Subject: [Tweeters] Aplodontia update and IMPORTANT trap size amendment
Date: Feb 1 07:28:50 2005
From: Pterodroma at aol.com - Pterodroma at aol.com


I didn't go all the way out to I-90 Exit 47 being visually reminded after I'd
passed North Bend by the landscape that it was after all, still winter around
here, especially up there, and Exit 47 on the first of February was likely
much too brutal, cruel, and extreme, thus ended up at Exit 38 which turned out
to be perfect. In fact, I discovered for the first time the Olallie State Park
which I was completely unaware even existed and she seemed perfectly happy
once allowed out of the trap in the middle of nature trail on the far east side
of the park on the high upper banks of the Snoqualmie River (south fork) where
there were lots of rotting logs, litter, and greens on the forest floor and
plenty of soft soil to burrow into. After a minute or two of just getting
oriented in the middle of the nature trail, she just ambled off to explore her new
surroundings and eventually disappeared into or under a large rotting log.

When she was still in the trap, I thought there was an unusual amount of
white in the pelage but thought maybe it was just roughed up a bit. Turns out she
did in fact possess numerous patches of white (patches of albinism) which
gave her an interesting 'calico' look. Another interesting observation was how
she really stunk up the cage with an almost overpowering aroma of bat guano.
If you've ever rummaged around in an attic or cave full of bats and guano (a
passion of mine in a previous life), the smell was exactly that!

An IMPORTANT amendment to my live trapping advice for those so inclined. I
cited the Havahart 18x5x5 inch version. That's way too small for Aplodontia as
one would never fit in there, but it's fine for a squirrel. Mine is in fact
24x7x7, exactly perfect for Aplodontia and excellent for squirrels too.

No more captures overnight but there was another 'barker' up there in the
'Tora Bora' rhodie tangle when I got home yesterday afternoon but as usual could
never see it.

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Richard Rowlett
Seattle / Bellevue (Eastgate), WA, USA

"Discovery consists of seeing what everybody has seen and thinking what
nobody has thought" --Albert Szent-Gyorgi (1893-1986).
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