Do Black Copper Marans fair okay free ranging?

[MrsChicky55]

I'm a new chicken mom, and I've been really quite surprised by how many of my BCM's I have lost and I'm wondering if maybe they shouldn't be allowed to free range or if there is some trick to raising them? I love the BCM's so I got 7 of them, I'm down to 3 (only 1 pullet left out of 4 darn!!!). I've lost a total of 5 chickens....4 of which were my Marans (out of a total of 24). I'm not sure if this is just coincidence & bad luck or if they're just not good free rangers. I lost 2 BCM's to hawks/eagles (I'm currently building them a portable chicken run). And now I've had two die in the last week, I'm guessing from crop issues. I expected if I was going to lose some I'd probably lose my white silkie or my bantams. But 4 out of 5 have been my Black Copper Marans!!! I'm debating wether to buy more BCM's and keep at it, or try a different breed. Any thoughts?

 

[Fanci Feathers Marans]

Have they stopped peeping yet? Once they do, the rooster should warn when there is 'death from above.'
I have to admit, we don't seem have trouble with hawks around here.

 

[The Moonshiner]

Ours have done really good. We started with them about 4 or 5 years ago. I haven't bred them a whole lot so I've got about a dozen that are out free ranging 24/7 with our layer flock. Probably more then half of them have been out there 3 years now.
I do remember losing a few juveniles one year but the adults are all still here.
Our hens go bloody once or sometimes twice a year so I like keeping them around just for that alone.