Turkey vultures WILL kill and eat small chicks. We had a dozen babies- six white leghorns and six Rhode Island reds- in a coop within a topless pen- I got a call at work asking if it was OK to let out the chicks.
Since I always stay with them when they were outside the coop I said yes.
Follow up call an hour later revealed two Turkey Vultures had turned eleven of twelve babies into shredded tweet- just feathers and feet.
Thet were scared away, and the twelfth chick which was dropped outside the pen, was found by a neighbors grandchild, immediately named lucky chick, and became the matriarch of the small flock we bought to replace the dead babies.
With no rooster, she took it upon herself to lay in the early AM and her eggsong was louder than a rooster crowing. She announced the morning sun as well as any brother could.
Mom identified the perps from a bird book as TV's.
I still have hawks watching my yard, but my muscovy ducks (frwee range) are all too large to be of interest to them; the coyotes are the real threats at this point in time.
Since I always stay with them when they were outside the coop I said yes.
Follow up call an hour later revealed two Turkey Vultures had turned eleven of twelve babies into shredded tweet- just feathers and feet.
Thet were scared away, and the twelfth chick which was dropped outside the pen, was found by a neighbors grandchild, immediately named lucky chick, and became the matriarch of the small flock we bought to replace the dead babies.
With no rooster, she took it upon herself to lay in the early AM and her eggsong was louder than a rooster crowing. She announced the morning sun as well as any brother could.
Mom identified the perps from a bird book as TV's.
I still have hawks watching my yard, but my muscovy ducks (frwee range) are all too large to be of interest to them; the coyotes are the real threats at this point in time.
