Pocket Gophers Can Create Havoc For Farmers

Apr 24, 2015

The Stanley Soil Management Association (SSMA) wants Manitobans to be on the lookout for pocket gophers.

Technician Richard Warkentin says now is best time to control the rodent.

He explains the critters can cause significant damage to a farm operation.

"They create these mounds in farmers fields, particularly alfalfa fields and pasture fields, and it creates an issue with harvest time," said Warkentin. "The mounds have a problem with the harvesting equipment. There's dirt in the equipment, there's delays in harvest and there's an element of quality that gets lost in the harvest in the forage crop."

He adds that studies have shown that Manitoba pocket gophers can be responsible for losses totalling over $20 million every year.

Warkentin notes that while they also use a machine called a "gopher getter", the most common and most effective method to control the rodents is trapping.

There is a pocket gopher bounty where trappers are paid $1 per tail for pocket gophers trapped in the R.M. of Stanley.

Source: PortageOnline

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

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