The General Poultry Chat Forum

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Buzzards

Would buzzards take full grown hens, heard of them taking young lambs so I presume they would

christmasdiane
Friday, February 15th, 2019

The odd one will take hens and ducks and stay coming back till their all gone.

paddycrawford
Friday, February 15th, 2019

I’ve got one in the field, I am always impressed whenever I see it, magical creature, flying through the air majestically on its wings... in circles over my chicken run

Not quite as bad as the fox, but leaves behind a lot more mess

Eggempire
Friday, February 15th, 2019

Had hens for years with buzzards and red kite circling overhead, never took a hen. Goshawk will

Torsten Schulz
Friday, February 15th, 2019

I think that they are more scavenger's than anything. We always have 2/3 flying over the farm and hens. Only yesterday I counted 9 all together screeching and flying high in the air. I've never seen so many together. I don't know if they are all the one family or it was a gathering for breeding? So far they haven't touched any of the hens. I've had a sparrow hawk pick off a few pidgins a few years ago.

Tw
Friday, February 15th, 2019

Yes, buzzards only have small feet/tallons, take mice or carrion.
Some people throw them all in the same pot with eagles and whatever. They're not all bad

Torsten Schulz
Friday, February 15th, 2019

Might take a small poult - but doubt they'd tackle a hen. Certainly wouldn't bother a healthy lamb and we have alot of them here as well as Kites. I consider them pretty harmless compared to the likes of fox or mink

Pheasantbotherer
Friday, February 15th, 2019

They will take hens and large hens at that they've been seen taking half grown hares supprising what they can accomplish when their starving.

paddycrawford
Saturday, February 16th, 2019

A starving buzzard will turn to eating worms, insects even. If a buzzard is seen with a hare, pheasant or hen the animal was most likely dead, very weak /sick or even taken from another bird of prey

Torsten Schulz
Saturday, February 16th, 2019

They'll take them lots of people have seen it first hand.

paddycrawford
Saturday, February 16th, 2019

My brother saw one go for one of his hens. The brother was hunkered down in his garden weeding the veg garden, when he heard wing beats. As he stood up, there was a buzzard only feet away going for the hen, but put the breaks on as it spotted my brother. Now my brother has had buzzards around the house for years, and this is the only time he's had such an incident. I recon it happens on a very rare occasion.

nedzer
Saturday, February 16th, 2019

There is a pair of buzzards that roost in the trees in the same field where my chickens are. I have never had a problem with them ever.

PhilCallaghan
Thursday, February 21st, 2019

We had a couple of them killing our call ducks during the summer,witnessed it first hand.

Slieveroe
Sunday, February 24th, 2019


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