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Hawk Food.

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hawk food
3K views 28 replies 14 participants last post by  MaryOfExeter 
#1 ·
From your over the year experiences, what breed is the hardest to end up as hawk food?
Highflyers, racing homers etc...
What are your thoughts?
 
#6 ·
A Peregrine sure can.
 
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#7 ·
its true none are really safe on the roof or in the air depending on what preditors you have in your area ...if you have coopers in your area it really doesnt matter how fast your birds are cuz its when they are landing or have landed is when they grab your birds ..now if you have a peregrine around they pretty much arent safe anywhere out side your loft :eek:
 
#9 ·
Charis is right!
Just some info:
Racing pigeon - max speed 110 km/h
Peregrine falcon - attack speed 288 km/h
It is like race between family car and F1. :(
In Europe some fanciers breed rollers to protect their racers form hawk attack.
Rollers are slower and that gives a chance for escape to racers.
 
#10 ·
I have watched my Tumblers out manuver Hawks a few times, I had a small Hawk, just get tail feathers and my Tumbler flipped out of his grab, the Hawk couldn't turn down as fast as my Tumbler did.. Just lost a few tail feathers.. I saw the whole show, wish I would have had a movie camera rolling...
 
#14 ·
Sure it is difficult to get them.
Serbian High-flyer has maximum altitude 10,000 feet.
Only Bald Eagle can reach these heights. The slight problem is that what goes up, must come down! :)
Fortunately birds of prey are not limited to pigeons only and if you have hawk attack usually helps to close pigeons for couple of days until bird goes hunting somewhere else.
 
#18 ·
Catalonians can and do outmanuever and outfly hawks. Some racing pigeon fanciers keep them and let them out, to frustrate the hawks, before letting the racers out to exersize. The hawks get so frustrated chasing the Cat's, that they are either too tired to chase the homers, or too disheartened to chase them. Wild life doesn't like to waste energy any more than they have to. So the hawks get a lesson from the Cat's, that the pigeons at that location are almost impossible to catch, and the hawks just watch them, or more on.

Try them. There is another breed that is even better at frustrating hawks and in fact, tease hawks to chase them. But they are rare in the U.S. "Escampadissa's". I have been trying to buy some for quite awhile now, and can not find any available. If you know of any, let me know please.

http://www.cichlidlovers.com/birds_cats_bill_hart.htm

Flying Oriental Rollers also do well, but there are show and performing of this breed. You would need the "performers" (flying).
 
#25 ·
I am a new flyer and the veteran flyer that has taken me under his wing (pun intended) and is helping me tremendously, has Cat's and swears by them. He says that it is extremely rare for a hawk to get one. Maybe two in three years, and that the Cat's actually seem to enjoy and entice the chase. He says he lets them out before letting his racers out, to cause doubt in the hawks about whether or not the "take out" diner is open at his location. His location is hawk infested, on the Ohio river.

He is going to provide me with some young Cat's come next spring, and I will see for myself. But I have no reason not to believe him. He does very well in the races and has been flying his own birds for 50 years.

I have read other places on the internet, containing similar statements about Catalonians. They come in beautiful colors also. I can't wait to get me some. I want to teach these hawks a lesson. There is nothing more exciting to a pigeon flyer, than observing a pigeon outwit or outfly a hawk (well, except maybe winning races).

The Escampadissa's are known for being able to "stop on a dime" and also are used to trap falcons and hawks overseas, by flying into a special trap made to let the pigeon in and the hawk in, but then the pigeon can go into another section that the hawk can not. Of course it is illegal to trap hawks here in the U.S., but in other countries, hawk trapping is a sport in itself. They use the Escampadissa's to conduct this sport. I will find a link and let you read about it.

http://www.cichlidlovers.com/birds_escamp.htm
 
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#27 ·
after reading this I may have to also find me some of these birds to fly myself as I too am infested with hawks here and they terrorize my birds daily wether they are inside or outside my loft .. if I could find a bird that helps this problem it would be a breath of fresh air to say the least ;)
 
#26 ·
I do a lot of birdwatching in the woods/parks and I can tell you for a fact, I've watched a Rock Dove out fly a pursuing Cooper's Hawk--it happened last spring when I was at a local lake. The pigeon flew about 20 feet over my head (booking!) and the hawk was sortof closing in....they flew over the trees, then the pigeon circled back, putting distance between it and the hawk. Cooper's Hawks are accipiters, usually hunting with a surprise attack and a short burst of speed. Any lengthy chase, I don't think forest hunting hawk could keep up.
 
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#28 ·
the problem with this is that YOUR birds will always return to the same place (your loft) and they will still be waiting for them to drop down after long periods of time in the air and try and try again to get any bird that is unsuspecting and coming back home to roost :eek:
 
#29 ·
I remember one time a Merlin ("Pigeon hawk", actually a falcon) popped out of a tree right after a bird I had JUST released from my hands. I took off chasing them bird quickly lost sight of them. Caught up to my dad, and he said they came right over his head, and G.I. Joe turned a quick 360 and flew back the way they came. Poor merlin didn't know what 'hit' him. Needless to say, my bird got away since the BOP lost some time making the turn after him.

Still don't know what the heck a Merlin was doing out here :confused: Never saw him again after that. The poor thing was hardly bigger than my homer!
 
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