Main question is---Is it legal to kill mice on public land like national forests and wilderness areas????
The last time I bought mouse traps, the instructions said not to put bait on them... apparently they are scented or something. I saw a mouse in my house - and that is unacceptable. First night with the traps set, snap, got it.
I personally would not be that guy who thru (or section) hikes with mouse traps because of the disease factor. I don't know what the odds are of a mouse in a shelter carrying a disease, or how much more likely I am to catch that disease while touching dead mice and the traps night after night - or if simply sleeping in a shelter with disease carrying mice is sufficient to catch said disease.
I prefer my tent.
When I do stay in a shelter, I do so with apprehension.
Is norovirus carried or spread by mice or thru hikers? That's the main disease that I've heard about from sleeping in shelters, and I was under the impression it was from unsanitary habits of the hikers.
Noro virus is spread by hikers.
Mice will climb all over you while you sleep. It's ok to kill the little fardigan bastiches
I'm not familiar with the particular rules and regulations that pertain to national forests and wilderness areas.Originally Posted by Tipi Walter
So far, the best I could find on the web page for the "U.S. Forest Service" was the "Code of Federal Regulations Title 36 - Parks, Forests, and Public Property"
Now there must be more to the rules than this, because I can find references to hunting being allowed. Specifically, I could find the following regarding National Forests in North Carolina§261.8 Fish and wildlife.
The following are prohibited to the extent Federal or State law is violated:
(a) Hunting, trapping, fishing, catching, molesting, killing or having in possession any kind of wild animal, bird, or fish, or taking the eggs of any such bird.
(b) Possessing a firearm or other implement designed to discharge a missile capable of destroying animal life.
(c) Possessing equipment which could be used for hunting, fishing, or trapping.
(d) Possessing a dog not on a leash or otherwise confined.
(e) Curtail the free movement of any animal or plant life into or out of a cave, except as authorized to protect a cave resource.
So my best guess is that it comes down to a question of what is required to legally hunt mice?Outside of developed recreation areas, fishing and hunting are permitted throughout the national forests in North Carolina. According to the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, any lands open the public hunting are called “game lands.” Many game animals thrive in the national forests. The Forest Service is emphasizing equal access to hunting. Hunters must have the proper licenses or permits needed to hunt.
A mouse license?
Then again, I regularly hear about the Forest Service killing off pests and rodents all around their forest buildings and district stations. Confusing, I guess.
I seem to recall a hiker who had a threaded necklace of mouse ears, damn!
A mouse is a wild animal and a mouse trap is a trap. So doesn't seem legal. Best to avoid the issue by avoiding shelters.
Ticks are spread by mice. It would seem that feeding mice also increases the tick population at the shelters.
Let me guess, they were coming right at you?
Thats some Silence of the Lambs shiznit.
Climbing up my back while I was trying to sleep
They can steal you breath !
The worst shelters (as far as rodents are concerned) and the ones where the population is well fed.
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Welp, this thread confirms it. We've offically reached winter cabin fever and are running out of stuff to argue about...
Colorless green ideas sleep furiously.
Well my question is with all these close encounters with mice how many whiskers does the male mice have.?
72...............
to quote a media mogul...Yar!
A tick is a wild animal. It is "legal" to kill a tick? What about a skeeter? Or those pesky blackflies? And while we're at it, what about ants and microorganisms? Is it "legal" for trail builders to clear vegetation? Or only noxious plants like poison ivy, stinging nettle, and briers? Is it legal for me to bend or break the stem of some plant that has grown across the path? Sometimes the letter of the law leads to ridiculous conclusions.
Pretty much all of us would agree that mice are pests. But would the snakes agree? Many people I know would say that a snake is a pest. I don't agree. The mouse population is out of proportion to the food supply because we unintentionally provide them with food. If we weren't there, the food supply, mouse population, and snake population would balance out.
Let's step back and consider the intent of the regulations - to preserve the wilderness. If we truly wish to leave no trace, shouldn't we stay out of the woods?
how do you think one of these would work against a shelter mouse?
https://www.massdrop.com/buy/bowman-toothpick-crossbow
I guess it breaks rule b, but it seems like it could be fun
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