[Closed] Grey Squirrels - Removing the pest

I would, I have to ask how are you planning to dispatch the grey vermin bastard once you've caught one
<edit>it also kills the bastard......yeah go for it

Bookmarking.👍

Eat them. Then eat signal crayfish. We've eliminated other species in the past using a similar technique.

12-24 squirrels we appear to have now

Is this a feral hogs reference? It's excellent if so.

In answer to your question: I've no objection to killing some squirrels, but would probably seek a bit of advice from an ecologist first, just in case there's something that the squirrels are keeping in check that would be worse.

Remove the squirrels. Non native and invasive. I'm pretty sure it's illegal to release any you catch.

stevious - as far as I can see there isn't. There are also no Pine Martin or Red Squirrels which appear to be to be the only side kill from these devices. Interested to know what Grey Squirrel keep in check as an invasive species which is why I posted this

Catch them in a proper trap and find someone to dispatch them for you. Plenty of hunters around that will have them for food.

These guys in Scotland will assist with trapping and dispatching. https://scottishsquirrels.org.uk/

You can trap them and then finish them with an air pistol. Illegal not to (also need to be checked every 24h and be on your own land or have land owners permission) but means you can release any critters you didn't mean to catch. It's harder to do but safer for other species (unless they are also considered pests as, again, they will need killing).

Problem is they will just come back, they will have a corridor from your woods to the big woods and eventually just encroach again thanks to the ready food source.

This trap kills them, lets their body fall to the floor to be eaen by our local fax.....

A lot easier than posting them to Scotland or resetting the trap after each one you catch.It does 18 before you rest. That's why I put the link to the advert.

Eat them. Then eat signal crayfish. We’ve eliminated other species in the past using a similar technique.

I’m absolutely in favour of both, not that I’d eat the tree rats, but signal crayfish, oh yeah!
I was at a little pub festival some years back, I think it might have been Lechlade, and the beer garden with the stage backed onto a river. There was a family there with several of those wooden reels with orange line on, dropping weighted bait into the river, waiting a couple of minutes, pulling them in, and there would be a big crayfish on the end. After a couple of hours they had a garden bucket three-quarters full of the things, they were looking forward to the barbecue later!
I know they’ve invaded the Broadmead Brook, which joins the Bybrook just outside of Castle Combe, so I’ve been toying with the idea of getting a trap and leaving it baited for a day or so. Quite partial to shrimp, prawns, langustines...
Anything that helps our native crayfish, and is edible and, best of all, free. 😁
The ongoing reintroduction of Pine Marten into the greater U.K. can only be a good thing, both for the martens, but also for red squirrels, because it’s becoming increasingly clear that anywhere that marten start to flourish, grey squirrels pretty much vanish, and also nesting birds don’t suffer so much predation.

You need to dispatch the the pest.

The pest being next door but two.

Will that trap do cats too?

Asking for a friend.

not cats . There is very little side kill because you have to stick your head 5 inches up the tude to be killed. There are warnngs about reds and pine martins but other than that they are good

Damn

The most recent figures of how many creatures are killed by cats are from the Mammal Society. They estimate that cats in the UK catch up to 100 million prey items over spring and summer, of which 27 million are birds.

This is the number of prey items which were known to have been caught. We don't know how many more the cats caught, but didn't bring home, or how many escaped but subsequently died.

I ain't going after the bird slaughtering bastards after wathing this : https://www.netflix.com/gb/title/81031373

cats and grey squirrels are vermin; cats to asian restaurants, greys on the barbie.

We tried squirrel a few years ago, it was ok. OH did them in a kind of Southern fried style crumb with chips.

All in favour of removal of the greys from woodlands. No issue there. However, Have some experience using those traps albeit for mice/rat control and when speaking to others to get feedback/advice there was a lot of people mentioning that the weren’t particularly effective on squirrels and woodpeckers can be caught out by them. Main issue seems to be that they’re the wrong orientation, pointing downwards, a squirrel is most likely to encounter it when returning back up the tee from the ground after feeding so not likely to investigate. Woodpecker the opposite.
I’d be devastated if woodpeckers suffered as collateral damage to my trapping efforts.
Now, Where was the guy selling that air rifle again?

It isn’t helped by a neighbour 3 doors up who puts out nuts to attract the squirrels

In a nutshell.

4:13 for the trap

Alternatively find someone and discreet with an airrifle

Alternatively find someone and discreet with an airrifle

That depends on who owns the land, if it's the OP then fine otherwise they need the land owners permission or it's a firearms offence.

I would recommend a Kania 2000 trap with tunnel as a solid trap that offers ease and efficient solution

My dad has a cage type trap (which will also catch cats if you don't attach an accessory). He catches quite a few (squirrels) but his method of dispatching is not the most humane as he got rid of his guns several years ago.

) but his method of dispatching is not the most humane as he got rid of his guns several years ago

Does it involve his wife's kimono and a baseball bat?

It would be mounted on our land which should cover the legality side of things.

There is an A24 version for mice and rats which is smaller, this is specifically for squirrels and it bigger.

I will be careful to position it lower on the tree that the woodpeckers tend to be to avoid catching them.

This trap resets its self after each kill so can be triggered 18 times before you replace the CO2 canister. This means you don't need to keep visiting it every day as you do for traps and snares so very easy.

Not particularly interested in rating them and will leave them for the foxes to eat. Crayfish sound nice though.

Because the traps reset you can just leave them in place so as the new population of squirrels move in they will still get killed. It has a counter on the side so you know when to reload the co2 canister.p]

Kania 2000 trap looks good but needs reseting after every kill - this is the bit I want to avoid as getting to the place I am planning on putting the trap is awkward so the fewer times I go there the better.

I did see a YouTu e vid where a guy just mounted 10 snap traps in a row on a 10 foot length of timber and then lean the timber up the side of his barn. The squirrels ran up the timber and hit the first trap which bounced of the timber and dangled on a chain with the dead squirrel trapped. The next squirrel hit the next trap and so on. He said when you get the first invasion you would get 10 squirrels a night, every night, but that's America for you

Looks good - I'd also rig up a wildlife camera with motion sensor to check that you are getting only squirrels. One of the cheap apeman ones off Amazon would do it.

As a retired butcher I'm disgusted with all the calls from people to just shot them with air rifles, or such. Have f&^*& none of you any humanity whatsoever ?.

I've been asked several times to do this is a poaching setting, to kill deer and sheep and have known a couple of butchers over the years engaged in this. I've even been asked a number of times by a best mate. I refuse.

We slaughter in a controlled environment. There are no unconsidered variables and we look to dispatch as quickly and as painlessly as we as humans can devise.

I could never recreate that in the field, to be able to dispatch that animal cleanly and without suffering.

Catch and release or have someone do that for you. If a cull is required, then leave that to professionals. Killing animals is not a diy affair.

Catch and release or have someone do that for you.

This would be illegal.

It isn’t helped by a neighbour 3 doors up who puts out nuts to attract the squirrels despite requests not to.

Probably because their decision to feed their local squirrels is absolutely nothing to do with you.

It seems ironic that you’re willing to feed foxes (which in a semi-urban environment are probably over populated anyway), but are giving your neighbour grief for feeding squirrels.

What evidence have you got that the squirrels are screwing with the bird population? Where do the foxes come into it? Cats? Could mink be stealing the eggs? The reality is that you can’t know, and buying a random trap from the internet that claims to be “humane” is not the way forward.

Incidentally, there is nothing humane about suffocating an animal with carbon dioxide. It’s a miserable way to die.

What you need is a Weihrauch HW100 BPK...

They are not suffocated with CO2. They get a bolt through the head powered by CO2.

There is loads of evidence of squirrels stealing birds eggs and have watch them doing it to black birds from my window but I guess like the link to the trap I shared, you haven't read it. Not to many mink in Southampton.

Yes, cats are a pest too but it is illegal to kill them at present.

I will collect and dispose of any of the corpses not scavenged by other wild life. I am not looking to promote the local foxes but aware they will clean up dead squirrels

stevious – as far as I can see there isn’t. There are also no Pine Martin or Red Squirrels which appear to be to be the only side kill from these devices. Interested to know what Grey Squirrel keep in check as an invasive species which is why I posted this

The whole 'invasive species = bad' thing is a bit of a popular misconception. It's a wild animal that's well established in the ecosystem - changing its population will have an impact on the rest of the ecosystem. These could be changes you want (more nice birdies) or changes you don't want (I dunno - a plague of rats or something).

Do the RSPB have any presence near you? If so they'll likely have some ecologists who can advise - and I expect they'd tell you to crack on.

Could mink be stealing the eggs?

Highly unlikely, mink aren’t, generally, an arboreal species, they tend to stick around watercourses, and I don’t believe mink are a significant issue anymore. Since otter have become much more widespread, and mink share much the same environment, otter won’t tolerate mink and will get rid of them.
Those mink that are still active, where otter haven’t re-colonised, will be going after water birds like duck, moorhen and coot, wagtails, etc.

Catch and release or have someone do that for you. If a cull is required, then leave that to professionals. Killing animals is not a diy affair.

Well, catching and releasing a destructive, invasive species is both illegal, and completely misses the point of catching the bloody things in the first place, which you should realise if you were paying attention.
Plus, people have been killing invasive, destructive pests in a diy fashion for decades, if not centuries - have you not heard of mousetraps or rat traps?
Or are squirrels a different case because they’re cute and fluffy?

As above. Recon if the little bastards were in his loft he would soon want rid. And how did we get from squirrels to killing deer?

And how did we get from squirrels to killing deer?

With a bigger gun?

Quit being all new age and just borrow an air rifle and shoot the blasted things. Practice first if you can't hit them in the head . Catching and releasing is a big no no. Wait until you get the sodding boar!

dyna-ti is way off mark. Comparing the butchery of deer and ovines to gutting and skinning a grey squirrel or rabbit is just ridiculous.

To the OP, if you're not a shooter and don't have a friend who is a competent shot with an air rifle then that trap looks like an option, albeit an indiscriminate one. Think how you'd feel if you found a mangled green woodpecker underneath the thing.

I've shot dozens of greys over the years and have really enjoyed the meat. It's not copious and they're tough to skin but so much tastier than rabbit.

The whole ‘invasive species = bad’ thing is a bit of a popular misconception. It’s a wild animal that’s well established in the ecosystem – changing its population will have an impact on the rest of the ecosystem.

Grey squirrels are not native to uk and carry a disease that kills the red squirrel. I'd be quite content to see the grey population wiped out and replaced with the reds....mon the gingers

Air rifle. Headshot.

BBQ.

I have considered an air rifle as both MrsWCA and I were a reasonable shot last time we tried but don't want to have to sit there waiting for them to get into a safe position. Mostly they run along the top of the fence so if I shoot and miss the pellet flies through the strip of woods and into my neighbours garden/window/child which is less desirable.

These seem relatively easy as it is set and forget with just the occasionally check of the counter to see if it needs a new cartridge.

I am sure the squirrel would taste just fine but having worked part time in a game butchers years ago I am through with skinning animals or plucking birds. There used to be a big cold box with 100 furry rabbits in and I had to turn that into a fridge full of skinned and gutted rabbit carcass. The novelty soon wears off I assure you

I'd also get rid.

Up here we have Red Squirrel Rangers who will perform the task for you, in order to protect our Reds.

So there may be someone happy to come and do it for you - as has been said an experienced shooter with an air rifle (be it FAC or otherwise) can perfectly humanely kill squirrels / rabbits.

If not, that trap looks like good start.

If you are happy to shoot them, why not get a cage trap and shoot them once caught.

[i]If you are happy to shoot them, why not get a cage trap and shoot them once caught.[/i]

Because you need to check the trap every 24 hours, they are less target specific and I don't have a gun handy so would need to bash their brains in with a hammer or axe which is messy

would need to bash their brains in with a hammer or axe which is messy

Haha .... I was just thinking about these rodent blighters while on my ride this morning as there seemed to be lots of them around - I wasn't quick enough to go up a tree.. lol ....
I remember as a kid my grandfathers long haired dachshund taking one for a kill .... perhaps you should try one or two of these as instead of an air rifle!

So much wrong in this post but I have a spare few moments

As a retired butcher I’m disgusted with all the calls from people to just shot them with air rifles, or such. Have f&^*& none of you any humanity whatsoever ?.

Okay, to start with I would never advocate that anyone who cannot make a clean and consistent shot at the required range should even attempt to do so. That would be irresponsible not to mention illegal (minimising suffering).

I’ve been asked several times to do this is a poaching setting, to kill deer and sheep and have known a couple of butchers over the years engaged in this. I’ve even been asked a number of times by a best mate. I refuse.

With an air rifle? Really? Do you have a .50 on ticket with a rack of gas bottles?

We slaughter in a controlled environment. There are no unconsidered variables and we look to dispatch as quickly and as painlessly as we as humans can devise.

It may surprise you but that's exactly what hunters in the field do to the greatest extent possible. Control the environment and variables to ensure a clean, painless kill. But with the best will in the world it can sometimes go wrong. Even in an abattoir.

I could never recreate that in the field, to be able to dispatch that animal cleanly and without suffering.

I applaud you for being able to admit so but for the purposes of this discussion that is your limitation and yours alone.

Catch and release or have someone do that for you. If a cull is required, then leave that to professionals. Killing animals is not a diy affair.

As pointed out catching and releasing would be illegal under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and Invasive Alien Species (Enforcement and Permitting) Order 2019 conforming to EU Regulation 1143/2014. I see no problem with DIY control provided the person is doing so with full knowledge of the law and their own capabilities.

I don’t have a gun handy so would need to bash their brains in with a hammer or axe which is messy

Er, that escalated quickly! Much easier to trap it with a comb and then an easy shot but YMMV.

Squirrelking - Great name for this thread.Yep I agree with much of what you said. again though, I don't want to have to check the trap every 24 hours, especially if I just leave it up and running for a few months or so to deter new incomers. Plus, I still don't own or really need a gun so end up using hand tool to dispatch the ones I catch.

I think I am going to pull the trigger and order one. How long for deliver from New Zealand do we think?

I caught loads in my loft ages ago with a trap loaded up with a peanut butter sandwich. Vets wouldn't do the decent thing and apparently they can make their own way back within 1km.

Didn't think it was a problem having squirrels up there but happened to mention it to a builder friend, get them sorted asap they 'll eat your electrics.

Amased the gap they were getting in through you could hardly see it.

. Plus, I still don’t own or really need a gun so end up using hand tool to dispatch the ones I catch.

That's fair enough, just saying there are cleaner, easier ways.

I think I am going to pull the trigger and order one

MAKE YOUR MIND UP!!!!1!ONE!

🤷‍♂️

@Squirrelking He's ordered https://goodnaturetraps.co.uk/humane-squirrel-traps/

I couldn't use any non-discriminating trap as we have a mix of greys and reds visit our garden.

t'is ordered

Trout - I wouldn't either but we have only greys. No reds, no Pine Martins

🤷‍♂️

@Squirrelking He’s ordered https://goodnaturetraps.co.uk/humane-squirrel-traps/ /blockquote>

Whoosh.

 

indeed, go on then explain it.............

An extremely important part of food animals is inspection. This is something I did as some extra vocational training at the vet department of Glasgow Abattoir.
Inspecting the lymphatic system, knowing (at the time) what to look for, discolouration and the like. Knowing where those nodes are and how to incise them. Chewcking the internal organs, the visual inspection of the carcass.

Shoot a wild animal and eat it ?. Utterly mental. None of you lot heard of covid 19.

I'd rather have something that I shot myself than some pre-packaged rubbish from a supermarket shelf.

However, an expert recently pointed out that everyone who shoots game is a criminal. The evidence is overwhelming. With facts like that, who could possibly argue?

Shoot a wild animal and eat it ?. Utterly mental. None of you lot heard of covid 19.

You're supposedly a butcher, you tell us. How about the avian flu passed as a result of intensive poultry farming? CJD via BSE & scrapie? Ring any bells, no?

Where do you think game butchers get their meat from, a good rummage up their arse?

indeed, go on then explain it………….

It was a joke based on the usual "pulling the trigger" phrase. I thought the !!!1!ONE! stuff made it obvious.

Woa buddy, no need to get upset and start screaming the odds.
Yes butcher, 3 years day release at the Glasgow college food tech, while in shop, then after about 6 years in retail, I thought to change to inspection as a more professional career and I couldn't see the trade continuing much longer.
Gave that up 12 months later, too academic for me.
But I stuck with the trade for about another few years, maybe longer. Then did a further 4 years retraining at college to be a furniture maker, done that since.

But Butcher yup. Retail, wholesale, boning plant, abattoir.

How about the avian flu passed as a result of intensive poultry farming? CJD via BSE & scrapie? Ring any bells, no?

No offence, well maybe a bit .... DOH.
Horrendous, but when youve millions of people to feed, and we all already know about the immorality of big business. So I suppose there the small trade butcher, who would work traditionally.
CJD was as we know the result of feeding remains of animals back to animals. The process did have 2 methods, but the one favoured caused the problem, and we later found out the other process wouldnt have. Bit of bad luck there, but as said, got to feed millions and big business has no soul. Never liked supermarkets selling meat. All hot boned and vac packed, Tried with 'safeway as what they call a meat 'improver' another joke. takes that personal community thing out of it.

Incidentally, worked for a guy on Skye, in Portree. He also owned his own farm with a large herd of which we used in the shop. the apprentice was a sheep farmer in his own right, even as a kid, and his father owned a sheep farm, again supplying the shop.
All their animals were sent to slaughter, because under EU and UK law all animals must be inspected postmortem, especially the organs.

You should see whats going on inside. Massive hidden injuries and they dont always show up in a visual examination.
Sick story.
In the back of Glasgow Abattoir examining a bull that came in for emergency slaughter. ****ing MASSIVE animal.
Hung up whole after the slaughterman shot/dressed it, we students all gather around to first incise the prescapular lymph node, which is tucked in behind the collar bone- should say t was some sort of chest issue brought it in.
Cut open that area and WHOOSH, hit what must have been a 10 gallons worth of pus, under some pressure and out it came covering everyone within 2' of it. lol.
You get cysts, bruising, lots of lung problems from living outdoors, quite a list as you can imagine or even the body being flushed with testosterone from the fear from being shot by some nut who thinks he's playing DeNiro's role in the DeerHunter in real life, and they're a deadly accurate crack shot. rendering it rather horrid to the taste. Pretty much all the nasty things go wrong with us, go wrong with animals. None of which is oblivious to the amateur.

Big business has caused many of these outbreaks. Look at foot and mouth that has cost billions. Far as anyone can tell it originated in Michigan, then through the intensive farming stockyards of Chicago and out across the world.

But the bottom line for me is there are too many variables in hunting animals for food if you dont need to, and as we are currently in the grip of, what happens when left to anybody without any rules or regulations.

Anyone slaughtering any animal should be inspecting the carcass, that should be perfectly obvious. But my point still stands, you are still able to catch something as a result of intensive farming, there is no silver bullet. And as I asked before, where do game butchers get their meat from?

I'm not convinced the covid jump was as easy as simply eating wild animals, there are a lot of other factors you seem to be ignoring not least animal welfare and hygiene practices.

I’d be quite content to see the grey population wiped out and replaced with the reds

At which point we'd probably declare them a pest, and history would repeat itself...

in 1903 the Highland Squirrel Club proudly announced the destruction of 82,000 Red Squirrels in the first 30 years of the club’s existence (Holm, 1987).

Now it might be me, but if you put the skwirril trap on the neighbours bird feeder....

I agree with stevious. Hasn't been pointed out explicitly, if the OP were successful in eradicating the grey squirrels from his patch (and I am not convinced he can be if there is a food source and pathway from a larger woodland but let's be hypothetical) then the food source is still there for other species (and domestic cats) that will fill that gap in the ecosystem. So you'll just get an increase in rats, crows, magpies, jays, woodpeckers etc. It is a very human trait, that we can't process the broad array of roles each species plays in the ecosystem, we have to pigeon-hole as 'good' or 'bad'. Many prey species are also omnivorous themselves, it is brutal but predation drives the ecology. And in the south, you aren't going to have red squirrels recover their old ground.

Konagirl - valid point and well made. A little more explanation from me might make it clearer.

There have always been squirrels in the trees behind us and they have always been a bit of a nuisance digging up what ever we plant in pots, raiding the bird feeders, killing birds but in the last two years the numbers we are seeing have probably trebled.

I believe that this is because rather than having perhaps 1 family in a drey and a few commuter squirrels we now have a number of families supported by the free food available. If we take out the squirrels living in the woods we will just have the commuter squirrels so the pest problem will be reduced.

We do have crows and magpies already which prey on the song birds but they seem to ignore the bird feeders so I don't see their numbers increasing dramatically by reducing the squirrels. Also, they don't destroy MrsWCAs plant pots.

Rats might increase but I think as the squirrel population reduces the neighbours will reduce their attempts to feed them and I don't think they will be keen on just feeding rats.

As you say, there is a balance in nature and human interventions cause rippling consequences. Stop pouring more free food into the ecc-system than the natural population requires and things should re-balance.

We do have crows and magpies already which prey on the song birds but they seem to ignore the bird feeders so I don’t see their numbers increasing dramatically by reducing the squirrels. Also, they don’t destroy MrsWCAs plant pots.

I’d imagine the corvids would be quite keen on some humanely killed squirrel, too, which might be easier pickings than songbird eggs?

However, an expert recently pointed out that everyone who shoots game is a criminal. The evidence is overwhelming. With facts like that, who could possibly argue?

A dig at me CFH?

Of course with driven grouse shooting its not the guns breaking the law but the organisers

A bit hard of reading today are we?

I actually agree with your point that shot game is likely to be good food.

I’d be quite content to see the grey population wiped out and replaced with the reds

At which point we’d probably declare them a pest, and history would repeat itself…

We already have, see the UK and EU legal stuff I referred to already. It's just a LOT harder to repeat those sorts of numbers without people reacting badly and that's before we even involve firearms.

You seem to have thought carefully about this, WCA, and I can't find anything in your reasoning to disagree with. I'm not an ecologist though!

I'm going to beat a similar drum, seeing as you've bought the thing now - ask for advice in how to place the device in order to prevent woodpeckers/pandas/human children getting done by your trap.

Oh and when I lived in NZ I saw a documentary about how they control possum numbers there and they use a very similar trap to that. The trappers hadn't realised how effective the trap would be and didn't visit the trap often enough. The footage of a possum climbing over a big pile of its dead mates to investigate the trap was ... interesting.

(I know you've said you'll keep an eye on the trap, am just saying for interest)

When I was at college a million years ago we were taught the humane way was live cage trap, into a hessian sack, head out, then pull it's neck. Or fertiliser bag with a few drops of some sort of toxic household detergent.

And by taught I mean here's the sack get on with it. Very vivid memories 😮

Alternative was air rifle barrel through the bars which inevitably they will try to eat.

Would be very impressed by anyone that could shoot and kill an uncaged one with one shot unless you were using a shotgun. Back in the day hoppers of Warfarin was an option. And poking the dreys with poles, but that may be a seasonal thing.

Would be very impressed by anyone that could shoot and kill an uncaged one with one shot unless you were using a shotgun.

They're not much smaller than a rabbit and far less timid.

Stevious - Here is the plan. Might even add a plywood collar/platform around the trunk to stop anything climbing up. Basically the only things getting to the trap will step off the top of the fence to the palm tree to investigate the trap. It will be too low for tree creeper type birds and too high for small children

And as I asked before, where do game butchers get their meat from?

Game dealers.
Last shop I was in that sold game got it far as im aware from the game dealer. To Be Honest, cant be expected to deal with all the aspects all the time. Mostly down here it only Xmas/new year and burns night anyone ever wants any venison
Theres a big one in Glen Etive, but again all are farmed animals for public consumption so are inspected. Been yonks since I've needed any of this so i look it up. Yeah EEC regulations covering Wild Game Meat from 1995
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1995/2148/made

If you insist on continuing your 'Chinese wet market' approach to feeding the family, can you at least take note of areas to look at and maybe pay more attention there.
If you must pop Bugs one in the head, take a read at problems rabbits face and the diseases to watch out for, look at the lungs, the liver, see if anything looks off or distended. Same after skinning, check the flesh for abscessing.
eg
When you sprain your ankle it swells up. when you look at such injuries postmortem the damaged area is almost jelly like, where lymph has rushed to protect that area. So if you see areas like that its a sign theres been a recent injury to the animal. And I'd expect most to have injuries of one sort of another. This type of thing you cut out and bin, preferably in the fire. With a rabbit/squirrel, most things you can look at as 4 quarters. Any damage on any of those quarters, discard that entire quarter.
Nobody is saying you cannot inspect it yourself, it is a subject that can be learned in under two years. But books for the animals you hunt you'd pick it up pretty quick i reckon.

It is a bit of a double edged sword knowing though, you pick your food to bits looking for possible contaminate 😆

I'd just like something that will protect my son's newly-planted courgettes, tomatoes, beans, strawberries and cucumbers when they appear in a couple of months' time. And stop the little sods nibbling all the plums off our tree!

So you’ll just get an increase in rats, crows, magpies, jays, woodpeckers etc. It is a very human trait, that we can’t process the broad array of roles each species plays in the ecosystem, we have to pigeon-hole as ‘good’ or ‘bad’. Many prey species are also omnivorous themselves, it is brutal but predation drives the ecology. And in the south, you aren’t going to have red squirrels recover their old ground.

Squirrels are a different niche in the ecosystem, removing them isn’t likely to result in increasing numbers of the other creatures you mention, although other than rats and crows, I don’t think an increase in numbers of jays or woodpeckers would cause anyone sleepless nights, neither are common anywhere.

I think that trap will be pretty effective in dealing with rats too, though? (More tasty snacks for the corvids)

I also didn’t think the point of the exercise was to let reds back in, in this case; if it was the planned trap would be no use.

They do a smaller version for rats and mice but the same principle. The bigger one I have ordered will work on rats, it will just make them even deader than the little one.

There is no chance of getting red squirrels back here at the moment. I just want to save our flower pots and little cute birdies.

We do have wood peckers, both green and lesser spotted (which we spot more often) which is why I read up on the trap and the fact it does not seem to affect them but I am still siting the trap to minimise the chances.

I don’t think an increase in numbers of jays or woodpeckers would cause anyone sleepless nights,

Both species are taking bee grubs as over-winter food though (and there's been a proportional increase in their populations accordingly), so if you're keen on increasing honey bee populations, and I think we've all noticed the vast amount of articles and reportage about declining bee numbers, then controlling Jays and Woodpeckers is probably part of the solution...

This conservation m'larky...It's not at all as straightforward as many would have it...

I ran one over yesterday on my No Gnar evening ride. My dog flushed it out and it went under my wheels whilst darting for a tree.

I've been mountain biking for 25 years and that is the second time I have hit a squirrel. I don't think my efforts are going to help cull the species.