Can buzzards kill chickens?

[0311]

We have lost chickens to eagles, hawks, owls, coyotes, and bobcats, but never a buzzard; that I know of. The smaller ones are going to be the natural first choice of predators. Free ranging is going to be more opportunistic to predators than a net covered pen. A good scoped .223 and a little diligence will slow the problem, a Rooster will NOT. We have a huge Red Leghorn and he rules the roost, but no help in an air attack of snatch and grab. Multiple roosters will result in 1 head rooster and subordinate roosters or none.

Too late. My son is checking with his friends whose step dads have game cocks. I want to put a combat veteran in there...

 

[0311]

I just now saw him, and he saw me. He was in the elm tree in the chicken yard. He flew off. He's no buzzard. If he's a hawk, he's the biggest hawk I've ever seen. I always have a handgun on me - I'll fire into the air if I can get my plugs in fast enough. He is definitely very big. Maybe a gunshot will scare him off for good.

 

[71buickfreak]

In California, the farmers are required to remove all dead animals from their fields. This has turned the local buzzards into fierce predators. They always go for the easy food, which means scavenging. However, when food is scarce, they will go for live targets.

I can't find the original story from cali, but this is a similar story from Europe. In Cali, they are not allowed to shoot the buzzards.

http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v480/n7378/full/480457b.html

 

[Lurker66]

Is this your first time raiseing chickens? This is the hawks time of year. Either lockup your chickens or kill the hawks and accept the consequences.

 

[Oklahomabassin]

Wow.... in more than way, Wow!

 

[dennishoddy]

The only avian specie with no hunting season and unlimited bag limits are the English sparrow and the common starling.
I'd advise against shooting it. Some birds of prey have RF xmitters implanted as part of a study group.

 

[0311]

Is this your first time raiseing chickens? This is the hawks time of year. Either lockup your chickens or kill the hawks and accept the consequences.

These are old birds, 8 years old. Never had air attacks - ever. If this was a hawk, it was the biggest I've ever seen. It was about the size of a buzzard, and was black. But it flew like a hawk. Maybe it was a hawk, but it was as big as a buzzard. I'm not going to kill it, but I'm going outside with plugs in, so that if I see it I can shoot up into the air and scare it off. The carcass was gone this morning, and I was going to use that in the live catch trap.

 

[Oklahomabassin]

Wow.... in more than way, Wow!

 

[Okie4570]

Does he look like this by chance?

 

[Lurker66]

These are old birds, 8 years old. Never had air attacks - ever. If this was a hawk, it was the biggest I've ever seen. It was about the size of a buzzard, and was black. But it flew like a hawk. Maybe it was a hawk, but it was as big as a buzzard. I'm not going to kill it, but I'm going outside with plugs in, so that if I see it I can shoot up into the air and scare it off. The carcass was gone this morning, and I was going to use that in the live catch trap.

Harassing them is against the law as well.....as well as trapping them...just sayin.