How to Hunt Embertailed Jerboas in Old School RuneScape

Feb-06-2026 PST Category: Runescape

If you’ve just been assigned an embertailed jerboa hunt rumor in Old School RuneScape (OSRS), you’re in luck-this is one of the easiest Hunter rumors to complete. Embertailed jerboas can be found in two locations, but for simplicity, we’ll focus on the area just west of the Hunter Guild, where these little creatures are plentiful. With the right setup, you can efficiently complete this task and even practice advanced trapping techniques that will help in future hunts, and if you’re looking to stock up on extra traps or supplies quickly, you can buy OSRS gold to make your hunt even smoother.


Required Items and Inventory Setup

The only special items required for catching embertailed jerboas are box traps. Place as many as your Hunter level allows. Beyond that, a few items in your inventory can make the process smoother: a clean Guam leaf, a pestle and mortar, and swamp tar are recommended if you want to practice three-tick box trapping-a technique that significantly speeds up trap resets.

For general quality-of-life improvements, carry the standard Hunter setup: pieces of the Hunter outfit, or substitute Graceful gear where you don’t have it. A Dream and staff can help with traveling between locations, and a Bone Crusher necklace automatically buries bones dropped during hunting, saving you inventory space. Additional teleportation items, such as the Quest Cape or fairy ring access, will make moving around the world much faster.


Locating and Setting Traps

Head west of the Hunter Guild to the jerboa area and place your box traps on the ground. The max number you can set is based on your Hunter level. Many players prefer an “X-pattern” layout, which allows you to manage multiple traps efficiently. Once the traps are set, the jerboas will naturally be attracted to them.

Catching jerboas is straightforward. When one is caught, simply reset the trap in the spot where it was picked up. Right-clicking the trap and selecting Reset automates the process. For those using RuneLite, the plugin entry swapper can switch your left-click option from checking traps to resetting them, further streamlining your hunt.

It’s worth noting that jerboas have a small chance of breaking the trap, though this is rare. Simply reset it and continue. Baiting is unnecessary-the jerboas are already naturally attracted to the box traps.


Three-Tick Box Trapping

For players wanting to improve efficiency, learning three-tick box trapping is highly recommended. This method allows you to reset traps faster than the standard approach. Here’s a step-by-step breakdown:

1. Click on your full or broken box trap to pick it up.

2. Immediately activate a skilling timer by using an item like swamp tar or a herb.

3. Once the trap hits your inventory, quickly use the second item to continue the skilling timer.

4. Move to the location where you want to place your box trap.

5. Click on the trap in your inventory to set it down.

This entire sequence must be completed within three game ticks (1.8 seconds), allowing your traps to be reset almost instantaneously. It may take some practice, but mastering this technique will make jerboa hunting, and other Hunter rumors, much more efficient.


Additional Tips

· Jerboas drop derboa tails, which can be used with teak logs to craft Hunter spears. You can bank these for extra experience or drop them if inventory space is limited.

· The pity threshold for embertailed jerboas is 100 catches, or 94 if wearing the full Hunter outfit, ensuring you eventually obtain the large derboa tail reward.

· This hunting method applies not only to jerboas but also to other Hunter NPCs that use box traps, so learning these techniques is broadly useful.


Conclusion

Hunting embertailed jerboas is an easy and effective way to gain Hunter experience in OSRS. By preparing the right inventory, using efficient trap layouts, and optionally mastering three-tick box trapping, you can complete this rumor quickly while setting yourself up for future, more advanced hunts. For beginners, it’s an excellent introduction to the mechanics of box trapping and the general workflow of Hunter rumors-and if you ever need extra supplies or traps to speed up your hunts, acquiring them with cheap RS gold can make the process even more convenient.

With these tips, you’ll have jerboas caught, tails collected, and traps efficiently managed in no time. Happy hunting!