Coopers Hawk

[zooarch]

I saw my first Coopers Hawk today...

I went outside to work on the deck and the "Neighborhood Watch" of resident crows and squirrels were flipping their lids. My currently free-ranging bantams were in one of their favorite hiding spaces under the grill cover. I look over the fence into the neighbor's yard and there is a Coopers Hawk being mobbed by crows and squirrels. I put the biddies (what we call the two bantams) into their coop for the rest of the day. The new chickens that are quarantined in the run were hiding too. I can't wait until I get the new run finished and I don't have to worry about the biddies. For now, I will deal with the plugged gutters and missing food that the squirrels and crows leave me with as long as they keep doing such a good job of dealing with the hawks. This is the third time, this season, that the crows have driven off a hawk while I watched.

The upside is that Coopers Hawks are pretty and I'm glad I got to see one without loosing a chicken.

 

[Bill A]

Cooper's Hawks are very bold--almost "tame" sometimes and will stake out bird feeders. They are bird-eating hawks, basically, and are bad news. Keep an eye on him.

Bill

 

[desertdarlene]

They also actually eat crows and squirrels, too. It's good to be cautious with them, especially with smaller birds. Once they've got their mind fixed on a target, they are not easily dissuaded and will even catch prey right in front of humans. However, I have found that they don't like it when people watch or stare at them, though.

 

[moetrout]

I relocated one a couple of weeks ago. Just yesterday I had another checking out my flock. Could be the first one flew back, who's to really know. This one was checking out my flock from the top of a very tall electrical pole. I used a whistling bottle rocket to send it on it's way. I'm hoping if harrassed enough it won't stick around.

 

[zooarch]

Here is another question then: What are your opinions on keeping my biddies in their coop tomorrow?

I normally free range them all day, but tomorrow I'm home in the afternoon and could be supervising most of the time. I bought new birds, put them in the coop, built another and use that for the older hens. The two older ones don't fly over the fence so they free-range in our backyard now until I get their new run built. I can't honestly tell you how much I'm looking forward to the end of quarantining these new birds. They currently are in the middle of the lice treatment and can't be combined with my old ones yet.

I can't really harass it due to laws and the fact that I'm in the middle of downtown and have a new neighbor. Luckily, the neighbor has the same landlord so....I hope she told him about the chickens. I didn't go in the other yard to deal with the hawk because of that. All our other neighbors are used to them. We are the weirdos with the chickens.

 

[chicknmania]

One killed my pet hen Ami this afternoon. Grabbed her through the fencing of her small pen which was outside.
Normally she would be in the tractor but I was using it for another hen and her chick and thought it would be nice for
Ami to get some fresh air, too. I have never in the six years we have had chickens had a hawk do that, and we use
that small pen outside ALL the time for our chickens, if we have one we want to contain. Just made me sick, to say the least.

She was disabled anyway and never had a chance .

But, the hawks are protected and in all fairness are just looking for a meal; they don't know or care where it comes
from. Not sure what the point of relocating them is; some hawks do migrate to a certain extent and even if you
successfully relocate one; (and not sure what the legalities of that are) there will be more.

I have noticed with interest that our two young peacocks have been (apparently)trying to run the hawks off; they will run at one
while they puff themselves up and half raise their tails, if they see it on a low branch or on the ground.

This was a Cooper's and I think a young male; not very big and he has been stalking the flock for a week or two and has missed a few times.

Hanging CD's on a string where the flock hangs out does help some. There were no CD's where Ami was; I never dreamed I needed to do that there.

 

[desertdarlene]

Sorry to hear about Ami. Glad you protected the mother and chick, though.

A lot of people don't realize what a fine line raptors walk between living or dying. They are usually just one mistake or meal away from death or starvation.

 

[zooarch]

Sorry about Ami. I'm going to let mine free range while I'm out there and I will also get back to working on their run.

 

[chicknmania]

Thank you for the kind words.

I am so sad I miss her so much! Today is my birthday which makes it that much worse.

That is the best thing to do is to stay out there with them part of the time, and in my experience
I've found it's usually one hawk at a time and they oftentimes pick the same time of day to stalk
the chickens. Good luck I hope your hawks stay away.

Too bad there's not a way we can direct
them to things we WANT them to eat...like mice.....Oh, also wanted to mention that roosters help a
lot in protecting the flock.