grackles can be trap shy

Your website doesn’t give any information why a grackle would wonder into such a trap especially after they become wise to it……..just from my experience walking outside with my pellet gun they scatter now that they know what it means. I can see sparrows or starlings wandering in continuously, but a grackle, at least the ones in Michigan, seem to me to be a little smarter than that…………..can you give me a little more of your research that tells me why they would continue to walk in especially when their buddies are stuck inside. They seem to be more in the crow or raven family the way they think things over. I just don’t want to buy a trap that catches a couple and makes all the rest wiser. I don’t care about the sparrows or even the starlings…….I just want to get rid of the grackles………Thanks.

I’m sorry but we don’t really have any research on this topic. There are various trap makers around the country and over the years we’ve learned that some traps work and some don’t. When we find out about any one style of trap, we typically bring them in and see if they work basing much of our decision on what happens after some are used out in the field. The Grackle Traps we carry have proven to work which is why we continue to sell them. If we learn something isn’t working, we either drop them or get another model/style to replace it. As a reseller that carries over 100 models of live traps, we’ve learned if something doesn’t work there is no need to carry it for the same reasons you cited.
That being established I do know we have been selling this trap for many years and I have not fielded any question or complaint that couldn’t be handled. The key to this trap being successful (as is true with most any repeating bird type trap) is that you must both keep it filled with bait and remove trapped birds daily. This will keep the ones caught both content and well fed so they are inclined to lure more inside. Remember, food is a BIG motivator for most any animal. I personally have been able to lure a wide range of birds to feed out of my hand including crows so they might be smart but they are basically motivated by the same thing as most any other animal.

By removing trapped birds daily you don’t run the risk of having other birds see something bad happening “in the cage”. When you outside and start shooting birds, it doesn’t take long for them to figure out that “person” =’s “bad” because there is a “sequence” of events when you arrive. First, they see you, then they hear a “bang” and then they see other birds dropping dead. Before long they equate seeing you to dead birds. The same thing can happen if you leave birds in the cage too long and some die. The others will become afraid of it so by removing them daily, you should be able to minimize this problem that can lead to trap shyness.

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