Well, it was bound to happen. I’ve just been praying it didn’t.
Last night, 30 minutes before sunset, under tornado watch, very windy, and underneath very limby hickory trees, a hawk, juvenile I suppose, got ahold of my biggest girl, (thank the lord) Cocoa, a partridge cochin.
I say juvenile because I cannot locate a good picture of it anywhere, book or internet. At first glance you would say this was a white bird with grayish stripes running east to west of it body/wings. It was much smaller than my girl, but it managed to completely pluck a baseball sized area right under her vent. No blood or any other injuries that I could see.
She was foraging in a very congested area underneath three huge hickories. Those tree limbs are a mess of crooked wood from the top to about 15’ off the ground. I don’t know how it would have even gotten to her. The only clear spot or swoop zone would have been from across my backyard and all the birds would have been able to clearly see it. Do or can hawks just jump down on their prey?
I got a very good look at it because it didn’t immediately fly off. It stayed on the ground only about five feet from me.
I know because I have chickens there will be more encounters so I would like to know a bit more. First of all, it was a small bird, and very pretty [slap myself for saying such], but like I said earlier, mainly white (that’s what I noticed first) with grayish stripes crossways of its body and wings. For those more experienced, are these minimal descriptions any clue to what kind it was? I live in East Central Alabama.
Then, since it most likely was a juvenile, will it probably be back to try again or will it tuck tail and run since it was unsuccessful with these chickens? I honestly think it was a bit addled from possibly tumbling down the hill with my girl and that’s why it didn’t immediately fly off. It did stay in the bushes until my dog chased it out. Ordinarily she would have been laying right in the mix of chickens as they foraged, but since it was thundering she was under the coop. #150lbwimp
Just from seeing where she was attacked in the yard, I am at a loss of how a hawk makes a hit. I thought they were more of an open area predator. I do not believe there was anything I or my dogs could have done to prevent this. I think we are just deterrents for the most part.
Your advice and expertise is greatly welcomed and appreciated.
Last night, 30 minutes before sunset, under tornado watch, very windy, and underneath very limby hickory trees, a hawk, juvenile I suppose, got ahold of my biggest girl, (thank the lord) Cocoa, a partridge cochin.
I say juvenile because I cannot locate a good picture of it anywhere, book or internet. At first glance you would say this was a white bird with grayish stripes running east to west of it body/wings. It was much smaller than my girl, but it managed to completely pluck a baseball sized area right under her vent. No blood or any other injuries that I could see.
She was foraging in a very congested area underneath three huge hickories. Those tree limbs are a mess of crooked wood from the top to about 15’ off the ground. I don’t know how it would have even gotten to her. The only clear spot or swoop zone would have been from across my backyard and all the birds would have been able to clearly see it. Do or can hawks just jump down on their prey?
I got a very good look at it because it didn’t immediately fly off. It stayed on the ground only about five feet from me.
I know because I have chickens there will be more encounters so I would like to know a bit more. First of all, it was a small bird, and very pretty [slap myself for saying such], but like I said earlier, mainly white (that’s what I noticed first) with grayish stripes crossways of its body and wings. For those more experienced, are these minimal descriptions any clue to what kind it was? I live in East Central Alabama.
Then, since it most likely was a juvenile, will it probably be back to try again or will it tuck tail and run since it was unsuccessful with these chickens? I honestly think it was a bit addled from possibly tumbling down the hill with my girl and that’s why it didn’t immediately fly off. It did stay in the bushes until my dog chased it out. Ordinarily she would have been laying right in the mix of chickens as they foraged, but since it was thundering she was under the coop. #150lbwimp
Just from seeing where she was attacked in the yard, I am at a loss of how a hawk makes a hit. I thought they were more of an open area predator. I do not believe there was anything I or my dogs could have done to prevent this. I think we are just deterrents for the most part.
Your advice and expertise is greatly welcomed and appreciated.
Thank you.
