Will a squirrel kill a duckling?

[Breemae123]

This morning I heard one of my ducklings outside my window so I ran out and sure enough the little guy was out of the ‘duck run’. I heard something run away up in the tree. I grabbed him and put him back.

This happened once before and I sealed up any possible holes the baby could have escaped from but now I am thinking it was an animal but when I go outside I only see
The duckling.

I checked the pen again today and I can’t see a way the little guy could have escaped. The pen is completely fenced in with a 6 foot fence.

 

[azygous]

Squirrels are capable of all manner of treachery. Don't be fooled by those big soft eyes and appealing bushy tail. Yes, they are carnivorous and commonly will kill and eat birds.

They are also extremely clever and will tirelessly search for and find any vulnerabilities in your run to gain entrance. Gray squirrels are especially good at finding a very small gap and will dig under a fence. If you haven't examined the bottom of your run fence for such gaps, I'm sure your squirrel already has.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Opossum will dig under. Raccoon will go over. Cats go over fences too.

A squirrel should have no effect.

Maybe a cheap game cam can help you.

Owls hunt at night and easily clear fences, But I wouldn't expect your duckling to survive that.

Maybe post pics of your set up so we can see. And list your location so we might know what your local predator load is? Do you know what your predator load is?

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Squirrels are capable of all manner of treachery. Don't be fooled by those big soft eyes and appealing bushy tail. Yes, they are carnivorous and commonly will kill and eat birds.

They are also extremely clever and will tirelessly search for and find any vulnerabilities in your run to gain entrance. Gray squirrels are especially good at finding a very small gap and will dig under a fence. If you haven't examined the bottom of your run fence for such gaps, I'm sure your squirrel already has.

Seriously... wow!

I heard some squirrel were omnivores and tasted much worse than herbivore squirrels... but hadn't looked into it yet.

I love to learn something new everyday.

 

[chickens really]

Ground squirrels eat each other but I've never heard of tree squirrels eating Birds. The Baby was crying because he was scared..Mine call for me if scared..

 

[Breemae123]

Opossum will dig under. Raccoon will go over. Cats go over fences too.

A squirrel should have no effect.

Maybe a cheap game cam can help you.

Owls hunt at night and easily clear fences, But I wouldn't expect your duckling to survive that.

Maybe post pics of your set up so we can see. And list your location so we might know what your local predator load is? Do you know what your predator load is?

Here is the run. You can see I’ve put boards and bricks over any possible holes. I rent and the landlord won’t fix the fence. I can buy boards to fix it up a bit better. I had made sure all the low holes had something over them.

 

[Breemae123]

Ground squirrels eat each other but I've never heard of tree squirrels eating Birds. The Baby was crying because he was scared..Mine call for me if scared..

I was thinking that the first time
But I still don’t understand how he got out.

 

[azygous]

https://askanaturalist.com/is-eating-dead-birds-normal-for-a-squirrel-or-chipmunk/

You do realize that squirrels and many predators can scale that wooden fence.

Nature is rife with mysteries. But strange things do occur. A likely scenario would be a cat or even a crow (they do eat baby ducks and chicks) nabbing the duckling and dropping it as they tried to make off with it.

You can find stretchable netting to go over the top of your run that might safeguard against smaller predators. Foxes and bobcats are both expert climbers, and the netting wouldn't protect against them, but it would keep aerial predators out.

 

[Jpat]

I seen a squirell eat the inside of a chipmonk one time

 

[Breemae123]

https://askanaturalist.com/is-eating-dead-birds-normal-for-a-squirrel-or-chipmunk/

You do realize that squirrels and many predators can scale that wooden fence.

Nature is rife with mysteries. But strange things do occur. A likely scenario would be a cat or even a crow (they do eat baby ducks and chicks) nabbing the duckling and dropping it as they tried to make off with it.

You can find stretchable netting to go over the top of your run that might safeguard against smaller predators. Foxes and bobcats are both expert climbers, and the netting wouldn't protect against them, but it would keep aerial predators out.

I live in-town so there aren’t a lot of foxes and bobcats. I will look into the netting. Thanks!