Several weeks ago, I left an opened can in the cockpit, and the next morning found that something had chewed through the plastic lid, a little sliver of blue plastic at a time, so there were dozens of half moon shaped pieces sitting around. Also, a feather. So, I presume, some clever bird had done it. A bird with a parrot-like bill might have made those half moon shapes. It happened during the 2nd night that I slept in the salon and not on deck. (I gave up sleeping up there as the mosquitos were having a feast every night, regardless of how much Off! I sprayed on me.) Made sense to me. No sleeping human, so sneak aboard and "Let's Party!"
Friends looked at it and said plainly - unequivocably - a rat. Is not an unusual thing on a boat tied to a dock. So are mice, cockroaches, ants, and gekkos. Gekkos are good as they eat the ants and other insects. I recently read of a couple who asked a local to capture a couple gekkos to put onto the boat, as natural insecticides. I had heard that rat traps (trappas de rhatas or something like that in Espanol) were a bit hard to find here, so I started to shop for one when out on other errands, and found it after about 8 or 10 stores - 76 Limperas - about $3.25. I also moved the can onto the dock, and each day, moved it further away from AF, hoping to lead the munching el rhatas away from AF. Finally some critter took the whole can away. A few weeks later, I found it out on the lawn between the resort and the dock, and put it in the trash.
So, the other night, I did the same. Opened a can, and, after adding some seasoning salt and shaking, munched a couple handfuls while sipping a vodka tonic, before dinner. Nice Planter's Mixed Nuts (less than 50% peanuts) with added salt. The next morning, I had the same result as the previous time, only this time, there were several rat turds scattered around the sole (floor) of the cockpit.
So now, war. And I am angry that presumably, this guy has been coming on the boat every night since, looking for another hand out, but grateful that he hasn't come into the boat yet, or at least I THINK he has not come into the boat yet.
I set the trap with peanut butter and a big pecan right in the center of it, and left the can as well. Back home in Pittsburgh, I used a wireless, infrared motion detector, so that when someone passed by, coming into the driveway or up the walk, it would sound a loud Ding Dong down in my room in the basement, which I had tried to insulate as to be mostly soundproof, since I slept during the day. Also, since I was responsible for Mom, I wanted to have a feel for who was coming and going, hence the alarm. I brought it with me on AF, just in case I felt a need to detect motion, say on the deck at night, or near the dink anytime. After the trap was set, I put new batteries in the detector and placed it on the sole of the cockpit, pointing at the trap.
4am - DING DONG! Scared me to death......(I since have moved the alarm half of the system to a place under a pillow to mute the loud noise) but good notice that something was moving about in the cockpit, and perhaps something was about to happen. I have a screen that slides into place instead of the split doors that open the companionway, and in the dark, I stand up and walk that way, slowly to see what was visiting me. Peering through the screen, I saw it. and it proved to be the rat, grey, about 4 or 5 inches long, running like lightning, down into the cockpit, sniffing around (ding dong!) and tearing off again, climbing or jumping out of the cockpit so fast, and once I even saw its profile in the back light, running across the whole length of the helm's cushion like a flash. Finally, he came down and he climbed up onto the can, and started gnawing away at the plastic lid some more (ding dong!) but being scared to hang around too long. The trap was an inch from the can! But, something always scared him off. He finally retrieved a nut from the can - I think he likes the pecans, and disappeared. The next time, he stole the pecan off its peanut butter bed, and disappeared for the night, without setting off the trap. Damned rust! So, I tied an almond to the trap. Next day, almond gone; trap not sprung. Damned Rust! Today, I filed the 'trigger' down a bit - kinda like an island gunsmith - getting it down to have a hair trigger response. And then I tied another almond to the trap, only this time doing a much better job, but leaving the almond with a bit of slack. That night - Ding dong! - he must have pulled on the almond, and when it snapped back, his head was out of the way of the trap and he escaped. I saw him fly up the binnacle, by the throttle lever, and disappear.
So have tightened the nut to the trap, and I wait.
Where did the feather come from in the beginning? Don't know, unless I have had other visitors after the can was opened.
I am just glad that the monkeys haven't made it this far over, or I would have real troubles. They tear up everything, and steal colorful and shiny bits. I would be destroyed!
And guess what? Ding Dong! Gotta go.....More later.......
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