More Discreet Signs of a Mountain Lion visit

[LBL]

Today when I went to put the 6 bird flock in the garage coop, there were only 3 birds visible, the Alpha rooster "Moonwalker" and 2 hens, Plaid and Little Black Hen (who are both d'Uccle). It looked like I had lost 4 birds, since the 5 year old hen from the front yard flock was also nowhere to be seen.

When I opened up the door of the coop an hour later, the rooster "Red John" was there, meaning he was hiding an hour ago.

However I am afraid that Gertie (the 5 year old hen from the front yard) and the gray Americauna and the White Rooster are still missing.

In the past, e.g. when the hawk killed the Alpha Rooster 2 Alpha Roosters ago, the birds disappeared for several hours. They all hid.

So begins the strange vigil of us chicken keepers. Listening for the sounds of the missing hens, or to see if the White Rooster (with the nice song) sounds off in the morning.

If there are only the sounds of Silence, then they are gone.

I live on the edge of a block of forest about 7 miles by 10 miles, between that forest and a creek. So ALL the animals pass through.

 

[Susan Skylark]

Sorry to hear about your missing birds, are you sure it was a big cat and not a hundred other smaller predators (fox, dog, cat, skunk…?). I rode with a local game and fish officer once to investigate a reported cougar attack on a Holstein steer (big cats and wolves in the area). We got out to the farm and found the steer happy and alive, knee deep in a swampy pond. The only abnormality was all his white hair had fallen out leaving black hairy spots and bald pink skin! The culprit was actually liver flukes and a secondary photosensitivity, not a large predator. Just something to think about as you can’t fix a problem if you don’t know what it actually is.

 

[LBL]

UPDATE -

well there were 4 missing birds on Wednesday afternoon.

One of the roosters, Red John, made an appearance Thursday morning.

Then around noon, the Grey hen and the White Rooster showed up.

The White Rooster REALLY had me going. He kept crowing and I couldn't find him. Like one of those acoustic tools they use to locate gunshots in the city.

The final missing bird, Gertie, d'Uccle-Bantam hen, was gone Wednesday night and Thursday all day.

Then this morning she comes walking up the driveway, indicating that she "got broody" and roosted somewhere in the 2 acre front land, above the creek.

That is where the Weasel lives and it is very dangerous for chickens.

QUESTION - is there something OTHER than a predator sighting that will make the birds hide ?

More background - I have a large tool collection which I am slowly selling. 10,000+ machine tools.

One of the tool buyers a few years ago, with better vision than mine, told me that there was a fox, just sitting, up the hill about 75 yards. Watching the birds.

I got my binoculars, and there indeed was a fox.

I originally thought it was a mountain lion because it's the only predator I know that can eat 4 birds in one attack.

Anyway, if I had to guess now, I would guess that the fox or a coyote or conceivably a Hawk/ Falcon, got close enough to inspire fear on Wednesday afternoon.

Maybe next time I'll have trailcams set up and can know for sure what the wildlife is doing.

Also maybe - I should get out the binoculars more often and scan the hillside and check out the foxes.