Quote:
Originally Posted by Darcy3
Hey guys im looking for some lynx traping tips. im using snares and making pens 2 snares per pen using beaver meat for bait. theres tracks on my line i just cant seem to catch one.
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Bait doesn't work too well on Lynx. Use a scent stick.
Where are you Darcy ? It would be far easier for me to show you how to make the set then to describe it.
The scent is easy enough to make, but it's been a few years so I'm not sure if I remember it exactly.
As I recall the recipe was:
1 cup well rotted Moose liver.
1 cup ground up beaver castor.
1 cup clear vodka.
1 teaspoon catnip.
Mix this thoughtfully, place in seal-able glass jar and let mellow for a month or more. If possible.
Next you need a snare that will close if touched. You have to train the wire to achieve this. Training the wire involves pulling it over the edge of a board at a slight angle to impart a gentle curl to the loop.
You want the loop to stay open until there is a gentle pull on the bottom of the loop, and not before. It takes practice to get the loop to work right.
Then you set the loop in the entrance to your cubby, about a foot above the surface of the snow. Test the loop to make sure it will close on it's own after a gentle pull on the bottom.
Now, with the snare set, dip a pencil sized stick into your scent jar. You want a stick that is a foot or so long. 18 inches is about as long as you would normally want to go, but length depends on a number of factors.
What you want is for the stick to stand upright just behind the snare, with the scented tip about centre of the snare.
So poke the scented stick into the snow behind the snare, about three inches back. Don't push it in deep, only just enough to get it to stand on it's own.
What you are looking for is for the scent stick to stand until pushed by a Lynx. Then you want it to fall down.
The way it works is this.
Lynx do not like to push through obstacles, so they won't normally pull a snare tight. And will most often pull out if they even touch the snare with their whiskers.
So you want them to be able to reach through the snare without touching it. Once they get a good sniff of the scent stick they will want to rub on it.
Focused on the scent they forget about the snare and will gently pull down on it as they try to rub on the stick, which should have fallen down as soon as they rubbed on it. The stick falling down encourages them to pull down.
That should get them. Don't worry about getting it perfect, even a first attempt is often successful, if you place you set where a Lynx will find it.
The scent is the key. Like all cats, a Lynx will want to rub and roll on some scents. Get the scent right and you can make a lot of mistakes and still catch Lynx.
I forgot. The Moose liver should be left to rot until it starts to smell sorta sweet. I used to place mine in a quart canning jar. Instead of using a regular lid I would stretch a piece of tight weave cloth over the top and hold it on with rubber bands. I would hang this in a tree well away from the house, or place it in a unused outbuilding. It can get to stinking pretty good at first.
Lynx trapping help!
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