Do you free range your chickens?

[BigBlueHen53]

I don't know. Words I don't eagerly put into print.

Still, it's an answer. So thanks.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

And ... I am sorry for your loss. After the hard work you put into developing your camouflages that had to be frustrating, to say the least.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

And ... I am sorry for your loss. After the hard work you put into developing your camouflages that had to be frustrating, to say the least.

I got the pattern out of the DB and into some of my red based birds, that's what I wanted. Everything else about DB is unsuitable to my needs. Feathered legs are bad for clay, their combs aren't good for heat, they grow very slowly, they aren't prolific layers, and they aren't very feed efficient.

Will I miss them? Yes. Am I teared up over it? No, I'm not wired that way. More annoyed that I have an unknown predator, and don't know what to do about it.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

THIS article suggests a hawk or own as the likely culprit. As I have both red shouldered and red tailed hawks, and some very large owls - all nesting on property (well, I know the owls nest on property, and I know at least one pair of hawks nests within a 1,000 foot radius, but likely on my property, and both types of hawks have been identified over my property....) its a very reasonable starting point for further investigation. WIll inspect the feather piles more closely this weekend.

I know its not an opossum - we have those too - the kill looks completely different. But I took one out last month, and continue to seek signs of others

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

THIS article suggests a hawk or own as the likely culprit. As I have both red shouldered and red tailed hawks, and some very large owls - all nesting on property (well, I know the owls nest on property, and I know at least one pair of hawks nests within a 1,000 foot radius, but likely on my property, and both types of hawks have been identified over my property....) its a very reasonable starting point for further investigation. WIll inspect the feather piles more closely this weekend.

I know its not an opossum - we have those too - the kill looks completely different. But I took one out last month, and continue to seek signs of others

I’ve had both raptors and mammal carnivores leave feather piles and nothing else. Mammals often leave a trail of a few feathers and maybe blood from the initial feather pile for a few to several yards as they move the carcass.

The only times I’ve seen raptors fly off with an entire carcass is if the chicken was small and young such as with a chick that’s just traded its last fuzz for feathers or if the raptor is big like a bald eagle. I have seen an eagle fly off with a very big cockerel once.

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

As to color, the fact that red junglefowl don’t exist in the wild in large numbers of varied and loud color morphs, but are instead camouflaged, is strong evidence that color is a major factor in natural selection in the long term.

And yet, I have many white chickens that have survived well and brooded bitties free-range in a barnyard setting under the watchful eye of domestic dogs.

I would submit that the further a flock gets out into the woods and away from the human/canine-dominated farmyard, the more of an advantage that a camouflaged chicken is going to have over a chicken whose colors stand out, all other factors being equal.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

looked this am - splash of white radiating away from the site where the bird was plucked. There is no obvious blood or bits anywhere, its unclear where the kill occured.

Based on that, I suspect one of our largest hawks.

Oh, feather tips were clean, it wasn't an opportunic plucking of carrion.

We also found what looks to be the primary flight feather (one of them, anyways) of a juvenile red tailed hawk about 30 foot away. Unfortunately, my view of the pluck site from where I sit during the day is blocked by the barn.

 

[Sally PB]

We have red tailed hawks and bald eagles nesting on or near our property. I hear/see them often. They're the reason I haven't thought seriously about fencing in the side yard for our chickens.

I could fence out the neighbor's dog. Maybe the raccoons, though they'd get in from climbing the trees, so I have to think of them as "somewhat aerial" predators too.

There are people about a mile away who let their chickens roam their front yard. I wonder what kind of losses they've had...? They have little to no cover at all.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

There are people about a mile away who let their chickens roam their front yard. I wonder what kind of losses they've had...? They have little to no cover at all.

Sounds like you just described me

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

There are people about a mile away who let their chickens roam their front yard. I wonder what kind of losses they've had...? They have little to no cover at all.

If the people seem safe and approachable and you’re ever passing by and see someone outside, why not ask them? A lot of people who keep chickens openly are like us on the forum; they would be glad to talk about their chickens all day. If they suffer few losses, you can perhaps identify some explanations as to why, such as breed of chicken, the presence of a dog, or direct hazing or persecution behavior by the humans.