Buzzard

Lurrigalabs

Anyone know why these birds have become so much more common over the last few years?

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Many reasons. The fall back in Myxomatosis, less use of poisons, less persecution.

ThunderCat

Lurrigalabs wrote: »

Anyone know why these birds have become so much more common over the last few years?

I'd imagine it's due to the fact that upon fledging, youngsters have plenty of territory to expand into and establish coupled with an abundance of prey in these territories. Early in the 20th century the birds became extinct here but have since naturally recolonized and that re-colonisation has allowed them to spread out into areas that were devoid of them since their extinction here which explains why more of us see them frequently now.

snowstreams

Ive just noticed quite a few buzzards near me in the last few weeks. I live just off the new m17/18 motorway in Athenry and Ive seen some circling over it already.
Though I must admit the local population of rabbits seems to have vanished in the last few years so they must be eating other things.

Its great to see birds of prey around, rather than just seeing sparrowhawks and kestrels.

snowstreams

Saw two more buzzards this morning between Athenry and Oranmore.
One was flying high enough soaring with crows around him, the other just flew past me in front of the car.

So the population of buzzards must go up in my area during the winter, or I've just started noticing them more.

Birdnuts

snowstreams wrote: »

Saw two more buzzards this morning between Athenry and Oranmore.
One was flying high enough soaring with crows around him, the other just flew past me in front of the car.

So the population of buzzards must go up in my area during the winter, or I've just started noticing them more.

Buzzard numbers peak at this time of year due to new broods knocking about. Numbers will naturally decline over the winter until the next breeding season. They get a lot of hassel from crows since young crows in particular are on the menu

fryup

Birdnuts wrote: »

They get a lot of hassle from crows since young crows in particular are on the menu

the crows in my garden were going ape the other day...i presume a raptor was about ?

Strawberry1975

fryup wrote: »

the crows in my garden were going ape the other day...i presume a raptor was about ?

Everything is gone scarce rabbits
Hares cats
There are a lot of buzzards about

magicbastarder

i assume it's young hares buzzards would prey on - an adult hare would be extremely large for them to predate?

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Strawberry1975 wrote: »

Everything is gone scarce rabbits
Hares cats
There are a lot of buzzards about

Okay, myth busting time. Firstly, Buzzards are not known for taking Cats. Secondly, while they have been known to tackle Hares, it is a recorded fact that they have no impact on Hare numbers, although they have on Rabbit numbers.

Strawberry1975

magicbastarder wrote: »

i assume it's young hares buzzards would prey on - an adult hare would be extremely large for them to predate?

Ya never see the rabbits or hares in daylight anymore
Since the buzzards got plentiful

magicbastarder

i did see a tweet recently that in north and east cork, studies of buzzard diet showed 95% was composed of young crows, rabbits and rats.

Strawberry1975

That explains a lot thanks for your input
Are buzzards a protected species

magicbastarder

edit: ... but other sources say all raptors are protected.

OpenYourEyes

magicbastarder wrote: »

...but other sources say all raptors are protected.

Just to confirm - they are 100% protected under the Wildlife Act 1976 and Amendment 2000 and it's just as illegal to shoot them or destroy nests or anything like that as it is any of our rarest seabirds, songbirds or anything else for that matter!

magicbastarder

i wonder why they're not listed in that NPWS document i linked so?

OpenYourEyes

magicbastarder wrote: »

i wonder why they're not listed in that NPWS document i linked so?

There are a list of species that we're obliged under the EU Birds Directive to designate protected sites for, but that's not to be confused with other species not being protected - there just aren't any specific sites given any special protection for them.

magicbastarder

aha, cheers.

cd07

If people are still asking if buzzards are protected please close the thread. Old mentality bird bird of prey ....Must be causing detrimental effect..blah blah blah

Birdnuts

Strawberry1975 wrote: »

Ya never see the rabbits or hares in daylight anymore
Since the buzzards got plentiful

If you've ever been to Dublin Airport you will see loads of hares and loads of buzzards on the nearby M50

corks finest

magicbastarder wrote: »

i did see a tweet recently that in north and east cork, studies of buzzard diet showed 95% was composed of young crows, rabbits and rats.

All over near carrigaline, Robert cove,see them regularly

tabby aspreme

I spotted a buzzard eating a pigeon in a field a few days ago , and having seen one pick up a rat in a ditch and try to fly away with it unsuccessfully, I don't think they would kill an adult hare, there is a breeding pair here in a piece of forestry I have , and I regularly see a feral ginger cat out hunting in the middle of the fields looking for rabbits in clumps of nettles and the only thing chasing him are the sheep.

magicbastarder

saw one while out on the bike on sunday - what made me do a double take was it was sitting on a telegraph pole, but there were two crows holding station on the wire about 3m away. have usually only seen them getting that close in flight, while mobbing each other, so it was interesting to see what looked like a more wary standoff.

cd07

Have seen pigeons literally sitting on wires 2ft from buzzards they'd be far faster off the mark than a buzzard . Also not a chance a buzzard would kill a full grown hare. All I've ever see them take is young rabbits,pigeons and crows and more often worms and frogs

Mach Two

Any idea what percentage of buzzards diet is crows.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Mach Two wrote: »

Any idea what percentage of buzzards diet is crows.

It varies immensely depending on the area. Some take mostly rabbits, others take young crows, but it depends on what's available.

Birdnuts

Mach Two wrote: »

Any idea what percentage of buzzards diet is crows.

Probably peaks in early summer since them and Kites take alot of branchers(young Rooks) then

OpenYourEyes

Mach Two wrote: »

Any idea what percentage of buzzards diet is crows.

Around 20% going by an Irish paper published a few years ago. Will vary slightly depending on the time of year and location i.e. somewhere with very few rabbits or pigeons might have a higher percentage of crows.

Paper here (scrolls down to tables for percentages etc):
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00063657.2013.772085

magicbastarder

the closest we've seen a buzzard to dublin city centre was this morning (well my wife saw it); one being mobbed by two crows over the holy faith convent in glasnevin, spotted when we were in the botanic gardens.

magicbastarder

decathlon are due to start construction of a big outlet in ballymun, beside ikea; unfortunately this is one of the places you'd see buzzards within the M50.

gzoladz

I got this very tame one in the Botanic Gardens a few months ago

magicbastarder

was that a squirrel?

lab man

Hi new to this forum, lve seen 2 buzzards on a farm I lease near an estuary just a question would they kill a sleeping baby calf out in a field ?

magicbastarder

a calf? not a hope.

gzoladz

magicbastarder wrote: »

was that a squirrel?

I don't know, the bird picked it up from the ground and it was just that peace, but it could have been as there are loads on the gardens.

Zoo4m8

lab man wrote: »

Hi new to this forum, lve seen 2 buzzards on a farm I lease near an estuary just a question would they kill a sleeping baby calf out in a field ?

I’m not sure what to make of this question..but I’m going to assume it’s as innocent as it first appears...Buzzards will not interfere with, injure or kill a calf, further back in this thread in numerous post are descriptions of what they do take...oh, and they don’t take lambs either.

lab man

Zoo4m8 wrote:

I’m not sure what to make of this question..but I’m going to assume it’s as innocent as it first appears...Buzzards will not interfere with, injure or kill a calf, further back in this thread in numerous post are descriptions of what they do take...oh, and they don’t take lambs either.

I had a calf there 3 months ago 3 days old running around the fields following morning the calf was dead his eyes were picked out then I saw these birds which Ive never seen before,so I took a picture of them googled birds of prey irl and twas buzzards, so I'm only adding 2 and 2?

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

lab man wrote: »

I had a calf there 3 months ago 3 days old running around the fields following morning the calf was dead his eyes were picked out then I saw these birds which Ive never seen before,so I took a picture of them googled birds of prey irl and twas buzzards, so I'm only adding 2 and 2?

Or calf was dead and Buzzard fed on carrion, which is the closest I've seen to a Buzzard eat lamb or calf, in many years of prolonged intense study of them.

upupup

lab man wrote: »

Hi new to this forum, lve seen 2 buzzards on a farm I lease near an estuary just a question would they kill a sleeping baby calf out in a field ?

Yes they can kill young cattle,sheep and small dogs if they have been trained to use shotguns.

lab man

upupup wrote:

Yes they can kill young cattle,sheep and small dogs if they have been trained to use shotguns.

Not funny to me sir, madam. Try getting another calf to suck a suckle cow you must not know much about it

dodderangler

lab man wrote: »

Hi new to this forum, lve seen 2 buzzards on a farm I lease near an estuary just a question would they kill a sleeping baby calf out in a field ?

This is the biggest problem when it comes to any bird of prey. The old wives tails. They’re as believable as a fisherman’s story of the one that got away. And in turn has led to bird of prey being shot on sight. Buzzards have tiny feet despite being large birds they would struggle to take out s full grown rabbit. Mainly rats and small mammals and corvids are the main diet and even insects play a big part of their diet.
They will scavenge a lamb corpse and this leads farmers and others to believe they killed it. They won’t. Their feet are too small to make a kill like that.
Red kites look massive but they mainly scavenge or take out rats and mice. Often seen following tractors ploughing fields for victims. Yet they’re poisoned or shot for fear of killing livestock.
Eagles like golden eagles were hunted to near extinction because of fear they’d take lambs or sheep or calves. Desperately maybe. But hated and rabbits are more so diet.
Sea eagles name itself tells their location. And they’d mainly hunt fish and will scavenge aswell.
Farmers believe and spread tales of birds of prey killing livestock but it’s false. There’s more risk of dogs killing livestock than birds of prey. More risk if livestock being knocked down than both put together. As a hunter I’ve still yet to see a buzzard taking a pheasant yet I’ve heard it from gun club members that it happens. I had a Harris hawk for hunting and even they struggle with a full grown cock pheasant and Harris hawk have much bigger feet.
Don’t believe what you hear from through the grapevine tales.

Birdnuts

lab man wrote: »

I had a calf there 3 months ago 3 days old running around the fields following morning the calf was dead his eyes were picked out then I saw these birds which Ive never seen before,so I took a picture of them googled birds of prey irl and twas buzzards, so I'm only adding 2 and 2?

Grey crows will pick out the eyes of dead animals, including farm stock. Sometimes they will finish off a weak unguarded lamb or a ewe thats sick and on its back. Either way I guarantee u it wasn't a buzzard that interfered with that that calf

recedite

Was watching a pair of buzzards and some grey crows feeding on a ewe carcass today. Crows working as team to hassle the buzzards, one would go in front, while the other sneaked round and pecked the buzzards tail from behind. Buzzards stayed in control of the food though, until they were well fed.
The ewe died during a very cold night, for whatever reason, probably was weak or sick.
The birds come along the next day. Surprisingly some black backed gulls were the first on the scene, even though its a few miles inland and they would not normally be around. They must have amazing eyesight.

Strawberry1975

Good eating Mutton make a nice mutton stew few spuds an onion
They say it improves ones eyesight.

recedite

Yes, throw in a few nice mushrooms as well, though they are hard to find at the moment.

Strawberry1975

I reckon so with the frost ya won't get the magic one's.
Buy a few in lidl
Try a bit of Grass for seasoning lol
G'luck
Wayne World

OpenYourEyes

Mod Note: I've issued some warnings to posters to stay on topic please!

Strawberry1975

I seen two buzzards caught in rat traps a month ago the traps were set for crows the traps had meat in them
I think the buzzards going to go the same way as the barn owl
Rat Trap on top of 6' Stake

ThunderCat

recedite wrote: »

Was watching a pair of buzzards and some grey crows feeding on a ewe carcass today. Crows working as team to hassle the buzzards, one would go in front, while the other sneaked round and pecked the buzzards tail from behind. Buzzards stayed in control of the food though, until they were well fed.
The ewe died during a very cold night, for whatever reason, probably was weak or sick.
The birds come along the next day. Surprisingly some black backed gulls were the first on the scene, even though its a few miles inland and they would not normally be around. They must have amazing eyesight.

I once lived in a cottage overlooking a beach and I'll never forget one morning throwing out a few scraps of bread and seeing a herring gull fly from the tide line, about half a mile away that morning and fully out, all the way to the cottage for the bread. It felt like he was flying for ages just to reach the house. And he started flying the instant that bread was in the air, so it wasn't that he saw other birds causing a commotion waiting for the bread or anything because there weren't any at that moment. It was funny to see.

Strawberry1975

Wouldn't it be amazing to have similar eye sight to be able to see things so far away.

recedite

ThunderCat wrote: »

I once lived in a cottage overlooking a beach and I'll never forget one morning throwing out a few scraps of bread and seeing a herring gull fly from the tide line, about half a mile away that morning and fully out, all the way to the cottage for the bread. It felt like he was flying for ages just to reach the house. And he started flying the instant that bread was in the air, so it wasn't that he saw other birds causing a commotion waiting for the bread or anything because there weren't any at that moment. It was funny to see.

Interesting. You hear a lot about birds of prey and how good their sight is, but I wonder has anyone ever tested a gull's sight?
They are kind of overlooked. And the larger species are far more predatory than most people think.