How to make a bag for a marten. Box trap, Kulemka, Traps, Samolov

Hunting for marten is possible in various ways: with a dog, traps or self-catchers. One of the most common self-catchers is the spring bag. It is attached to a tree, to a height of 1.5-2 meters.

The marten is an excellent tree climber and can easily reach the bag

The good thing about vertical installation of the trap is that weather conditions do not in any way affect its performance. And it works quite simply: bait is hung inside a vertically fixed fishing rod. Trying to get a treat, the marten raises its guard. The wire crush presses the animal tightly in the trap in the neck area. Among hunters, the bagel is revered as a universal trap - it catches not only marten, but also other fur-bearing animals: sable, weasel, squirrel, mink.

From the moment of adoption of clause 52.1.1. According to the Hunting Rules, leg traps are only allowed to be used when catching American mink, squirrels, stone martens, weasels and weasels.

Although the bait is inside the bag, the birds still try to get it and also fall into the trap. These are mainly jays and woodpeckers.

Hunting with traps

Hunters use various traps for sable. These are traps and traps. Other effective devices are also used. Most often, these are traps with special bait. These devices should be placed away from the potential installation location. The animals are very careful. If they see certain activity in the territory, they are caught much less often. If you wish, you can make cunning sable traps with your own hands.

Traps and traps

When the snow gets very deep, hunting with dogs is no longer possible. In this case, all kinds of traps are used. These are blankets, traps, bags. Such devices have one significant advantage. They can be hidden under the snow. These methods are not as exciting as chasing an animal with a dog. It requires less effort and time from the hunter. Do-it-yourself sable catchers are especially popular.

First, the game must be fed. For this purpose, a log house is installed. Its size is one and a half by one and a half meters. Holes are made in the walls. It is necessary to put bait in the log house. After the predator begins to constantly come to the feeder, it is worth installing traps or traps.

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.

Making a bag with your own hands

It is better to start the manufacturing process with springs. You will need wire No. 4, which should be cut. Next, we measure a length of 16 cm on 2 rods and set the width ="770″ height="441″[/img]

Holding the wire in a vice, bend the spring with a knob.

A similar operation is performed with the second rod. As a result, you should get 2 identical springs, in which one arm is 14 cm and the other is 16 cm.

Immediately, 2 more rods of 12 cm each are cut out. To simplify the work and to make it easier to fix the frames, a device is made from 2 planks. Grooves are cut into the boards and the structure is fastened with a bolt.

The springs are set at the same distance to the ends of which the previously cut rods are grabbed. The spring frame is ready.

Next we make the box itself. You will need a board on which we outline the required dimensions of 31x17 cm and cut out the part.

Mark 4 cm from the edge and draw a line.

We retreat 2 cm from the edges.

and put marks on the line.

We step back 1 cm above the line and below it and also put marks.

Next, you will need a screwdriver and a 10-point pen. You should drill 2 holes in the places marked on both sides of the line.

Then we retreat 19 cm from the line - there will be a guardhouse.

We make a mark strictly in the middle. Stepping up and down 1 cm, we also make an oval hole.

We draw another line, 7 cm away from the edge.

The bottom of the frame will be placed here.

The frame itself is secured using a plate and self-tapping screws.

Pressure frame and alertness

It is made from softer wire than the frame. Cut a piece of wire, taking into account 19 cm on the sides and 12 cm in the middle of the frame.

They bend it in a vice.

The height of the frame itself should be 15 cm, and the rest of the section is bent in a vice and then with pliers to make loops.

The frame is threaded from the bottom of the bag cover through the cut holes and placed on the spring.

We retreat 2 cm from the edge of the lid and mark the middle - this is where the guard will be located. A part is bent from the wire to which the guard itself will cling.

It is made from the same wire as the frame and bent with pliers. The hinge is attached to the lid with self-tapping screws.

Set up a guard and a guardhouse.

Next, screw the side and back walls. The trap is ready.

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.

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.

Where to look for marten

In areas where aspen and birch trees grow, where pine is rarely found, at the beginning of the season the marten can be found in the nest of a large bird.

There are still feathers and fluff left in it, so the animal can spend the day there quite comfortably. To make it easier to navigate where to look for the animal, you need to carefully examine the fallen trees. The marten really likes to move along them, and naturally leaves traces.

The marten often chooses hollows for the day, of which there are quite a lot in the forests.

To do this, she can choose any empty hollow in which she can fit. For housing and nesting, the animals choose spacious hollows in the old parts of the forest. Often, such a shelter may contain a certain supply of food, allowing the marten to stay at home for several days, waiting out bad weather. Male martens usually do not have a permanent home, preferring to use a nest. Sometimes it just hides in the windfall.

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.

Kulema for marten. Marten bag and features of hunting with it

Hunting for marten is possible in various ways: with a dog, traps or self-catchers. One of the most common self-catchers is the spring bag. It is attached to a tree, to a height of 1.5-2 meters.

The marten is an excellent tree climber and can easily reach the bag

From the moment of adoption of clause 52.1.1. According to the Hunting Rules, leg traps are only allowed to be used when catching American mink, squirrels, stone martens, weasels and weasels.

Although the bait is inside the bag, the birds still try to get it and also fall into the trap. These are mainly jays and woodpeckers.

Making a bag with your own hands

It is better to start the manufacturing process with springs. You will need wire No. 4, which should be cut. Next, we measure a length of 16 cm on 2 rods and put a mark. Holding the wire in a vice, we bend the spring with a knob.

A similar operation is performed with the second rod. As a result, you should get 2 identical springs, in which one arm is 14 cm and the other is 16 cm. Immediately cut out 2 more rods of 12 cm each. To simplify the work and make it easier to fix the frames, a device is made from 2 planks. Grooves are cut into the boards and the structure is fastened with a bolt. The springs are set at the same distance to the ends of which the previously cut rods are grabbed. The spring frame is ready.

Next we make the box itself. You will need a board on which we outline the required dimensions of 31x17 cm and cut out the part. Mark 4 cm from the edge and draw a line. We retreat 2 cm from the edges and put marks on the line. We step back 1 cm above the line and below it and also put marks.

Next, you will need a screwdriver and a 10-point pen. You should drill 2 holes in the places marked on both sides of the line.

Then we retreat 19 cm from the line - there will be a guardhouse. We make a mark strictly in the middle. Stepping up and down 1 cm, we also make an oval hole.

We draw another line, 7 cm away from the edge. The bottom of the frame will be placed here. The frame itself is secured using a plate and self-tapping screws.

Pressure frame and alertness

It is made from softer wire than the frame. Cut a piece of wire, taking into account 19 cm on the sides and 12 cm in the middle of the frame. They bend it in a vice. The height of the frame itself should be 15 cm, and the rest of the section is bent in a vice and then with pliers to make loops.

The frame is threaded from the bottom of the bag cover through the cut holes and placed on the spring.

We retreat 2 cm from the edge of the lid and mark the middle - this is where the guard will be located. A part is bent from the wire to which the guard itself will cling. It is made from the same wire as the frame and bent with pliers. The hinge is attached to the lid with self-tapping screws. Set up a guard and a guardhouse.

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.

When catching marten

When catching martens with traps, as well as traps, it is of great importance to attach the animals to certain places by feeding them. Even before the hunt begins, they hang shot crows or other bait in the forest near the traps.

The marten, having found the bait, begins to systematically visit it. When the time to hunt for marten approaches, I walk along the path and load the traps.

General view of the trap in a charged state.

2. View of the trap with the mechanism released:

A - front view;

B—side view; 1 - spring;

2 - crush; 3 — hook for bait; 4 - gatehouse.

Rules for marten skins.

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.

Checking the traps

I check the traps a week after installation, otherwise the marten may get caught in warm weather. With the onset of frost, I check less often. I bring the martens into a warm room and let them thaw. I remove the skin with a tube with a cut along the rump, with the indispensable condition of preserving the nose, lips, eyelids, paws with claws and tail.

Removing cartilage from the animal’s ears is mandatory. I straighten the skin and dry it on a wedge-shaped straightener in accordance with the state standard. In the end, I would like to remind you that a hunter who has thoroughly studied the habits of the marten and is fluent in fishing techniques can quite easily catch all the martens in his area.

Therefore, I advise young hunters: if you want to catch marten well every season, never catch them in full, always leave two pairs for brood.

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.

What is a bag

Initially, the first bags were intended for animals of medium and even large size (up to a bear), which is why they were made entirely from tree trunks, large hewn branches, and right in the forest. Drop bags were installed on roe deer, wolves or foxes, and pressure bags were installed on smaller animals.

For small-sized prey, a spring was later used as a crush - and bags of this type (ideal for catching martens and other fur-bearing animals of similar size) were called spring bags.

Spring bag installed at height

The principle of operation of the bag is identical to the operation of the familiar mousetrap (which is a unique type of bag - only of the open type). The marten, sticking its head and neck into the oblong box, tries to pull out the bait caught in the split - thereby activating the trigger, which with a sharp blow presses the animal’s neck.

Diagram of the bag mechanism

Considering that the bags for martens are fixed on trees, “ground” animals cannot reach them, and the samolov is so simple and reliable that it can last for decades without repair

Photo gallery: small animals that can be hunted with bags

Marten Forest ferret Sable Squirrel

Of course, before the advent of springs, hunters in Russian Siberia and the Far East even used bags to catch martens, much like self-catchers for small animals that mainly hunt on the ground. The main types of such bags were - and are sometimes used to this day:

riding bags (entirely composed of poles supported by 2 adjacent tree trunks) and an original alarm mechanism consisting of wire and small wooden guards and guards;
improved riding bags (using a long, perpendicular sill and crush pole, and in some cases also a rigid wire or bracket);
hollow bags (in which the role of the box of a modern spring bag was played by an artificial hollow cut into a tree or a tall stump);
walk-through nest boxes (a variation of the previous type);
Vorogovsky bags (with a base in the form of three tall stumps or tree trunks cut at a height of about 1.5 m and an ingenious guard system).

Schemes of homemade traps in the photo

An improved version of the riding bag. Horse bag. Vorogov design

All of the above types of bags (the structural diagrams of which are shown in the photo) were made right in the forest using the only tool of a taiga hunter - an ax.