Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Creating habitat Water bugs

I'm going to have to stick up for my "North of the Mason Dixon Line" friend. Theo, you are north of the Mason Dixon line aren't you?

For damn sure, Theo is not going to help you Texans snipe hunt!!!

He will, however, be available to help you distance-site your rifles in.

Well heck, Sunil. I consider it a matter of simple courtesy. Now you guys in Pennsylvania do a lot of deer hunting by the use of drives. Honored guests get to stay in one place to "bag" the deer. Others have to work their butts off doing the driving. I'm willing to give Theo the honor of "bagging" a snipe with me doing all of the work. Once he receives proper training, he can go back to Yankee land and educate others. The next year, he can return for lessons on nocturnal jackalope hunting.

Dave :

I suggest you give him a shotgun and put him next to the VP and see what happens. I bet Theo does not get out in front of the line. :p

Oh no...Now you've done it!!!.

Had to bring in Jackalope hunting, didn't you?

Theo's fourth cousin on his mother's sister's side was killed in a Jackalope hunting incident.

There's only one way to settle this.........
..........Paint Ball.

North vs. South

Sunil we have you outnumbered about 100 to 1 , but our paintball guns won't shoot that far. :p

What hath Lusk wrought?

Need to clear up a couple of things:

1) Sunil, it was a third cousin on that side who died jackalope hunting (He might have lived, but the Texans he was hunting with field dressed him before taking him to the hospital). The fourth cousin died in an urban ice fishing accident (run over by a Zamboni machine in the rink).

2) Geographically, Ohio is North of the M-D line. Culturally, the M-D line can be said to run through the middle of the state (used to be I-70, but the economic boom after WWII led to some blurring). The differences can be seen in speech patterns (my "Ahia" is Southern, IMHO), cuisine (I like Grits, when I can get 'em, but you can't really get 'em here), and whether one roots for Cleveland (Northern) or Cincinnati (the capital of Kentucky). The Southern influence is due to the large number of fine Buckeyes who originated farther South and East, including my Grandpa's side of the family, who all come up from Louisville during or shortly after WWI.

OK Theo, I'm going to have to interpret Item 2 as being Northern, especially considering that ewest is usually correct in statement.

As far as your third cousin, it would seem clear, in hindsight, that he was murdered under the guise of Jackalope hunting.

I am away from my computer for 4 hours and look what has happened to a perfectly good bug thread in the habitat section. Dave it's not you fault as you were actually describing a perfectly usable bug catching machine. (I do need a picture of that to interpret the exact scale and dimensions). Then Theo, a self professed gravitational navigator, flung the subject way away from bugs and habitat to politics. Somehow this set up huntin in Dave and Ricks mind and Sunil started sighten in his gun. Soon Dave was pickin off yankees with a gun. How far we have come from maggot bags and bug catchers. :rolleyes: :p

One small step for great minds, one giant leap for ..... All great minds tend to wander from time to time. It adds creativity and levity to life and keeps us all from going insane.

Ponds, the actual dimensions can be found in a learned treatise by Patrick McManus in his well considered tome, "The Grasshopper Trap".

Sunil, murder of Yankees has been outlawed in Texas. Even during hunting season! A history of our legislation shows the necessity of the action. It all started following the Civil War, called by some Northern Historians as the Reconstruction Period. Seems like some patriots in Northeast Texas started decorating trees with carpetbagger judges. That's why we now call it harvesting or cropping. Ah, the price of progress.

Dave - I ain't buying no book just for bug trap plans when you have given yours for free. I was referring to your pickup with run Theo run bumper sticker, Theo and Dudley strapped on the hood with long handled nets. This is the one I need a picture to see if the idea has any merit. How fast do you drive?

Ponds, McManus provides all or most of the techie specs in his book. The sum of any system is dependent on the individual modules and maintenance is of paramount importance. That's where Ric and the cooler come into play. Keep all of the working parts well lubricated and judge speed by results obtained. Overlook the well being of the Sys Admin at your own peril.

Dave- LOL! That is one complicated but fun to operate bug catcher! :rolleyes:

I'll get a pitcher tonight, if I remember. However, it'll be pretty embarrassing, as it's just a piece of scrap metal , bent in an "L" shape, with the ends duct taped shut...

It ain't much to look at, but it catches lotso bugs.

And...I've been to Cinncinnati, so I understand about the "capital of Kentucky" thing...besides, I live just north of northern Missouri.

I think there are a number of you that ought to be asked to do guest appearances on the "Red Green" show LOL. I think you'd add some real class.

Matt - We don't give one hoot what it looks like. If we can drive around for a while drinkin a cold DMD or beer, and then dump some bugs into the pond and watch the fish frenzy, we will all be pleased as can be.

Dave, I can't tell you how much eqp. I've seen malfunction from over lubrication!
It's important not to over lubricate the working mechanisims of your bug catcher else they might fall off the fenders.

Don't worry Ric, we don't want to lose Theo and Dud. We'll properly strap them on. The original designer, a Mr. R. Crabtree, used baling wire. Mr P. McManus, the documentarian, reports that Mr. Crabtree's biggest problem was not falling off. We would have to come up with a new and improved net handle. I recall something about them considering the merits of grasshopper paste as a scent bait.

Thanks for that reassurance Dave. I've grown fond of those 2! I feel better now.
Just the same I think we should be mindful of frequency of lubrication sos they don’t slouch. Nothing worse than a slouching bug catcher.

The paste idea intrigues! Might attract grasshoppers in daytime! Just a smear on a stick in the mud! Might work! Esp. if you could sex the hoppers & use Female only paste. May be a market for it!
Hmmmmm call it "Hopper in Heat Lure"????

I stumbled across this thread curious to read about water bugs and instead I was informed about bug catchers, handlin yankees ( now there's a chore), strapping folks to the hood of a truck and left wonderin how in the heck you'd sex a grasshopper. By the way, the only grasshopper paste I ever saw was splattered on my windshield! (Seems to attract more of 'em though!)

Ya'll keep up the good work I just might learn something.

OK, here it is. Embarrassing as to how simple it is and how crappy it looks...but it does catch bugs. It's about 5 feet long. I picked it up at Menards in the area of flexible ductwork, etc. It's one half of a snap together section of 6x14 galvanized duct. I hang it from the 4 wheeler with 2 pieces of wire.

Drive around the tall grass and end up back at the pond. I need to put a bigger lip in the front because hoppers start jumping out as soon as I stop. If it's cool (evening or morning) they're not so quick. Maybe a large overhang on the top might help too. Sometimes, the bugs hop over the top...

[img]http://images.snapfish.com/34642828%3B%7Ffp335%3Enu%3D323%3B%3E756%3E465%3EWSNRCG%3D32335598%3A8977nu0mrj[/img]

One more....

[img]http://images.snapfish.com/34642828%3B%7Ffp335%3Enu%3D323%3B%3E756%3E465%3EWSNRCG%3D32335598%3A8978nu0mrj[/img]

Need to retape that one end, I guess.

I've never thought anything was embarrassing that was cheap and worked.

Hopefully I'll have one just like it by July.

I'm glad to see it uses duct tape; that means we can trust it!

I'll have to try and figure out a way to move one of these around a hay field without permanently knocking down the grass.

Well, other than the tracks from the wheeler, there is no damage...this thing can barely knock down a cobweb...but it manages to catch bugs.