[Womble]

Here's a puzzle for you all.

We have a Larsen trap set up for magpies. There's no call bird in it (you have to catch one to have one, and we haven't been lucky yet), so instead both sides have a fake hen's nest inside, baited with hen's eggs.

Anyway, something is repeatedly stealing the eggs. Sometimes the trap is triggered and sometimes it isn't. However, each time the eggs are gone without a trace, and without leaving any mess.

The trap has a 1" mesh size, so the culprit must be something fairly small. My bet is on a weasel, but what do you all think?  Also, even if I'm right, how is he getting the eggs out without leaving any evidence? 

[chrismahon]

Rats can pick up eggs, but aren't the eggs bigger than the 1" mesh?

[Q]

Could be weasel but I would set up a trail camera because I can't abide not knowing who the culprit is!

Also, sods law guarantees that the eggs will stop disappearing as soon as you set the camera up.

[Womble]

Rats can pick up eggs, but aren't the eggs bigger than the 1" mesh?

Yep!

Also I don't THINK a fully grown rat would be able to squeeze through that mesh. I hope not, because I have a rat trap made from the same mesh, and you'd hope they knew what they were doing?

That's another egg gone overnight, but nothing caught. It's driving me nuts! 

You're right, Q. Need to source a trailcam.

[Q]

.. It's driving me nuts!  :

Easy solution... Take the steering wheel out of your pants..   

[Womble]

I'm so glad I convinced Dan we needed an "I'll get my coat" emoji 

[Womble]

OK, so I managed to borrow back our trail camera. We need to change its location tonight, but we managed to get this rather poor photo of what I THINK is a cat?

Perhaps it's big enough to reach the egg without going all the way into the trap, and can hence also extract itself? What do you reckon?

[doganjo]

Cats are clever.  Can the trap be tilted so the egg can roll towards the cat? It will use it's claws to open it and will clean every last trace away

[harmony]

If it triggers the trap sometimes how could anything possibly get out again with such small mesh? Unless it triggers on the way out? I am getting the cat theory from the picture but also wondering young fox or ferret/mink. I hope you can tell us for sure very soon!

[Womble]

The only thing I can think, harmony is that it's big enough to be half-in, half out of the trap, so if it sets it off, it can wriggle out backwards!?

An egg disappears most nights, so hopefully we'll catch the culprit on camera properly before long.

[Womble]

So, I was wrong! 

[Q]

Looks like a nice.. healthy.. well fed..   

[doganjo]

Clever wee thing! 

[Womble]

OK, has anybody had these guys around before?  What do we need to do to keep on good terms with it when we have hens and peafowl / peachicks free ranging?

[Blondie]

Wow! What a beauty!

No idea about living on friendly terms with them but I did pay quite a bit in money to sit in a hide one night to see one. Perhaps a nice little money making opportunity