Historic Presence of Jungle Fowl in the American Deep South

[Florida Bullfrog]

Are you free ranging yours? Mine free range from daylight to dark but at night are locked in a coop. I live in the middle of the woods with lots of predators but they stay right around the house and the coop.

My traditional flock growing up roosted in the trees at night but I never lost any to predators. I think free ranging dogs are the key to keeping predators at bay, even birds of prey.

 

[centrarchid]

KW birds that do not get out in next 20 years are screwed. Sea level rise. A lot of citrus producers will be in a similar pickle not much later. Snow birds are going have shorter drive each fall.

 

[flgardengirl]

I do not currently free range my Key West anymore. They have a large enclosure. The main reason for not free ranging is predators and the KW wanting to get up into the trees at night. We have a huge owl popuation here, mainly Barred and Great Horned. The dogs dont deter the owls at night. I dont have a Livestock Guardian dog but I am looking into getting one after several raccoon incidents of them chewing into coops and roaming neighbor dogs getting into the yard. We are on 4 wooded acres with more woods behind and beside us and a small river branch, so lots of wildlife here. We are zoned rural residential so we can have some livestock but I want to be zoned Ag. We used to be unincorporated but the City recently took it over. Its gone downhil since then lol.
We will be moving to a even more rural area, zoned Ag, soon on a larger property soon so I am kinda just trying to preserve what I can and not putting much more work into this property and getting more animals etc. until then lol.

 

[flgardengirl]

KW birds that do not get out in next 20 years are screwed. Sea level rise. A lot of citrus producers will be in a similar pickle not much later. Snow birds are going have shorter drive each fall.

I hear that! Its such a shame too. Much of S FL and the coastline in general will be disappearing. The 50 yr climate zone map mostly only shows N FL left. I was orginally thinking of moving further south but maybe stay put in N FL and go a little more inland lol! On the other hand these recent massive hurricanes aren't playing! Just think if Hurricane Dorian spun over Miami or other major coastal FL or other city for a few days...and it was destroyed like the Bahamas. It could happen. Michael trashed Mexico Beach FL not too long ago and its still a mess.
Maybe the Key West/Gypsy Chickens will have to resort to being pirate birds again living on ships like when they were brought over lol. Or like in the Waterworld movie but with chickens lol.

From what I hear many of the FL citrus growers have sold out to Brazilian orange juice companies due to citrus canker and worst, citrus greening disease spread by the Asian Psyllid.

On a lighter note:
Theres some photos of Key West birds getting saved from Hurricane Irma..all wrapped up like burritos
https://www.google.com/amp/s/weathe...ws/key-west-chickens-rescued-viral-photo.html

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

You would think that dogs wouldn’t deter owls at night, but it seems like they do. Of course that presumes your dogs are out at night. My dogs free range 24/7. My nearest neighbor is nearly a mile away and free ranging dogs is an acceptable practice around these parts. I’m probably only about an hour west of you between Jax and Tally.

Ain’t worried about the sea levels. 40 years ago the climate community was worried about another ice age. Its probably all bunk, and if not, the sea levels have been higher and lower before. At one point since humans have been here the shore ran many miles out from where it is today. Many pre-Columbian settlements have been underwater in the Gulf for a long time.

Life always finds a way.

Florida’s biggest problem is too many people living here. The population has quadrupled since 1960. Most of the wild places in the central and southern part of the state that existed well into the 1980s and 1990s have since been destroyed.

We’ve been in a several decade hurricane drought. Several storms should hit us each season. Its odd that they haven’t been. When that cycle starts again, watch out. Many newer cities built in the bottoms of swamps and woods ponds will go underwater.

 

[flgardengirl]

We did have a dog out a night at the time my original birds went missing from a tree. She did a pretty good job of keeping the other predators away though. She since died from cancer she was 13 yrs. She was a chocolate lab who loved her chickens like they were her own.
I do love the owls though. Sometimes we see the Barred Owls in late afternoon. I like their ghostly calls..."who who whoo cooks for yoooou?" lol. Also enjoy their hilarious monkey noises. Sometimes they make calls in the daytime when I'm out watering the garden and roses. I will let owls be owls and naughty chickens can stay in the coops at night. I think I will have a heart attack someday worrying so much about about crazy chickens haha

 

[Don 27]

I have chickens that sleep in our trees right now.I have to keep up with trapping though. The ebay seller finally responded to my post and said that the eggs came from zoo stock and have been cross bred with red jungle fowl blood that has game fowl in it . I ordered them and can t wait until they're here.

 

[varidgerunner]

Good selective breeding would deter owl predation, providing the chickens had ample cover to pick from when selecting roosts. Only the birds dumb enough to set out in the open should fall prey to owls. The smart ones will tuck into vines and branches that prevent attack.

 

[Don 27]

They're sleeping in fur trees the they will have protection all winter.

 

[Don 27]

Good selective breeding would deter owl predation, providing the chickens had ample cover to pick from when selecting roosts. Only the birds dumb enough to set out in the open should fall prey to owls. The smart ones will tuck into vines and branches that prevent attack.

I like that method , it's a good one.