Was it a falcon?

[darlingdarla]

What I think was a falcon attacked in the chicken yard today. It cornered two of my old Easter Eggers and scratched them up. I heard them screaming and ran outside, it flew to the top of my privacy fence when it saw me and sat there.
Both hens were fine, one has a deep cut above her eye that I cleaned out and covered in antibiotic ointment and the rest of the injuries were superficial.

I'm trying to find new ways to help prevent attacks, I have a feeling this bird will be back the way he watched them after I chased him away. I'm looking into suspending some netting above the chicken yard, trying to get a handle on what it is going to cost and how many posts I'll need to put up etc. Was wondering if anybody could give me some ideas?

Any reason a falcon would have a bell attached to it? When it flew off I heard a bell ringing, it was definitely coming from the bird. Also, is it weird that it was a falcon? I really think I saw a falcon, I got a good look at it, but I have never seen a falcon here and I've lived here for sixteen years. I keep a close eye on the local raptors because of the hens, we have lots of red tail and coopers hawks around but so far no falcons. I think it may have gone after the bantams first, and then attacked the bigger birds for some reason?

Just like the attack from last spring, the only injuries were superficial cuts around their eyes and combs. I felt all over their bodies looking for blood and didn't find anything so I don't think anything serious happened.

Sorry if this is just a jumble, it's been a long day. To make things worse I've been entertaining family all day, it happened while they were here so they got to watch me frantically charge a bird with razor sharp talons and sob hysterically when I realized everybody was okay, never gonna live that down

All advice is sincerely appreciated, hope you had a better Saturday then me.

 

[Ribh]

A bell would mean it was wearing jesses, which means it is owned & used for hawking. It may have escaped & explains why it wasn't totally spooked by you. You need to enquire if there is a club near you & if anyone has lost a bird.

 

[ShannonR]

Agree with above post... did you see anything attached to its legs?

 

[Shezadandy]

YES! Buy aviary netting. It's actually hard to see, so it won't mess with aesthetics too much. Making it nice and tight and using zip ties to secure it to your fence every 4-6 inches will take time but it's worth it. Also … don't cut it to size first. It pulls out differently - hard to explain- but if you cut it first... it will almost certainly be the wrong size. (ask me how I know, lol) They come in various sizes.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07VRLZJ5Q/?tag=backy-20

It will depend on the size of your chicken yard on how you install it- we used round posts to support the aviary net because of the slope- you need to maintain the space between the net and the ground- and other bushes/trees we needed to go over. I've had hawks dive on my chickens with me standing feet away, and they bounce right off. One tried diving in 3 different spots before it gave up and flew off- that would have been catastrophic for the hen and chicks it went for first.

 

[Ribh]

Your local library should be aware of any clubs ~ or @ least able to find out. Does your area have a FB page? You could say you've seen the bird there. If they rake away though they can be found miles from where they were flown. Not being American I wouldn't have a clue, but in many parts of the world you need a special license to own & fly hawks so again I would start with the library & go from there because someone, somewhere will have a list. These tend to be small elite groups where everyone knows everyone else. You just need the right thread to pull.

 

[AllenK RGV]

I'm clueless, but yeah with a bell, there is a human aspect to it, glad your chooks are ok and survived.

 

[Shezadandy]

Also wanted to add: Get it there quick and have your guests help you install it!!! The more hands the better. You can also consider placing your posts in such a way to make new (lower) perches for them- obviously not too high off the ground … wouldn't want Mr. Falcon to come back and find prey sitting right up at the top of the net! … but you can further enhance your run and support the hawk net. It's actually really light stuff- so it's more keeping it tight and keeping it high enough that you won't rub your head on it.

 

[darlingdarla]

A bell would mean it was wearing jesses, which means it is owned & used for hawking. It may have escaped & explains why it wasn't totally spooked by you. You need to enquire if there is a club near you & if anyone has lost a bird.

Agree with above post... did you see anything attached to its legs?

Yeah that's what I was thinking last night, it didn't seem that afraid of me and I did see something on its legs, I thought I'd imagined it.
How would I go about finding out if it was an escaped bird? I'm not aware of any clubs near me, my neighbor loves hawks so I could ask him, he might know if anyone in the neighborhood is into hawking or something.
The birds are doing pretty good today, they don't want leave the coop and they aren't making any noise. I'm keeping them locked in the run for a few days until they feel better and if I can swing it until I put up some netting.

 

[darlingdarla]

YES! Buy aviary netting. It's actually hard to see, so it won't mess with aesthetics too much. Making it nice and tight and using zip ties to secure it to your fence every 4-6 inches will take time but it's worth it. Also … don't cut it to size first. It pulls out differently - hard to explain- but if you cut it first... it will almost certainly be the wrong size. (ask me how I know, lol) They come in various sizes.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07VRLZJ5Q/?tag=backy-20

It will depend on the size of your chicken yard on how you install it- we used round posts to support the aviary net because of the slope- you need to maintain the space between the net and the ground- and other bushes/trees we needed to go over. I've had hawks dive on my chickens with me standing feet away, and they bounce right off. One tried diving in 3 different spots before it gave up and flew off- that would have been catastrophic for the hen and chicks it went for first.

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View attachment 1966286

Also wanted to add: Get it there quick and have your guests help you install it!!! The more hands the better. You can also consider placing your posts in such a way to make new (lower) perches for them- obviously not too high off the ground … wouldn't want Mr. Falcon to come back and find prey sitting right up at the top of the net! … but you can further enhance your run and support the hawk net. It's actually really light stuff- so it's more keeping it tight and keeping it high enough that you won't rub your head on it.

Thanks for the tips, I'll draw up some sort of plan tonight. Unfortunately my houseguests left this afternoon so my dad is going to come by and help me put up some posts or something. I really haven't looked at any examples of netting before so I need to do some research.

 

[darlingdarla]

Your local library should be aware of any clubs ~ or @ least able to find out. Does your area have a FB page? You could say you've seen the bird there. If they rake away though they can be found miles from where they were flown. Not being American I wouldn't have a clue, but in many parts of the world you need a special license to own & fly hawks so again I would start with the library & go from there because someone, somewhere will have a list. These tend to be small elite groups where everyone knows everyone else. You just need the right thread to pull.

Thank you, I know absolutely nothing about this subject so everything helps