We lost a goose today and I am hoping someone can help identify the predator so that we can figure out how to prevent additional losses. We have pilgrim geese that free range, khaki and Cayuga ducks we keep in large pens and guinea fowl (currently fenced). My SO was home today and heard a commotion outside. When he went to check it out, the geese were running toward the house and he only counted 6 instead of 7, so he grabbed the rifle and went out to check it out. He wasn't able to find her. When I got home from work a couple hours later, I went out to look around. As far as we can tell, the geese were napping in one of their favorite spots under a pine tree next to the duck pen. Something snuck up on them and grabbed her. The others ran for safety. What ever it was didn't leave any signs of a struggle. We were able to follow a trail of feathers into the trees, but it was difficult. The only way we were able to do so was because we figured that was where a predator would take it's kill and the geese don't wander back there, so there shouldn't be any feathers in that area. We found one feather a few feet into the woods followed by a small amount of blood a couple feet further in, another feather 5-10 feet farther, another feather 20 feet after that, etc. The only way we were able to follow the trail was to guess what direction travel would have been easier. What ever it was, it managed to carry her with minimal feather loss through brush, over fallen tree limbs etc. so it had to be strong enough to carry her without dragging her or we would have found more feathers. After some searching and a lot of guesswork to follow the trail (I am not a trained tracker by any stretch) I finally found her a 100 yards or so up the hill beyond the treeline laying between a tree and a rock. Her head was laying next to her body and her neck and the upper breast meat or maybe the upper back (around the base of the neck) were missing, exposing her ribcage. (I didn't really do a thorough inspection as I was heartbroken and it was disturbing, especially with her head laying right there. There wasn't really any blood, which, along with no signs of a struggle where she was grabbed, tells me her neck was broken instantly. We disposed of her remains as we didn't want whatever it was returning to finish her off and think that our yard, wooded or not, was a safe place to eat.
Does anyone have idea what might have killed her? My inclination is cat (not domestic) given how it was able to sneak up on the entire flock and strike so quickly, but I am no expert. And we are in New Hampshire where we allegedly only have bobcats and Canada lynxes, and I don't know that they are tall enough to carry a 12 lb goose off without dragging it and leaving more of a trail of feathers. Coyotes are possible and definitely tall enough, but they typically hunt in packs and I would have expected to see signs of a struggle. Although I have only seen a couple in our area in the past 5 years, we do have foxes in state, but again, I struggle with the height. Anyone have any ideas? It definitely was a mammal, not a bird, but I am at a loss other than that. This happened at around 3:45 in the afternoon, not exactly prime predator hunting time for most species and it wasn't more than a couple hundred yards from our house, so I am concerned at the apparent boldness, especially since this isn't a time of year where predators are desperate for food.
Does anyone have idea what might have killed her? My inclination is cat (not domestic) given how it was able to sneak up on the entire flock and strike so quickly, but I am no expert. And we are in New Hampshire where we allegedly only have bobcats and Canada lynxes, and I don't know that they are tall enough to carry a 12 lb goose off without dragging it and leaving more of a trail of feathers. Coyotes are possible and definitely tall enough, but they typically hunt in packs and I would have expected to see signs of a struggle. Although I have only seen a couple in our area in the past 5 years, we do have foxes in state, but again, I struggle with the height. Anyone have any ideas? It definitely was a mammal, not a bird, but I am at a loss other than that. This happened at around 3:45 in the afternoon, not exactly prime predator hunting time for most species and it wasn't more than a couple hundred yards from our house, so I am concerned at the apparent boldness, especially since this isn't a time of year where predators are desperate for food.
