The problem with introducing any wild animal is that it won’t be sure what it’s supposed to be killing, so lots of other species will go as well.
When the Animal Rights people, in their infinite wisdom thought it better to let the mink out from a farm (very close to Hostafan!) they escaped onto the moors and killed all the ground birds and several other species, it took a long while to re establish. My friend there had peacocks and they killed those including a hen in chicks.
Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor.
Pine martens are indeed a good predator of greys, and they don't affect the red population, allowing it to flourish. The martens are mainly 'low level hunters' and therefore the greys are easy prey for them. General opinion is that a balance would be achieved in time if there were more martens.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Buy yourself a fenn trap, learn the legal obligations and and how to effectively use it. I have killed over 20 greys this year in my garden alone. The reds now only 1 mile away. no pellets required - and traps never sleep.
Problem with killing grey squirrels is that you then have an area with a grey squirrel hole in it.. which is perfect next year for a new one to fill. So you can trap or kill them but they will come back from the next litter.. and be looking for a home which this time might not be a tree but could be the loft... I could try a pine martin but where would the average gardener get a pine martin from and can they just let them go free to do their thing? True about not feeding them, but if there is an established territory there is other food sources there for them apart from the bulbs
Now rats with furry tails... I also read that they keep away the real rats, compete for food, not sure how true that is
That’s ok then, let them go to another food source at least that gets them to leave the OP’s tulips alone. Every you get is one less, in fact one less, probably quite a few less. they don’t breed like rats fortunately, one pair of rats make 2000 in a year.
Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor.
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When the Animal Rights people, in their infinite wisdom thought it better to let the mink out from a farm (very close to Hostafan!) they escaped onto the moors and killed all the ground birds and several other species, it took a long while to re establish. My friend there had peacocks and they killed those including a hen in chicks.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Now rats with furry tails... I also read that they keep away the real rats, compete for food, not sure how true that is
Every you get is one less, in fact one less, probably quite a few less.
they don’t breed like rats fortunately, one pair of rats make 2000 in a year.