Trapping produces food while you sleep. One properly placed trap working overnight outperforms hours of active hunting for small game. The return on investment in trap construction time is high — a figure-4 deadfall takes 20 minutes to build and can produce a squirrel or rabbit with no further effort. This guide covers 8 trap types, construction dimensions, placement logic based on animal sign, and the legal framework that matters when you’re not in a survival emergency. For reading animal sign to find trap locations, see reading animal sign to find trap and snare locations.
Legal Overview: What’s Permitted Without a License
Trapping regulations vary by state and province but follow consistent patterns. The key legal categories:
- Wire snares: Prohibited for recreational use in most US states without a trapping license. Several states ban snares entirely for small game (including California, Oregon, and Colorado for certain species). In a documented survival emergency, trapping without a license is generally covered under necessity doctrine — but this is a legal gray area and jurisdiction-specific.
- Deadfall traps (figure-4, Paiute): Primitive deadfall traps built from natural materials fall into a legal gray area in most jurisdictions — they are rarely explicitly listed in state regulations, which typically address manufactured traps. Legal in survival scenarios; check your state’s definition of “trap” before recreational use.
- Box traps (live traps): Generally legal in all US states without a license for nuisance wildlife. Check local ordinances for restrictions on relocating trapped animals.
- Conibear body-gripping traps: Regulated in every state. Size restrictions apply (conibear 110 and 120 are less regulated than 220 and 330 in most jurisdictions). License required in virtually all states.
Trap lines: State regulations typically require traps be checked within 24–36 hours of setting. Abandoned trap lines are illegal in all jurisdictions and cause animal welfare issues.
Target Species and Trap Selection
Small game trapping in North America targets three species that produce reliable returns: Eastern cottontail rabbit (Sylvilagus floridanus), fox squirrel and gray squirrel (Sciurus spp.), and muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) in wetland areas. Larger targets (raccoon, beaver, mink) require appropriately sized traps and more skill to set effectively.
Species caloric return per individual: rabbit approximately 800–1,200 kcal (processed), squirrel 300–500 kcal, muskrat 400–700 kcal. A trap line producing 1 rabbit and 2 squirrels per day provides approximately 1,400–2,200 kcal — meeting a significant portion of daily caloric needs when combined with foraging.
Trap 1: Figure-4 Deadfall
The figure-4 deadfall is the most widely taught primitive trap, using three notched sticks to support a weighted rock or log that falls when the trigger stick is disturbed. It works — with practice and correct construction. The most common failure is incorrect trigger sensitivity and insufficient weight.
Construction:
- Upright stick: 12 inches long, pointed at the bottom to push into soil, notched at the top to receive the diagonal stick. The notch must be a square cut perpendicular to the stick — angled cuts make the trigger too sensitive or too stiff.
- Diagonal stick: 14–16 inches long, notched near the top to rest against the upright stick, notched at the middle to hold the bait stick. The diagonal stick leans at approximately 45° from vertical against the weight.
- Bait/trigger stick: 8–10 inches long, notched at one end to fit the diagonal stick notch, bait placed at the other end under the weight.
- Weight: A minimum of 3× the target animal’s body weight. For squirrel (600g), the weight must be at least 1.8 kg (4 lbs). For rabbit (1.5 kg), minimum 4.5 kg (10 lbs). Flat sandstone, slate, or a heavy log are the best weights — irregular-shaped rocks are unreliable. Test by pressing on the bait stick — the weight should fall cleanly without binding.
Placement: Along a game trail with the bait stick positioned so the animal must reach under the edge of the weight to reach the bait. The weight should cover the approach path. Bait: peanut butter (highly effective for squirrel and mice), apple, dried corn, rolled oats.
Trap 2: Paiute Deadfall
The Paiute deadfall is a refinement of the figure-4 with a toggles-and-string trigger mechanism that offers greater sensitivity and a cleaner trigger release. It uses four components: an upright stick, a diagonal stick, a toggle stick, and a short piece of cordage or sinew connecting the toggle to a small toggle that rests on the ground.
The Paiute trigger allows the weight to fall from very light contact — effective for small mice and chipmunks where the figure-4 is too heavy in its trigger action. For squirrel-sized targets, the Paiute produces more reliable catches than the figure-4 when properly tuned. Construction is more complex and requires approximately 30–40 minutes of build time versus 20 for the figure-4.
Trap 3: Wire Snare
Wire snares are the most efficient trap per unit of time to set — a properly positioned snare takes 5 minutes to install and produces high catch rates on active rabbit and squirrel runs. The snare constricts around the animal’s neck as it passes through, killing quickly through hanging or constriction.
Wire specification: 24-gauge galvanized wire (0.5mm) for rabbit; 28-gauge (0.36mm) for squirrel. Lighter wire breaks; heavier wire is difficult to form into a tight loop and is visible. Hardware stores stock 24-gauge wire on spools — a 100-foot spool weighs under 200g and sets 20+ snares.
Loop dimensions by species:
- Rabbit: loop diameter 4 inches (10cm), loop bottom positioned 4 inches above the ground
- Squirrel (ground set): loop diameter 3 inches (7.5cm), positioned 3 inches above ground
- Squirrel (pole set, see below): loop diameter 3 inches, centered in a 4-inch diameter pole
Anchor: The snare wire must be anchored to a fixed object — a stake driven 12 inches into the ground, a thick root, or a tree base. Anchoring to flexible branches allows the snare to move with the wind, producing false sets. Anchor stake: a forked stick with one fork driven into the ground and the snare wire attached to the other fork allows the snare loop to be positioned at the correct height without a separate support.
Trap 4: Squirrel Pole Snare
The squirrel pole is one of the most productive trap sets available. A straight pole 5–6 feet long is leaned against a tree known to be used by squirrels (look for claw marks on bark, nut caches at the base, and gnawed nut fragments). Multiple snares are placed along the pole — squirrels approaching the tree to cache nuts or access routes will attempt to climb the pole and walk through the snares.
A single squirrel pole with 6 snares can produce 2–4 squirrels in a 24-hour period on a heavily used tree. This is the highest-return trap per unit of setup effort for forested areas. The pole snare exploits the squirrel’s instinct to use elevated routes to avoid ground predators — they will walk up the pole even when a direct ground route to the tree exists.
Trap 5: Spring Snare
A spring snare uses a bent sapling or spring pole to jerk the snare upward when triggered, lifting the animal off the ground and preventing escape. More complex to set than a simple wire snare but more reliable on animals that may escape a ground snare by backing out.
Key dimensions: The spring pole must have enough force to lift 2–3× the target animal’s weight when fully extended. For rabbit: the spring pole must exert at least 3–5 kg of upward force when pulled down to the trigger position. Test by pressing down on the trigger — if the pole snaps back with force, it’s adequate. The trigger is a notched toggle set between a ground stake and the snare line — when the animal disturbs the snare, the toggle releases and the spring pole snaps upward.
Trap 6: Bottle / Funnel Trap (Fish and Small Animals)
A bottle or funnel trap uses an inverted funnel entrance that allows animals to enter but prevents them from backing out. For fish: a 2-liter plastic bottle with the top third cut off and reversed into the base creates an effective minnow trap. Place in current, bait with bread or peanut butter, and check every 12–24 hours. Small crayfish, minnows, and chubs are valuable protein even when larger game is absent.
Trap 7: Box Trap (Live Trap)
Commercial box traps (Havahart-style) catch animals alive and uninjured. Legal without a license in most jurisdictions for nuisance wildlife. For survival use, a box trap from a hardware store (Havahart model 1025 at 24 inches × 7 inches × 7 inches) effectively traps squirrel, chipmunk, weasel, and rat-sized animals. For rabbit (Havahart 1092 at 32 inches × 10 inches × 12 inches). Bait: apple slices, carrots, peanut butter on cracker, or corn.
Trap 8: Conibear Body-Gripping Trap
The conibear (body-gripping) trap produces the most reliable and humane kills of any trap type — when positioned correctly, it kills within seconds through constriction across the animal’s chest. It requires a license in most jurisdictions and must be positioned precisely to avoid bycatch (catching non-target species).
Sizes and targets: Conibear 110 (4.5-inch square jaw) for muskrat and mink; Conibear 120 (5-inch square jaw) for mink, weasel, and marten; Conibear 220 (7-inch square jaw) for raccoon and beaver. The 220 and larger sizes must be set in water in most states to reduce non-target risk.
Placement: Position the trap opening so the target animal must pass directly through the jaws to reach food or a den entrance — a natural chokepoint. Common sets: in a muskrat runway at the water’s edge (place the 110 underwater in the runway, 2–3 inches below surface); on a beaver dam at an active crossing; in a trail through dense vegetation where tracks show consistent use.
Trap Placement Strategy: Reading Sign Before You Set
A trap in a random location catches nothing. The same trap placed on an active run produces consistent catches. Before placing any trap, spend 20–30 minutes identifying game sign:
- Runs: Paths of compressed grass or soil maintained by consistent animal use. Runs narrow down to 6–8 inches wide for rabbit, 2–3 inches for squirrel. Vegetation on either side of the run is bent away at consistent height indicating the animal’s body width.
- Feeding sign: Gnawed nut fragments, stripped bark (rabbit and beaver), partially eaten berries, and digging at the base of trees all indicate active use of an area.
- Tracks: Soft soil near water, mud, and sand show tracks clearly. Fresh tracks (sharp edges, no drying or cracking) indicate the animal passed within 12–24 hours.
- Chokepoints: Natural constrictions where the animal must pass — a gap under a log, a path through a brush pile, a narrow passage between two trees — are the highest-percentage trap locations. The animal’s options are limited at a chokepoint, making precise trap placement easier.
Where to Go Next
Building the figure-4 deadfall with correct notch geometry, trigger sensitivity, and weight specifications is in figure-4 deadfall trap: construction, trigger adjustment, and placement. Wire snare setup including loop dimensions by species, anchor methods, and legal status by state category is in wire snare trapping: legal overview, setup, and animal targeting. Reading the specific animal sign patterns — runs vs. trails, feeding sign, bedding areas — that make trap placement reliable is in reading animal sign to find trap and snare locations. Food from trapping requires water — see water purification without boiling.
