The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Smallholding => Wildlife => Topic started by: Penninehillbilly on December 03, 2013, 01:08:42 am
-
Hi
mentioned to OH I'd like one of these cameras you leave set up to catch wildlife, day or night, he's told me to find one :-).
There seems to be a lot of choice
The prices seem to be coming down since the first time I looked.
So - anyone got one?
any thoughts on specifications should I be looking for?
Its going to be a one off so got to get it right!
-
Haven't got one but what a fab idea :sunshine:
-
My OH didn't even want me to have a nest box camera :( I think all I would get on an animal track camera would be rabbits and foxes and the odd passing hen, but I would so love to be able to watch birds in the nest boxes :thinking:
-
I'd set it down in the new woodland area, so hopefully see how many marauding deer we are dealing with, and possibly badgers, also they are now used as security cameras, so occasionally it would be near the house just to keep an eye on things.
-
I had a camtracker a few years ago, black and white, allowed 10 sec video clips, but wasn't up to much, and died after about a year. I really enjoyed having it, spying on who was feeding the horses, working out which bait attracted foxes best (pheasant not as good as rabbit or pigeon), and just seeing all the wildlife going about. Think it cost about £100, not cheap, but a great Christmas present, and as you say, they have come on in terms of durability, build quality, price, etc.
-
That's exactly what I'm having for Christmas :o Google 'Trail Cam' and there's hundreds of them but as to which model to get? ???
-
I've chosen my Chrimbo present from my kids and a Bushnell Trophy cam is being delivered tomorrow. Waiting for Christmas before I can try it is going to be a killer. :relief:
-
Bodger post it over to me.
I'll promise to get it back by Christmas
In the past two weeks I've seen badgers weasels foxes (which are much bigger than in the uk) a golden eagle (I think) and 5 wild boar.
If only I had a camera.
:wave:
-
I've chosen my Chrimbo present from my kids and a Bushnell Trophy cam is being delivered tomorrow. Waiting for Christmas before I can try it is going to be a killer. :relief:
I wish I could decide, what criteria were you looking for? I've notice some seem to have a 1 second trigger, seems a long time? also wondering about megapixels and type of battery,
Keep busy, Christmas will soon be here :-)
-
Let us know which one you chose and how well it works - I think it sounds like a great idea for a future present. I'd also be fascinated to see what my own animals/birds get up to at night (even things like the geese - not sure what they do for the 16 hours they're shut in at the moment since they seem to stay awake). I know from the tracks in the snow that wildlife is busy around here at night so that would be fascinating as well. I'd want one I could move around the place easily.
My daughter is in reception and they have a nest box cam each year so they have the nest beamed up on the wall all the time and can see the eggs hatch (as well as hatching their own chicken eggs) and then the chicks grow. It's lovely!
H
-
Hey,
I use the Bushnell Trophy Cam HD. I've got the lower resolution cams too but its definitely worth paying the extra for good quality images/videos. Especially if you are putting it onto a TV. I have a few clips on loop in the visitor centre at work (I'm a countryside ranger) and they are great for showing a group of school kids things they might not see just walking around.
When it comes to setting them up, I would have a good look round for tracks and other signs of wildlife. Deer, foxes etc will use the same areas time after time. Makes for great videos!
I recently got the HD cam on Amazon here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/BUSHNELL-119437C-Megapixel-Trophy-Night-Vision/dp/B006U0Z3BK/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1387717709&sr=8-3&keywords=bushnell+trail+camera (http://www.amazon.co.uk/BUSHNELL-119437C-Megapixel-Trophy-Night-Vision/dp/B006U0Z3BK/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1387717709&sr=8-3&keywords=bushnell+trail+camera)
Hope this helps!
Tom
-
Thanks Tom. We don't have deer in the area but have loads of foxes and the occasional visiting badger. There are quite often tracks in the mud in the field gate way, so that's where I was thinking of siting the camera. :fc:
-
Well fingers crossed. :fc: I was allowed to officially open my Christmas present and just a few minutes ago I set the trail cam up in one of our field gateways. I can't wait to see what if anything the morning brings. My best bet would be on a load of cats but at any rate, it will be interesting to see if we've set it at the right height.
-
Not quite a blank but almost. I got this one last night.
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/camera%20shots/EK000005.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/camera%20shots/EK000005.jpg.html)
and when I let the ducks out this morning, one of the ducks got to the camera before I did. :&>
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/camera%20shots/EK000010.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/camera%20shots/EK000010.jpg.html)
I'm going to have great fun with this little gizmo. :fc:
-
I AM JEALOUS!!!
I really must decide which I want, but the reviews on this Bushnell sound good, (and Thanks Tom), sounds like I've decided :-).
We had a power cut Christmas Eve, with security cams down and not trusting the neighbours I was wishing I'd got one of these. (tyres slashed in the past, as I found out after driving full speed on motorway, luckily it burst later as I braked for a pedestrian.)
-
I've just repositioned the camera so its watching a fox or badger run through one of our hedges. :fc:
-
I got this at picture 8.40am this morning.
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/camera%20shots/EK000019.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/camera%20shots/EK000019.jpg.html)
but just a few hours earlier, this b*****d passed the same fence post on its way towards my chickens. :o:
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/camera%20shots/EK000018.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/camera%20shots/EK000018.jpg.html)
I've had a fiddle with the camera settings to see if I can get some clearer pictures. : :fc::
-
I'll get a decent one of him eventually. I got this one in our garden during the early hours this morning.
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/EK000004.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/EK000004.jpg.html)
-
I've ordered a Ltl Acorn as I keep seeing a third pair of eyes in the torch when I take the two dogs out... very creepy (although today I think I saw a black cat in the field but didn't have my glasses on)
-
How does it work? Does it respond to movement or just take time lapse photos? We've got CCTV round the house (previous guy had lots of break-ins and so had set it up like Fort Knox) which is movement activated. It records for a week and then records over. Or at least I think it does - the only time I've ever checked it was when our neighbours had their oil nicked and I wanted to see whether our camera stretched that far. It didn't but it was quite a lot of fun watching my kids chase each other round the outside of the house. Now I'm wondering whether I capture wildlife too.
-
I have a Bushnell x5 which I love. I've had some great pics of foxes, badgers, birds and all our animlas, really clear too.
I hope I may get a hedgehog, snake and some more interesting birds on there!
-
My best picture to date. I put a dead chicken out last night and trained the camera on it. I thought that I might be in luck when I fetched the trail cam in this morning. The chicken was gone.
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/camera%20shots/11114.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/camera%20shots/11114.jpg.html)
I'll have to dust my fox trap off.
-
I've only just realised that the previous image was it's tail, I thought it was somethings head out of focus ::) :D (just noticed the leg is a hind leg).
At least they show you what time its around as well, maybe a bit earlier because it could smell the chicken?
Which model is it Bodger? There seems to be a few similar but with different numbers, some apparently do things I don't understand ? I have decided to go with the Bushnell HD, but there seems to be 4 models?
-
I hope that this makes sense, it says that its a model 119436
-
Mine arrived from China this morning. I've left it strapped to a tree so will see what it captures overnight
-
Good luck mate :fc: Do you get deer and wild boar where you live?
-
Good luck mate :fc: Do you get deer and wild boar where you live?
Definitely deer, not sure about boar
-
We haven't got any near us but you may have. You might find this site of interest. :pig:
http://www.britishwildboar.org.uk/index.htm?map2.html (http://www.britishwildboar.org.uk/index.htm?map2.html)
-
Checked mine today - it's caught something but on the little preview screen it wasn't clear. I'll download them to the computer tomorrow to see if I can tell what it was
-
It did get triggered last night but think it might have been wind as nothing to see. Here's the eyes I got on the first night:
(http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk76/richardspandit/Eco/trailcam1.jpg)
Any ideas?
-
Aliens :roflanim: .
We now have ours in the field where the sheep were stolen. Shame it hasn't got a rifle attached to it.
When we tried to photograph the barn owls, we only ever got them returning to the nest box as they flew out too quickly for the camera to catch them. Is there a way of making the trigger time shorter?
-
It did get triggered last night but think it might have been wind as nothing to see. Here's the eyes I got on the first night:
(http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk76/richardspandit/Eco/trailcam1.jpg)
Any ideas?
That's Uncle Bulgaria. :idea:
-
Well, I can definitely confirm that it's not a badger...
(http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk76/richardspandit/FAC/IMAG0001.jpg)
(http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk76/richardspandit/FAC/IMAG0002.jpg)
Looks like a pair at least, unless it was stalking a cat?
-
I may very well have the fox in the morning.
Here's the old fox trap set out in the fields.
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/IMG_0009.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/IMG_0009.jpg.html)
Last night, the stinky old bait definitely got its attention. It was pretty windy here last night and even though the wind had managed to set the trap off, the fox still managed to skin the manky old chicken and drag it to the corner from outside the trap.
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/IMG_0010.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/IMG_0010.jpg.html)
He'd dug underneath the trap to get at the bait.
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/IMG_0012.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/IMG_0012.jpg.html)
So the first thing that I did was to move the chicken back to where it had started from and then block the tunnel with some nice prickly gorse.
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/IMG_0013.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/IMG_0013.jpg.html)
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/IMG_0014.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/IMG_0014.jpg.html)
I've set my trail cam so that I can see what happens tonight.
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/IMG_0015.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/IMG_0015.jpg.html)
and also reset the fox trap.
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/IMG_0016.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/IMG_0016.jpg.html)
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/IMG_0017.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/IMG_0017.jpg.html)
The trap and the trail cam in situ.
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/IMG_0018.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/IMG_0018.jpg.html)
Depending upon if you're on my side or the foxes, its fingers crossed for tonight. :fc:
-
Here are the cam pictures from last night. I think that I may have left some scent around the trap. The fox certainly didn't go towards the entrance but looked to be eating something. I don't know what you think, but I don't think that its the same fox from earlier in the year.
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/camera%20shots/EK0000103.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/camera%20shots/EK0000103.jpg.html)
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/camera%20shots/EK0000122.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/camera%20shots/EK0000122.jpg.html)
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/camera%20shots/EK000013.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/camera%20shots/EK000013.jpg.html)
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/camera%20shots/EK000014.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/camera%20shots/EK000014.jpg.html)
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/camera%20shots/EK000015.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/camera%20shots/EK000015.jpg.html)
Here come the ducks, it was good job they didn't arrive a few hours earlier. :shock:
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/camera%20shots/EK000052.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/camera%20shots/EK000052.jpg.html)
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/camera%20shots/EK000053.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/camera%20shots/EK000053.jpg.html)
(http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb334/kcooper2011/camera%20shots/EK000054.jpg) (http://s1200.photobucket.com/user/kcooper2011/media/camera%20shots/EK000054.jpg.html)
-
I post most of the footage I get on the Facebook page for where I work:
www.facebook.com/buchancountrypark (http://www.facebook.com/buchancountrypark)
Lots of foxes, roe deer and the occasional wood mouse!