# BE Line



## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

Two more absolute killer indent set locations-


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

Remem


dwalker said:


> I had two perfect indents that gave me a mink every year. Both had a field tile about 3 ft above them. The farmer came along sometime over the summer a cleaned every one out with a backhoe. After ten years, now they are two big and dry to tighten down with a trap. Fresh set of muddy tracks coming out of one yesterday though.
> These grassy banks are full of mice, I see them all the time and I am not hunting for them. I need some snow to push the mink in the water, most tracks I see are still halfway up the bank. That is part of the reason I like the woodsy type streams for the BE before ice up. There is not 30 ft of grass cover on each side holding prey.
> Coming in and out of the deeper pools are my best bet but with the drought over the summer they are tough to find. Got give it some time.


Remember though, 3 years of lab data showed 80% of the mink's stomach content was aquatic and all of the mink caught were from the Saginaw R., the Titt, the Pine, and the Chip rivers.
These are typical examples of 3/4 of my mink fur trapping lines-


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

How many of you know the Titt. R from Shields down to Center Rd, raise your hand. This stretch held the best mink prey habitat from the dam at Sanford to the Bay by scientific testing data. My professor didn't care about whether or not a BE was a mink BE or also a traveling rat BE, he wanted to take no chances on missing a mink. I set 42 BE's on that stretch and the 1st and only night that river conditions allowed a trap check I caught 28 rats and 4 mink. Every mink was caught where I knew it was a mink BE set location though there were others I caught rats in as well. After that 1st check I wasn't able due to unsafe ice/river conditions to retrieve my traps until April.

1st trap checked that morning about 150yds below the M-46 bridge. A BE at the entrance corners of abandoned beaver bank den.


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## Tryin2 (Oct 4, 2012)

Well I didn't plan on trapping this year just too much going on but now after keeping my eyes on this thread I just have to get in on the fun lol my buddy who has never trapped is going to tag along and see what it's all about not sure we will catch much but I am sure we will have a great time trying .....thanks for the kick in the but I needed to motivate me to put a line out.


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

Tryin2 said:


> Well I didn't plan on trapping this year just too much going on but now after keeping my eyes on this thread I just have to get in on the fun lol my buddy who has never trapped is going to tag along and see what it's all about not sure we will catch much but I am sure we will have a great time trying .....thanks for the kick in the but I needed to motivate me to put a line out.


One of the purposes of me posting photos is that one of them may jog someones memory and there could be an "AH-HA moment" which can promote a desire to take advantage of that moment. Super!


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## Tryin2 (Oct 4, 2012)

Seldom I definitely appreciate the photos and info you post I don't know anybody that traps so I am self taught from reading books watching videos and observations while in the field the photos you post help me tons in locating spots to place my traps


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## dwalker (Jan 1, 2011)

I realize that a lot of their prey is aquatic but at certain times I think they do adapt as food scources diminish. At least 2/3rds of my locations have produced a mink or two over the last few years. I also get a lot of traveling rats in some of them and no rats in others. The other third are new and a couple are spots I am just not giving up on! lol
I am only hitting a dozen stops with a three trap average. If I get 9 mink I would be very happy for my area. I have friends who will trap a 1000 rats and only stumble on 1 or 2 mink. The year I trapped a dozen on this same line (and 300+ rats) my buddy had close to 1000 rats and no mink. The population is just not here.
Like I said go 30 miles to the west and things change but work will not afford me the time to go there. Someday maybe.


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## rob0311 (May 11, 2012)

Seldom is the man! Thanks for all the inspirational and educational posts. Made me dig out some 110’s but work and baby keep me busy for now. Your k9 videos are also very good.


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

rob0311 said:


> Seldom is the man! Thanks for all the inspirational and educational posts. Made me dig out some 110’s but work and baby keep me busy for now. Your k9 videos are also very good.


Thank you for the compliments. You never can tell, there might be a BE video someday but my focus is really on coyotes anymore and the ditch banks are looking steeper and steeper every year.


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## Blaze (Oct 13, 2005)

Seldom, thank you very much for explaining those sets, the TE and the INDENT sets. They make alot of sense.
The T E set is similar to some of my blind sets, where sometimes you build up a narrow place in stream with sticks or rocks,whatever you have to place the set just under the water. Its a funnel essentially to catch mink or rats ae they swim downstream. I find that I can usually stabilize a 1 1/2 LS best. Anyway that was my experience with it. This really is a great thread! Thanks to all.


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

You’re very welcome Blaze. The TE set is a very old set where the trapper used cement blocks stood on end tight to a vertical surface with a clump of sod on top of it to bed the trap in. They also added a smear of lure above the trap on the wall.

I actually tested TE’s against BE’s under 3 bridges for several years. I built adjustable stands for the TE’s and used plated, 110’s directly below the foothold TE. The TE’s out caught the BE’s every year to the point I quit using BE’s under bridges except when there is ice. If there is no prey for a mink to hunt under a bridge they swim the surface during open water. Rats are no different and it has everything to do with overhead cover. I’ve actually stood in the water twice and watched rats pop up onto the surface just as they started under it, swim to a wall, swim along it, and dive just before coming out from under the bridge.

One thing I should explain is that I’m one of these people that when I want to learn something, I dedicate myself to that subject, no mixed lines, just mink. That is what I did with fox back in 1970 and with mink in the late 90’s. I didn’t trap anything except mink and I studied them all year round because I was retired. It was during this time I interviewed for MSU and their mink project which gave me 3 more years of nothing but mink trapping. It’s like training a hound pup to run rabbits, what do you do to make him a great rabbit dog, you feed him lots of rabbit tracks! I’m a glutton for learning! LOL


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## 574mag (Dec 29, 2017)

Ive got a couple of round culvert type bridges on my line I could set those top edge on. Do you think they would work? Or does it have to be straight verticle?


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

Try it if you can support the trap properly. They were too much messing around for me to screw with so I just found indent and BE set locations away from the culverts.


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## Tryin2 (Oct 4, 2012)

574mag said:


> Ive got a couple of round culvert type bridges on my line I could set those top edge on. Do you think they would work? Or does it have to be straight verticle?





Seldom said:


> Try it if you can support the trap properly. They were too much messing around for me to screw with so I just found indent and BE set locations away from the culverts.


You fellas just gave me an idea on what to tinker around with at work during down time .......I'm going to try and come up with a fast easy way to make TE sets in culverts ...if by chance I come up with something half way decent I will be sure to share it with y'all


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## dwalker (Jan 1, 2011)

Tomorrow I will document every catch. Foggy nights are predator nights!


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## Tryin2 (Oct 4, 2012)

dwalker said:


> Tomorrow I will document every catch. Foggy nights are predator nights!


Good luck I will be checking in throughout the day tomorrow looking for post about your success (hopefully with some pics of your sets that produce)


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## wannabapro (Feb 26, 2003)

Lots of incredible knowledge being shared in this thread!


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## nick 74 (Dec 4, 2008)

Seems every year mink threads get the most posts. Fascinating animals. I enjoy the type of sets used for mink as much or more than anything else. Same with otter.


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## dwalker (Jan 1, 2011)

When hobby trapping I like the biggest challenge. For me that is the Mink, I cannot find a single set that is guaranteed to catch them. I have caught them in fox / coyote sets, **** trail sets in 220’s, every imaginable muskrat set and pockets, indents, BE’s, blind and trail sets but I have also seen their tracks run by all the above. Just no guarantees with the Mink, the ultimate challenge in trapping. (At least in my area of operations)


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## 574mag (Dec 29, 2017)

Found a spot on my ditch today that I hope will be good. The county cleaned the ditch out last summer, and everything has changed. It's learning a whole new water way. Its a group of Willow stumps hanging over the water. I got a BE underneath, a snare on the land side and it had a natural pocket that I set blind, unbaited. It sure looks good! Lol


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## 574mag (Dec 29, 2017)

Right on, good stuff!


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## dwalker (Jan 1, 2011)

I guess I was wrong about last night, I think I am rat trapping not mink trapping. I use colony taps along bridge walls and in culverts that have enough sediment to have a “wall”. They produced well last night.


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## Anita Dwink (Apr 14, 2004)

Put in a small line this am. A few culverts on a small stream. A couple BE sets in some undercut 
banks, couple blind set 1.5 on drowners at the edges of crossovers near the culverts and a few colonies . 1 330 at a pinchpoint for my Otter and a couple 155's on the edges of a large culvert. Wish I took pics . Will try tomorrow. Land owner has fox running his trails as well. Tired but hopeful.


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## dwalker (Jan 1, 2011)

Here are a couple of better BE locations. The little islands have produced a couple mink every year for as long as I have trapped them. You can see a rat tail sticking out from the one locartion. I use these plates I welded a MB coni mount on. I also use quite a few Lefler coni stands. They are really nice in deeper water







View attachment 348089







View attachment 348093


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## dwalker (Jan 1, 2011)

Got crazy and threw in 6 slimy **** catchers. Kaatz Black Label and Fish Oil.
Also saw a ton of fox tracks and one farm that I always catch yotes on had a bunch of fresh tracks, I lost my mind and ran home to get the predator bag.














View attachment 348103


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## 574mag (Dec 29, 2017)

So far, I think I'm a possum trapper! Lol. I've got the grinners dialed in!if anyone needs some advice, don't be shy!


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## wicklundrh (Mar 18, 2014)

574mag said:


> So far, I think I'm a possum trapper! Lol. I've got the grinners dialed in!if anyone needs some advice, don't be shy!


They are fun to put up. Very thin skin so be careful when fleshing. I did a few pelts for myself and really live the look of them. Grinners make me laugh. This warm up today and tomorrow should have some good movement. I turned a camera today to a well used trail running up to a bait site I use yearly. It is a location where all the deer carcasses go on my land. I blind set the trails leading in and out. I was curious to see what is visiting before making any sets.


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## 574mag (Dec 29, 2017)

I put up everyone I catch for practice. But I really don't want them or set for them. I have one one the fur board in the man cave. They always seem to show up in my canine sets. Lol


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## dwalker (Jan 1, 2011)

Well that was short and sweet, I will be out of commission for this week. It takes that long for things to get back to normal here. The sudden thaw plus rain made things impossible to check and I only got across half the line. Hopefully there were no catches, I really hate losing critters.








I did not take many pictures (not very happy this morning) those stakes were in about a foot of water when set easily 2 ft up from normal. I went 4 for six with these stupid things in my pockets, I can’t express how much I hate them and they are everywhere over here.















Look what left a deposit right above my pocket which was already occupied, always set at least two if you are serious and three is better.








If you are running colony traps for mink and are making your own, you may want to re-enforce your doors by doubling them. I have about a hundred that I made, I am not going to go back and fix them but if I was a money trapper and could not afford to lose an animal or just had a few of them I definitely would. I have had this happen a dozen times or so over the years. Only one thing blows the doors out !


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

The answer to stopping mink breakouts is to clip two wires (I removed a piece about 1/2"-3/4") and bend them up so the bottom of the door catches them. No more breakouts!
If you are using colonies as your principle BE trap, you must not be setting project-type structure and setting more linear-type.


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## dwalker (Jan 1, 2011)

Seldom said:


> The answer to stopping mink breakouts is to clip two wires (I removed a piece about 1/2"-3/4") and bend them up so the bottom of the door catches them. No more breakouts!
> If you are using colonies as your principle BE trap, you must not be setting project-type structure and setting more linear-type.
> 
> View attachment 348333


As I said above just along bridge walls and culverts that have enough sediment to create a wall.
That is a really good idea and have never seen it, I live in the heart of colony country and I do not know of a single guy that does that. 
These guys over here were using colony’s back in the 80’s, way before it was legal. A couple years ago when rats went up there were colony traps in every little and big ditch in Sanilac County!
I came from Tuscola County and had a hard time adapting at first with my 110’s, but they set me straight right away !
Now I use my 110’s for bottom edge only.


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## 574mag (Dec 29, 2017)

I'm much in the same boat. Ditch needs to go down 6" before I can put in my pockets. I could put them in now, but I'll be lowering them daily


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## General Ottsc (Oct 5, 2017)

Thanks for the info on what an indent set is Seldom! I was running a mink/muskrat line out yesterday and realized I saw a few places like that! Just never thought of setting them. I probably won't have time to make any new sets until the weekend, but now that's another set I could use. 

Hopefully my traps will still be there. I ran into a CO out on the line and he said traps have been stolen before from one of the areas I set up in. But he said that problem seems to disappear when duck season is over. So I think I'm going to pull the conibears I have in the "high risk" area for now. Maybe wait to set them back up until after duck season is over.


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

The indent set, like the TE has to be monitored for changes in water depth and adjusted accordingly.


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## General Ottsc (Oct 5, 2017)

Seldom said:


> The indent set, like the TE has to be monitored for changes in water depth and adjusted accordingly.


Good to know. Checked my line this afternoon and my pocket sets are now underwater. The indent set might be a better way to go instead since I'm assuming you don't need to use bait.


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

Tha


General Ottsc said:


> Good to know. Checked my line this afternoon and my pocket sets are now underwater. The indent set might be a better way to go instead since I'm assuming you don't need to use bait.


That’s correct. It’s a simple blind set that takes advantage of a behavior inherent to mink. If your pockets were out of commission so would an indent.


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## Anita Dwink (Apr 14, 2004)

This guy found one of my blind sets after the water receded. Will put in pocket sets now that the weather has stabilized. Not too big but have a friend who does crafts and self tans. May cost him a beer.


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## dwalker (Jan 1, 2011)

Pulled 3/4 of the line tonight, 3 more rats, probably around 50 now. 4 ***** in pockets. 
Lost 2 conis to the current. I have to reset due to the current. Things change when we get floods like this around here. Still have a dozen or so traps out there.


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## Fool'em (Sep 29, 2016)

I hate checking BE sets in the dark. 
Not bad when the waters clear but put a stain to it and it makes it tough. 
Right now I'm working dark to past dark so no chance to set or check. 
Looks like I might get a chance to set a few next weekend. Until then I need to see you start pulling some mink!


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## dwalker (Jan 1, 2011)

Fool'em said:


> I hate checking BE sets in the dark.
> Not bad when the waters clear but put a stain to it and it makes it tough.
> Right now I'm working dark to past dark so no chance to set or check.
> Looks like I might get a chance to set a few next weekend. Until then I need to see you start pulling some mink!


I am doing most of my trapping in the dark also. I have been trapping the same general locations since I have moved here so I know right where to go. Big floods change things sometimes but the general structure is there. 
We need snow or ice to get things happening. Thought we were heading that way but the forecast may favor pockets instead.


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

Mink aren't going to get in the puddle, they'll go around if at all possible. There has to be a reason mink want to get wet.

Because mink and **** feed on the same aquatic prey, where there are **** in the water digging tells you there is also prey for the mink to be found as well. Also because of the prey,(reason why) your choice for a BE location could get you a mink.

I'd suggest you give the stretches with the heaviest overhang grass a little more investigation for different set locations rather the the more bare areas of the bank.


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## 574mag (Dec 29, 2017)

I found two spots today that I'm going to set as blind sets under overhanging vegetation. Just didn't have enough traps with me. I'll move that indent set to another location with more cover


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

Here are a couple root balls that jump right out and slap ya for a set or two.

Notice the blockage of the trees in relation to the bank/water interface which forces the mink into the water if it's running the bank. Notice the prey cover under the roots that **** can't get to. Each photo has a vertical bank, tough to see downstream in 1st photo but easy to see in 2nd. Super blind set locations. Both photos show several bodygrip locations but also several foothold locations. Notice log angling into water in 2nd photo WITH a vertical bank!!! Talk about gang setting, these two photos are good examples. Remember there is always a reason(s) why locations work so once it's been established, it just depends on how you want to set the location up.

When you learn mink and gain more experience, these types of locations will just jump out at you.


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## 574mag (Dec 29, 2017)

Those look like sweet spots for sure. I've got a big oak tree gowing over the water like that here. I have two sets tucked under the roots. Pulled in a rat there so far.


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## wicklundrh (Mar 18, 2014)

Seldom said:


> Mink aren't going to get in the puddle, they'll go around if at all possible. There has to be a reason mink want to get wet.


This is the best advice. You can look at it two ways:
1. If you find a spot that they have no choice but to get wet, set it.

2. Look for the pinch point and the only spot they can go to NOT get wet! Set it.


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## 574mag (Dec 29, 2017)

Such as this...? For a indent


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## 574mag (Dec 29, 2017)

And this for a BE. Not a lot of cover right here, but a mink has to get wet or go the long way around this oak tree


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## 574mag (Dec 29, 2017)

Just trying to figure this stuff out somewhat guys, thanks


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

574mag said:


> And this for a BE. Not a lot of cover right here, but a mink has to get wet or go the long way around this oak tree
> View attachment 357255


True, but it might now submerge in such a short span. Up-turned sod clump with foothold may be another set choice.


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## 574mag (Dec 29, 2017)

Thanks, I'll set it tomorrow. Maybe I can pull off two mink this year. Lol


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

The two photos showing an indent set is factual except it could be improved by shaving the bank on both sides of the indent. 

Don't be afraid to shave banks from sloping to vertical on mink approaches. Huge improvement when making blind sets and mink love vertical!


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

574mag said:


> Thanks, I'll set it tomorrow. Maybe I can pull off two mink this year. Lol


If water is shallow enough at the base of the tree, just set a foothold at the left-hand side at the end of the mud point. I can't see what it looks like on the righthand side but blind set the best looking entrance /exit from the water.

Set the foothold where they have to step! Anymore thinking is over-thinking! LOL


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## 574mag (Dec 29, 2017)

I can easily do all that in a few minutes. I'll post the sets for critique tomorrow. Thx seldom.


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

We're going to get a bunch of rain later today and lasting a couple of days so I'll talk mink. Here are two photos of BE set locations on opposite sides of a creek. Remembering I always mention that there has to be a reason why a location is thought of as a BE set location. What is the attraction of a structure to a mink?
The submerged corner of this projection is vertical plus somewhat undercut AND the root ball hides mink prey! Historically a very successful BE location.









This structure also has a similar vertical and undercut projection but no root ball, what there is however is the bank going away and to the left has two rat dens and a in-bank feeder. Great places for a mink to hunt both rats and buried aquatic prey. The reason why the mink use this projection and why it's a successful BE location.


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## 574mag (Dec 29, 2017)

Here is the indent. I shaved the side and the back to be verticle. I didnt take a pic of the 150 set next to the tree trunk.


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## 574mag (Dec 29, 2017)

It's hard to tell from the pic, but that stick I placed there around the trap is almost veticle. The bank is really steep at this point.


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

I'd suggest your trap should be in the very back of the indent if it's not.


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## 574mag (Dec 29, 2017)

It's touching the "wall". As far back as I can set it without pushing in the bank.


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)




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