Dead rabbits placed in trees

[salukiwhippet]

WildGirl - You're quite right, that should have read 'some kids are creepy'. Apologies if I offended.

Flowerformula - Really? I've never heard of that practice. Given that I've seen rabbits get, erm, 'amorous' with shot ones, I would doubt it works very well

Have the bodies stopped appearing now we're out of the Holidays?

James

[PMG]

My advice is always report anything suspicious or odd/weird to the police and let them decide what is a waste of time: they may already have info that has a bearing or related to what you see/find and your info could be the thing they need to tie the whole together - the police can only do a good job if folk tell them things - its for them to decide what is relavent and what isn't.

Anything on or relating to footpaths should be reported to the Footpaths Officer at your local council. Altho they spend a lot of their working lives out walking paths they cannot possibly cover all in their jurisdiction - so again info for them to investigate or keep an eye on is needed for them to do a proper job.

Whatever the reasons this particular thing is being done for there is something very off about it and folk who try to shock people in one way may continue on to more serious ways of upsetting folk - displaying dead things is not of a normal balenced brain - unless they are hanging in a butchers shop for sale! It needs looking at even its never solved .......

Pauline

[WildGirl]

Originally Posted by Jaeviatrix

Kids messing about by killing baby rabbits and sticking them on trees, and continuing to do so over a period of time probably need someone to have a chat with them!

Some creepy kids!

Really Don't appreciate that comment. I hate when people "assume" it's some kids.

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by WildGirl

Really Don't appreciate that comment. I hate when people "assume" it's some kids.

to be fair he did say some kids - ie he knows not all kids are like that

in a fifteen year career ive dealt with upwards of a hundred pointless cruelty to wildlife incidents, and less than ten involved soley people over 25 (and most of those ten were badger baiting related)

so in my experience at least empirical evidence suggests that if an incident like this is bizare and pointless it has a high probability of kids being involved.

like the ones i caught feeding paracetemol to swans
and the ones i caught playing football with hedgehog
ditto with a fox cub
ditto with a baby rabbit
ditto with a cygnet
and the ones who crucified a swan to a tree with a crossbow
and the ones pouring petrol down a badger set and lighting it
and I could go on (and on and on) but you can see the point

I know not all kids are like that - indeed most arent, but there are a sizable proportion that are.

[captivebolt]

They are mostly young because the adult does have recently littered. As said it is legal to shoot over a footpath in some circumstances, and my first thought was that someone had been shooting overnight and thrown the bodies into the trees to keep them from carrion eaters, coming back later to collect them. They may well have been myxy, or simply too small to he worth putting in the pot.

Before dragging in the law why not ask the landowner if he has given anyone permission to take rabbits on the land?

CB

[davecatt]

I think that the most likely explanation may be that the local authority have failed to control vermin on a public right of way, and so either the neighbouring land owner is having a problem and trying to sort it on the cheap,or some local person is having a bit of sadistic fun. Whoever is killing the "poor baby bunnys" they are doing it illegally and irresponsibly.

Captive Bolt:
1. There is no evidence to suggest that the rabbits where shot.
2. If they where shot within the constraints of law by responsible people,why where they disposed of in a irresponsible manner?

If you don't intend eating your kill then feed it to your dogs! Yes?

This is most probably some one getting a kick out of killing. As the OP says

SheffieldLass
Commander of the Wild Empire

Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Near Scarborough
Posts: 1,111
Re: Dead rabbits placed in trees
Thanks everyone. Local knowledge says that there are lads around who use dogs to dig up rabbits. So definitely one for the Wildlife Crimes Officer.

I'm an old country lad who's learnt that there is more satisfaction in getting in shooting distance and either taking a photo or just watching, without being detected than I used to get from killing. I used to justify it by only killing what would be eaten by me or others, but, at the end of the day, I was satisfying a primeval instinct which I can now rationalise and satisfy using the skills I learnt fifty years ago just to sit and watch.
Dave
(my bolt was binned long ago)

[brendaward]

Putting dead rabbits in trees is an old fashioned thing. The dead rabbit is supposed to frighten the other rabbits. It comes from the days when they left people hanging in trees to warn others. Nowdays sounds like a nerd on the loose.

[captivebolt]

Originally Posted by davecatt

I think that the most likely explanation may be that the local authority have failed to control vermin on a public right of way, and so either the neighbouring land owner is having a problem and trying to sort it on the cheap,or some local person is having a bit of sadistic fun. Whoever is killing the "poor baby bunnys" they are doing it illegally and irresponsibly.

Captive Bolt:
1. There is no evidence to suggest that the rabbits where shot.
2. If they where shot within the constraints of law by responsible people,why where they disposed of in a irresponsible manner?

If you don't intend eating your kill then feed it to your dogs! Yes?

This is most probably some one getting a kick out of killing. As the OP says

SheffieldLass
Commander of the Wild Empire

Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Near Scarborough
Posts: 1,111
Re: Dead rabbits placed in trees
Thanks everyone. Local knowledge says that there are lads around who use dogs to dig up rabbits. So definitely one for the Wildlife Crimes Officer.

I'm an old country lad who's learnt that there is more satisfaction in getting in shooting distance and either taking a photo or just watching, without being detected than I used to get from killing. I used to justify it by only killing what would be eaten by me or others, but, at the end of the day, I was satisfying a primeval instinct which I can now rationalise and satisfy using the skills I learnt fifty years ago just to sit and watch.
Dave
(my bolt was binned long ago)

Dave - well said. The point about lack of evidence for shooting is valid and I totally agree about disposal of inedible corpses. If they are Myxy at least put the bodies in the nearest ditch, out of sight. I do!

My bolt isn't shot yet.

CB

[Martin Dyer]

I have seen this practice carried out before by Ferreters, although this was while they were actually ferreting. They subsequently removed all the carcasses at the end of their day,

Martin