In 1823, Sewall Newhouse developed the leg-hold trap. The device provided a means to more effectively take a wider range of animals including wolves, foxes, beavers, minks, muskrats, otters, and other short-legged animals.
With a ready market and a demand for furs, trappers pushed across the continent. As they did these hardy men located and documented streams and rivers along with valleys and mountains.
Later the trapper’s knowledge of the lay of the land would provide valuable information aiding the westward expansion of North America.
Over time the leg-hold trap was improved upon. Today the traps found in a trapper’s pack basket do not resemble those used in the 1800’s. Many trap companies have come and gone, but the innovators remain.
Across the industry, manufacturers of traps includes: Minnesota Trap, Duke, MB Brand, Dakota Line, The Egg Company, and Oneida Victor, just to name a few.
Control of wildlife populations is important. A balance between the resource and its habitat is a necessary component to help insure healthy wildlife populations. This is especially true when it comes to managing fur bearers. When over population occurs, it provides a fertile environment for diseases.
There is clearly a balance that needs to be maintained between predator and prey. Trappers provide a service that helps to maintain that critical balance. However the trapper provides a number of addition services.
For example, black bears that exhibit the mange make big news these days. After all, they are high profile animals. But what about raccoons, skunks, foxes and the like? They carry and can spread mange too.
Then there is rabies. Rabies carries a price tag of $550 million annually to control. Without trapping it is estimated that the yearly price tag to control the disease would top the $1.5 billion mark.
But it’s not just rabies either. There are wildlife diseases common among furbearers and predators that cause death and can be passed along to humans, livestock and even our pets. They include: leptospirosis, tuberculosis, tularemia, Lyme disease, and even canine distemper, just to name a few.
In many rural communities licensed wildlife control professionals have been placed on retainer to remove “problem animals” such as skunks, muskrats, beavers, and geese, just to name a few.
Beavers are managed by regulated trapping. If curtailed, the public price tag for beaver control is estimated to hit the $40 million mark.
Next consider the coyote. Livestock losses to cattle and sheep could hit $60 million in losses if it were not for efforts of the trapper.
This is where the trapper plays an important part in conservation by harvesting excess animals. A process similar to that of today’s hunter is to remove excess animals in the fall, enabling those that remain to overwinter and remain in balance with the available overwintering habitat.
The trapper’s trade can involve long hours and plenty of hard work. However their take from the field can also bring a profit. For today’s trapper it’s not about the money, but it’s more of the challenge.
To outwit some of nature’s finest predators, and do so on a regular basis, now you’re talking about an individual who has developed a skill few will ever master over a lifetime in the outdoors.
In most cases seasoned trappers are willing to share their skills. But if you’re interested in learning the “trade”, don’t expect them to come running to you. Be proactive.
A good starting point is to find a trapper in your area, then ask. Ask for help and guidance. For those who do, chances are you’ll eventually make a lifelong friend.
Another good starting point is to visit the PA Trappers’ web site atwww.patrapper.com Check out what the PTA offers, and be sure to look over the list of trapper training schools they offer. Most, if not all, are free of charge. Access the PTA on Facebook as well.
The popularity of trapping has been in flux. In the 2006 license year 26,589 trapping permits were sold. Over time the number of permits sold steadily increased. And in 2014 trappers purchased 45,069 permits. In the 2016 license year, a slight decrease occurred when 43,821 licenses were sold.
While the number of trapping permits sold has varied, there remains a healthy interest in trapping. Those who trap are well schooled, skilled, and compassionate individuals. But using foothold traps are often misunderstood.
Today traps used in the field are highly regulated to ensure safe and ethical treatment to wildlife and human contact.
The PA Game Commission regulates seasons and bag limits regarding trapping. And trappers can, within harvest guidelines and who hold a furtaker license, trap for foxes, coyotes, bobcats, river otters, raccoons, opossums, skunks, and beavers. However a permit is required when trapping for bobcats, fishers and otters. Over the years opportunities for trappers have been expanding because of solid conservation and management practices.
The PA Trappers Association (PTA) provides trapper training that stresses ethical responsibility and proper trapping device use. The organization also provides comprehensive training programs with hands on instruction.
The trapping traditions live on, and to become involved all you need to do is ask.
Charlie Burchfield is an active member and past president of the Pennsylvania Outdoor Writers Association, an active member of the Professional Outdoor Media Association, Outdoor Writers Assoc. of America and the Mason-Dixon Outdoor Writers. Gateway Outdoors e-mail is GWOutdoors@comcast.net.
