RAVENS.... daytime predator.... feet and bones left! update

[Hillsvale]

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The only problem with watching... the ravens don't care. Simon was standing right there when they swooped down and stole new chicks... we thought it was one off and that the issue was the size of the birds being stolen... not so apparently! I doubt they would have stopped their feast on the older meatie if approached, it was a good meal!

I covered their whole run with herring netting... now the 3 week old meaties can go out as well.

 

[coldinnh]

"To keep ravens & crows away, cut out the shape of "hanging crows" out of thin plywood, paint black & hang around the area."

what is a hanging crow?

 

[Sir Birdaholic]

I read a couple of years ago about an old farmers remedy on crow invasions, so , since I have a woodshop, I thought I'd try it. It works, because crows are smart, if they see dead crows in an area, they'll leave that area alone. What I did is cut out the shape of a crow, body with head & tail out of 1/4" plywood & painted it black. I drilled 2 holes on each side of the body, to thread a black bandana through,for the droopy wing look, & hung it on the entrance to the barn. It instantly stopped the crows from stealing my eggs. It's been about 2 years now, & I haven't lost an egg to a crow since.

 

[Hillsvale]

Crows and Ravens are not the same thing.

When a raven hunts, especially in areas with people (though we do live in the country) they look for crows who are feeding, this gives them the indication that there are no interferences about (ie: people) and it is safe to hunt/land on the ground. So by hanging a grow where the ravens could see might give them a false sence of security..... crows tend to be more along the lines of vegitarian eaters... ravens meat eaters... Ravens favorite prey is sheep....

 

[GAGE]

You live in the country, can you not shoot them?

 

[Hillsvale]

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We don't have a gun, well one with bullets though Simon does attempt a paint ball attack! lol

 

[GAGE]

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We don't have a gun, well one with bullets though Simon does attempt a paint ball attack! lol

If possible, borrow a decent 12 gauge from a neighbor or a friend. Good Luck

 

[Hillsvale]

naw, we just cover the meatie run with herring netting... they aren't getting through that...

 

[AlbionWood]

Ack! We have Ravens... they haven't bothered the chickens yet, although one did come right into the yard and steal a corncob the other day! So far it's a single bird hunting around here, we call him "Mischief" but I bet the real mischief is done when they flock up. Sometimes we've seen as many as 8... that was before we had chickens, so now I have something new to worry about!

They are indeed very intelligent, too smart for "scarecrows" - if it doesn't move around they quickly learn to ignore it. But they also very quickly learn about bang-sticks and get darn hard to sneak up on. My neighbor had a problem with ravens in his pigyard, so he shot one and hung it in a tree. Worked instantly. That was years ago and they still don't come into his yard.

I'm gonna try the fake-hanging-raven trick, if that doesn't work maybe I'll try the real thing... Though I'd hate to do it, they are an amazing bird and it's partly my fault this one hangs around so much - I used to toss gophers up onto the roof for him to carry off. Didn't realize until too late that was a bad idea. Now I can't leave anything out that is (a) edible or shiny and (b) small enough to carry off.

 

[The Chicken Lady]

Differences between ravens and crows: http://depts.washington.edu/natmap/facts/crow_vs_raven.html