Dead crows

ODubhain82

Found a couple of dead crows( rooks ) in my
garden over the last couple of weeks.
They had been eaten to an extent.
I'm wondering if it could be the work of a
bird of prey.
Location is rural. Wooded area a couple of
hundred yards away and farmland all around.
The rooks don't really hang around in my
garden due to lack of trees ( I'm working on
that). But they do cross over it going from
the wooded area to a cattle feed store next door.
Any thoughts?

OpenYourEyes

If it was a bird of prey you would most likely have a dead crow, with hundreds of feathers scattered around it, where the BOP plucked it.

So are you finding them in a condition like that, or are they more or less 'whole'? any obvious injuries?

ODubhain82

Head and feet missing from one of them.
Not quite sure about the other one but
it definately wasn't fully intact.
They both looked well worked over, not
like they just fell out of the sky.
They could have been there for a couple
of days before I came across them though.

There was evidence ,maybe 2 weeks ago,
of a magpie having been "plucked".
There are Sparrow Hawks in the area but
presumably a Magpie would be beyond
their capabilities.
It's just odd as I havn't seen this before in
the few years we've lived here.
It is a fairly good area for birds here.
There is a breeding pair of long eared owls
seen as recently as Thursday night.

recedite

Up until about 2011 I used to see a lot of dead crows in Feb/March when the lambs were being put out in the fields. Due to poisoning. But they would usually be lying in a field near a poisoned lamb carcass, and that practice is now illegal. So I'm not sure why they would be lying in your garden. Although if it was me, I'd be tempted to have a peek over at the feed store.

Another possibility is that somebody is shooting them out of the sky as they fly towards the trees, but you would hear that if you were there during the day.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Headless birds found together is often a sign of a stash for the local cat.

Desmo

sparrowhawks can easily enough take pigeon or magpie sized birds (big females can anyway).

ODubhain82

Hmmm, really hope its not the poisoning
possibility.

Don't think its from shooting as we would
have heard the shots, plus they would
have had to be shooting into my garden
and I cant see anyone doing that for a crow.

There are cats around but the dead birds
are out in the open and dont look stashed.
They're also about 100m apart.

Mystery continues.

Half-cocked

Found a number of dead rooks on a friends farm in Kildare, cause of death not obvious. No poisoning on the farm.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Any buzzards in the area?

ODubhain82

I haven't seen any but fingers crossed!
I wouldn't be great at spotting them.

I did see something being chased away
by a rook last week. I think it looked to
be smaller than the rook though.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Sounds like a bird of prey so!

Birdnuts

ODubhain82 wrote: »

Hmmm, really hope its not the poisoning
possibility.

Don't think its from shooting as we would
have heard the shots, plus they would
have had to be shooting into my garden
and I cant see anyone doing that for a crow.

There are cats around but the dead birds
are out in the open and dont look stashed.
They're also about 100m apart.

Mystery continues.

I don't think it sounds like poisoning myself(although one should always keep an eye out for such illegal practices when dead birds are found). As others have mentioned it sounds like either a buzzard or large females sprawk - you might even have a goshawk on your hands!!:eek::cool:

ODubhain82

Thats what I'm hoping. Have to keep a
sharp eye out from now on.
Will post if any developments.

Half-cocked

Travis Flabby Bucket wrote: »

Any buzzards in the area?

Resident breeding pair plus a year old juvenile.

ODubhain82

Huh? Where?

deise08

ODubhain82 wrote: »

Huh? Where?

Please don't state the location!

OpenYourEyes

No posting of breeding raptor locations, lest anyone need to be reminded....