They place it on the ground and attach it to trees. When the animal pulls the bait, the guard is triggered. The frame presses down on the neck, the predator can no longer get out. Kulema is often placed in a box. This is necessary to ensure that the bait is not eaten by other forest inhabitants. It will not be covered with snow, and it will not fail in any weather. Kulema is light and weighs approximately 300 grams.
Frame trap
The frame trap has the following structure: a rectangular or round frame onto which canvas or threads are stretched, leading to the gatehouse. On the back side of the frame, several risers are attached, into which the ends of the arcs are installed. At the same distance from the riser, a guard should be installed between adjacent springs that close the mechanism.
There is also a hook mounted on the canvas, behind which, when setting the trap, they hook a guard thrown over the arches. When an animal steps on a thread or canvas, the frame trap is activated.
Kulemki
Commercial hunting for marten, first of all, is considered successful if the fur of the animals remains intact. The next criterion is the number of individuals caught. How to catch a marten, observing these two conditions?
Hunter A.M. Simonov, who once lived in Rus' in the Lensky district of the Arkhangelsk region, invented a bag for these purposes. Such a marten trap helped the hunter get up to a hundred unharmed skins a day, just like catching martens with traps. Nowadays, you can buy a bag at any hunting store. However, do not rush and spend extra money. Anyone can make marten traps with their own hands.
The principle of operation of the bag and its advantages
Spring marten traps have a similar operating principle to a mousetrap. The difference is that the bag’s catching mechanism is covered with boards on the top and sides.
Catching martens in this way has a number of advantages:
- The trap will last for many years and does not require annual treatment.
- Economical use of bait will save time and money.
- Birds will not peck the bait hidden inside.
- Will remain operational in snowfall and thaw.
- The death of the animal occurs instantly, which eliminates catches.
Installation Rules
Hunting for marten with self-catchers will be productive if you secure them correctly and in the right place. The spring bag is attached to the tree trunk in a vertical position, and the bait is fixed inside. The higher the ambient temperature, the more often the aircraft should be checked to ensure that the caught animal does not become rotten. Every hunter can master this simple craft. Martens do not change their habits, which makes them easier to hunt.
How to make it yourself
To make a bag with your own hands, you need:
- Make two side walls from 30x40 boards.
- Make a lid from plywood with a longitudinal slot in the middle.
- Attach a bait hook to the top slot.
- Make the gatehouse from wire 14-17 centimeters long.
- At the point where the hook comes into contact with the guard, make a recess in the latter to protect against false triggering (warning).
- Make a spring-crush from strong wire 5 meters long.
Previously, hunters made traps right in the forest, using a single tool - an ax.
How to find future prey
They search for the marten by following its scent, and the dog becomes the main assistant in this matter. The search for mustel tracks begins in the places where it is most likely to appear.
During its hunt, especially with the onset of winter, the marten runs over large areas. All these spaces can be divided into two types, fattening and passage. The first are hunting grounds, fields at the edge of the forest where mice are hunted, forest clearings, bird roosting areas, etc. The second type is those areas of the forest that the animal uses to move between its hunting grounds. Such places are transitions between individual forest areas, the edges of forest zones, edges and edges of forest clearings. These can be ravines, the banks of forest rivers and streams, and natural passages through them.
It is better to start searching for marten traces in accessible places. In addition to them, traces can be looked for along forest paths and roads, at the intersections of well-known paths, not far from hollow trees known to you.
Marten tracks
Healthy! In order not to spend most of a short winter day searching for traces, it is better to scout places of mustel crossings and well-trodden paths in advance.
When tracks are found, the husky is the first to follow them, and then they follow the tracks of the dog or are guided by its voice. If the dog is inexperienced, then you have to track the marten yourself, by tracking, but this can take a whole day.
What kind of animal is this?
The marten is a mammalian predator belonging to the mustelidae family. A fast, cunning and cautious beast. Thanks to its five-fingered paws with sharp claws, it easily overcomes obstacles and climbs trees, escaping from a hunter or confusing its tracks. The marten has a sharp muzzle with triangular ears framed by a light stripe. The color of the fur varies from chestnut to light brown, and there is a light throat spot on the neck. The length of the marten's fluffy tail can reach 25 centimeters, which is almost half the length of the animal's body. Life expectancy is 15-20 years.
In the European part of Russia, in addition to the pine marten, you can find the stone marten - the white-bellied marten. The wheatear can be distinguished by its white, and not yellow, like a forest species, throat spot. The fur of the white fox is tougher, vaguely reminiscent of the blue fox. The marten species can be easily identified by its tracks in the snow. The white lady leaves an imprint of each claw, the forest one is larger because of the fluff covering her paws.
During the daytime, the marten lies down in a bird's nest, hollow or squirrel nest. It goes hunting during the twilight and night periods. Prefers to catch squirrels, mouse-like rodents and small birds. He is not averse to eating bird eggs, snails, frogs, and will not refuse carrion. All these mustelid features should be taken into account for a successful hunt.
Marten: way of life
To successfully hunt a valuable animal, it is necessary to study the lifestyle and habits of this animal. The marten is a predator that has its own hunting area. The predator likes to settle in old, cluttered forests. The more dead wood and windfall, the better for the animal. In such places there is more food: mice, voles and squirrels. It’s also convenient to hide here and hide from prying eyes, which is very important for the marten; it leads a secretive lifestyle. The predatory animal hunts in the dark; during the day it usually rests in a secluded place. The hunting area has several routes, one is the main one, and the rest are passing routes. The main route of the predator is short and located in the center of the site, where the largest food supply is. The animal is often on this route, almost every day. When there is not enough food, the agile predator goes to remote places of its hunting area. The routes to such places are called passage routes; martens do not visit them often, but from time to time.
In general, there are several types of martens, the most common in Europe are two. These are stone and pine martens. They look almost the same. The only difference is the color of the spots on the neck. The stone one is white, and the forest one is yellow. But their behavior differs much more. The pine marten lives up to its name; it likes to live in forests away from people. On the contrary, the stone one, although it leads a secretive lifestyle, settles near human habitation. Likes to regularly visit:
• barns; • old barns; • abandoned industrial buildings; • attics of premises; • livestock farms.
These are the places where there are a lot of mouse-like rodents, the main food of martens. Due to its constant proximity to housing, the stone marten becomes a frequent trophy.
Tactics for hunting martens with traps
How to catch a marten with a trap? To determine the location of future actions, you need to survey the territory .
It’s good if this is done before the start of the season , and you also added bait. If you already have a found place and martens are accustomed to finding food there, you can start directly placing traps.
If you are entering the territory for the first time in the snow, then the ability to read footprints will be very useful .
Determine approximately the territory where the animals can live. It can be a coniferous or mixed forest.
Check for old trees with hollows . This is important because martens rest in them. In their absence, the marten can also rest in the tangles of fallen trees.
Usually the bank of a river or stream is chosen for hunting martens . Examine it and try to find traces of marten . Moreover, they are interested in the paths they have found (this increases the chance that the animal will pass here again).
When you have decided on the territory, you need to figure out what to lure the animal to . Animal entrails, bird meat or rodents are well suited as bait. Moreover, it is good to keep them warm for several days so that the smell is stronger. Bird feathers can be added to bait or scattered nearby.
Dog training
The most important detail in working with martens is the professionalism of the dog, which must be specialized in this particular type of game. The process of such hunting has so many peculiarities that even squirrel huskies, also adapted to tracking animals moving along the top, require retraining.
In this regard, the hunter rightly asks the question of how to train a husky to hunt a marten. The answer will depend on two factors: the training and age of the dog itself and the practical knowledge of the owner in this matter.
First of all, it is important to remember that if you do not have experience in training and training huskies to hunt, you should not undertake specialized dog training. It is better to entrust this matter to professional dog handlers. If you have the proper practical base, individual training is possible.
In any case, the owner will need a lot of patience: raising a marten husky requires a lot of time and effort. The exception is in areas where this animal is found quite often. In this case, the husky can become a marten on its own, without special training.
The training process can have 2 main features:
- working with an untrained dog (from puppyhood);
- specialized training - training an adult hunting husky to work on martens.
In the second case, the dog must have excellent sense of smell, hunting passion and excellent eyesight. In other words, as an assistant, the owner must choose a healthy representative of the breed who has no defects in working qualities.
It is easiest to train squirrel huskies to hunt the marten, since the latter are already trained to chase game walking along the top.
Hunting marten with husky
Hunting marten with a husky is a classic method of catching the animal. You should go out with your dog before deep snow falls.
and the onset of frost.
At this time, the marten somewhat loses its usual caution, and its activity doubles. Against this background, the husky easily picks up a fresh trail, and can even catch the animal while feeding.
Important!
You should go hunting at dawn. A well-trained dog can easily reach the animal following the “hot” morning trail.
Having discovered a marten, the husky begins to trail it and loudly call the hunter. The main task is to shoot directly in the head. This will help preserve the fur and save the animal from suffering. It is better to shoot with shot No. 5 and No. 6.
Using huskies
These dogs have long been used to hunt various fur-bearing animals, so marten is a common game for them. Other advantages of using this breed include:
- excellent sense of smell, hearing and vision;
- developed hunting passion;
- adaptability to low temperatures;
- good endurance;
- versatility in work;
- suitable hunting group.
The last point is very important, since neither hounds nor gun dogs, the range of work of which is very limited compared to the husky, are suitable for tracking martens.
Marten bait: the best bait options for traps
Marten bait should be fragrant. It is used to lubricate the box. To prepare it, you should prepare a small vessel and a knife.
Recipe for making scented bait:
- Melt 30-40 grams of butter;
- Add a small piece of pre-crushed wax;
- Simmer the mixture over low heat;
- Add 30 grams of propolis;
- Place the mixture on the stove again for 30 minutes;
- Mix the mixture thoroughly and cool at room temperature.
Then you should heat the box and soak it with the prepared bait.
also use hare or beaver offal as bait, as well as capelin and muskrat.
. Some martens even come to the smell of the carcasses of their relatives.
Experienced hunters also say that these animals are attracted to shiny candy wrappers. Often martens react to bait made from honey and vanillin.
Option for installing a bag
The spring plane can also be installed horizontally, but not on fallen trees and stumps, but between standing trees.
For such an installation, 2 poles are packed between closely growing trees. The distance between the poles should not prevent the spring from moving freely.
The bag is installed with the spring down.
If the spring is placed on top, then a bag falling from a tree, snowfall or strong wind will cause the trap to work idle. Also, a marten or another animal, the same bird can disturb the bag. When installing the spring from below, all this is eliminated.
Horizontal bags have a board nailed to the bottom to prevent the marten from snatching the bait; vertical bags do not have a bottom, since their bottom is adjacent to the trunk. For the convenience of placing the bait, a door is made of mesh; closes with soft wire.
There are also two ways to secure the bag to the poles:
- Along the poles;
- Across the poles.
The sticks are attached to the side where the spring is.
Required tools and materials
When making a spring bag with your own hands, there is no need to prepare powerful logs and thick branches, as in traps for large animals or the above types of self-catchers for martens. All that is required from materials is 4 cutting boards for the sides (about 30 by 10 cm each) and a thick steel wire of 3-4 mm (for the spring mechanism and the grid in the back of the bag).
Tools you will need:
- ruler;
- saw;
- drill;
- nails or screws.
The principle of operation of a spring bag
The principle of operation of a spring bag is very simple. It is attached to the tree in a vertical position. I hang bait inside the trap. The marten climbs up the tree into the trap and pulls the bait down, thereby alerting the animal, and the animal is forcefully pressed with a wire crusher to the inside of the front wall. A spring bag has a number of advantages over traps, which is why I give it preference. The trap does not require annual treatment; it can be used for many years.
The bait is inside the trap and is not pecked by birds. And you only need a little bait; there is enough squirrel for four traps.
The spring bag is hung on a tree and does not require any additional cover. There is no need to be afraid that the trap will be covered with snow or frost will set in after a thaw - it will always remain operational. A marten, once caught in a trap, dies very quickly, so there are no catches.
And one more quality of the spring bag is that it is universal; martens, stoats, and squirrels fall into it equally well.
Installing a finished trap
Installing the finished device is very simple. Its body is fixed to the tree vertically and high enough from the ground to prevent foxes or wolves from falling into a trap. At the same time, all mustelids are excellent tree climbers, and getting along the trunk to the trap to stick its head into the bag and grab the bait is a matter of a few seconds for the marten.
At the same time, the guard will become alert, and the crusher will forcefully press the animal’s neck to the front wall. At the same time, you don’t have to worry about the performance of the bag - the design and location will not allow it to be covered with snow, and a sharp drop in temperature will not affect the case, which is dry from the inside.
Photo gallery: Installing the bag at height
Bag made from improvised means Bag with a ladder Bag for marten in winter Bag at a height of 2 meters Disguised bag
The bait for fishing can be very diverse. It is believed that pieces of upland game - nutcrackers, jays, hazel grouse or partridge - are best suited, although you can replace them with any other meat or fish. At the same time, experienced hunters also use much simpler baits - making sure that their smell is attractive to the marten. For this purpose, diluted beaver stream, mink anal gland infused with fish oil, and even ordinary bread soaked in honey are used. They say that the marten responds well to dry cat food - Whiskas or any other.
Start date
Training a husky on a marten should begin quite early - from 9 or 10 months of age. Initial training should be of a general nature, including the education and development of basic hunting skills. At the same time, it is very important to establish contact with the dog, teach it obedience and follow basic commands. At the same time, the husky is trained to wear a collar and leash.
As soon as the dog has more or less mastered the basic training program, it should begin to be taken out into the forest. The first few walks should be of an introductory nature to allow the husky to get used to the terrain. At the same time, the dog must not be allowed to lose visible contact with the owner. To do this, it is necessary to choose more open areas with sparse tree cover (edges, clearings, etc.). It is not recommended to go deep into the forest.
As soon as the dog matures and becomes more confident both in navigating the terrain and in working with the owner on the basic course, you can begin specialized training for fur-bearing animals.
