That's why I asked about other animals in the yard. I've heard other animals can help deter hawks along with some other predators also. I have tons of hawks in my area. I'm not in New Zealand but I do you also live in a rural and I really feel like the reason my chickens haven't been picked up by a hawk is because I have pigs and goats also in the yard with them. I think they are less likely to come after chickens with larger animals nearby
I live in NZ, and have had a few bad experiences with hawks. Okay, hawks will attack and eat full grown ducks. But wether or not the hawk tries to eat your hens depends a few factors
.if you have a lot of roadkill (i find the hawks in our area prefer to eat dead possums, than bother to kill anything
. Do you have other animals? Hawks prefer to attack a singular animal, or an animal in a small group. If you have cows, pigs, goats, horses, ducks or dogs around hawks will be less likely to attack
. Size is a very low factor to anything. In fact, if a hawk is desperate, it'll kill a hen that is about it's size meters in front of a human
.Do you have some sheltered spaces around? Small bushes, fruit trees, junk, if you have any spaces a hen can hide during an attack, that'll lower her chances of being eaten greatly
I hope this helps
-Feather