I had been keeping my chickens put up after a scare, but continued to let my 8 pound ducks out... to people who see them who aren't bird folks... they always say "Oh please, those are geese!"
Hawk took out a hen, with no intention of carrying her off. Husband heard the ruckus and went flying out the back door but didn't see anything. His feet slamming on the porch and crunching through leaves must have scared it off before he rounded the garage. He comes to tell me a coon just killed a duck... and I was like... "Seriously? It's 9am!"
I look over the bird and the crime scene... hawk written all over it. The jerk did a low fly by this morning a minute ago, again, 9am... everyone is locked up though. I was thinking it was a red tail, but he's awful big!
Her injuries weren't that bad, she must have died from the shock of it. Husband was so fast the hawk barely had time to break the skin. What gets me is that we're urban, with a decent sized yard, but with the tree cover and what not, it isn't good maneuvering space for a large bird of prey.
This was last week, and he's STILL doing low fly overs, coming in to 30 ft, looping around to check the place out, then flying off again once he sees they're all put up. This one is a pro... he must be a visitor. The locals don't have this technique and have a stronger taste for the morning doves than my ducks. With all the dogs around, it's dangerous to dine in. The local hawks and the falcon pair always get take out.
Hawk took out a hen, with no intention of carrying her off. Husband heard the ruckus and went flying out the back door but didn't see anything. His feet slamming on the porch and crunching through leaves must have scared it off before he rounded the garage. He comes to tell me a coon just killed a duck... and I was like... "Seriously? It's 9am!"
I look over the bird and the crime scene... hawk written all over it. The jerk did a low fly by this morning a minute ago, again, 9am... everyone is locked up though. I was thinking it was a red tail, but he's awful big!
Her injuries weren't that bad, she must have died from the shock of it. Husband was so fast the hawk barely had time to break the skin. What gets me is that we're urban, with a decent sized yard, but with the tree cover and what not, it isn't good maneuvering space for a large bird of prey.
This was last week, and he's STILL doing low fly overs, coming in to 30 ft, looping around to check the place out, then flying off again once he sees they're all put up. This one is a pro... he must be a visitor. The locals don't have this technique and have a stronger taste for the morning doves than my ducks. With all the dogs around, it's dangerous to dine in. The local hawks and the falcon pair always get take out.
