Questions about Hawks - had a close encounter

[Jmash]

Hello!
We just had a hawk attack our flock. Luckily I was nearby and was able to scare the hawk off. The chicken that was attacked got away unscathed with only lost feathers (poor thing... she's scared though).

I have a few questions now:
1) Once a hawk attacks, is it likely to come back? We liven in an urban area, but there is a lot of woods and wild life (mountain lions, anyone??), so there is also a lot of other sources of food in our area. I've been hearing the hawks all the time, and know they're around. Is this a one-off bc they're feeling a little hungrier with winter, or is this a case of once they know about you, they keep coming?

2) The chickens have quite a bit of cover in the yard, but the attack actually happened in the area right under the trees and our play structure! Do we have a particularly crafty hawk on our hands? There isn't much open air above our yard. Pretty surprised the attack happened under all the trees. They're pretty dense.

3) We really love our chickens being able to have the run of the backyard and would like to keep it that way. Should I add some more shelter areas, shiny objects, and some owls? Other thoughts?

Thanks everyone! I know free range chickens mean you'll likely have some losses - but poor Shonny, today is her first birthday!

 

[Chick-N-Fun]

Do you have a coop that can be closed off? You might want to consider keeping your flock in for a couple of days. The Hawk will return.....

 

[A_Fowl_Guy]

1) Once a hawk attacks, is it likely to come back? We liven in an urban area, but there is a lot of woods and wild life (mountain lions, anyone??), so there is also a lot of other sources of food in our area. I've been hearing the hawks all the time, and know they're around. Is this a one-off bc they're feeling a little hungrier with winter, or is this a case of once they know about you, they keep coming?

2) The chickens have quite a bit of cover in the yard, but the attack actually happened in the area right under the trees and our play structure! Do we have a particularly crafty hawk on our hands? There isn't much open air above our yard. Pretty surprised the attack happened under all the trees. They're pretty dense.

3) We really love our chickens being able to have the run of the backyard and would like to keep it that way. Should I add some more shelter areas, shiny objects, and some owls? Other thoughts?

Hawks are opportunistic birds unlike an owl. They will hit from trees and usually take the kill to the tree if they are one of the bigger species. By making more hiding spots give your chickens somewhere to run. You cannot kill a hawk legally so your best bet is to use a hose if you see it perched somewhere.

 

[DobieLover]

As @Chick-N-Fun mentions, the hawk will be back. It was nearly successful. Keep the flock locked up for a week or so.
The shiney things and owls really don't work. Hawks are extremely agile. I watched one smartly darting through the woods in my back yard in pursuit of a goldfinch. Very impressive maneuverability.

 

[HenHouse4Life]

The hawk will most definitely be back, they don't seem to forget where there's potential food sources. We live on a wooded 20 acres in Michigan and have a LOT of hawks. Last summer I was in the backyard with our Dobie and a hawk came down and took a morning dove no further than 20 ft from us..... point being they don't care.
If you want to continue free ranging give your flock lots of sheltered hiding spaces.
Do you have a rooster in your flock?

 

[aart]

Hawks here made me build this, it works:

This does not(not my pic):

 

[SarahGfa]

i think all the hawks in the Bay area are red-tailed hawks. can you string fishing line between the trees to make it harder for the hawk to get in?

 

[centrarchid]

The hawk will usually come back in after a successful kill. Not being successful and being nearly attacked by a human will motivate hawk to hunt elsewhere. The cover approach for me does not work well unless adult roosters also involved and miniature or otherwise impaired chickens are not part of mix.

 

[A_Fowl_Guy]

i think all the hawks in the Bay area are red-tailed hawks. can you string fishing line between the trees to make it harder for the hawk to get in?

They will get between the fishing line easily.

 

[Jmash]

It looks like we actually have red-shouldered hawks!

And now there are three of them.

… drat…