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[ThatOwlWoman]

You have these pests up there??

We do have English sparrows; they're pretty much ubiquitous. They even live in Fairbanks although how they got there is anyone's guess. Pigeons too. But they're uncommon out in the woods where we live. Too much competition from native birds? Preference for city + people + more food sources? Predators? We have a number of those -- owls, peregrines, Cooper's hawks, etc. We also have martens and fishers, who will get into nests and eat both the young and the parents. Saw a fisher the other day when I was out foraging. He stood up on his back legs to try to see what I was. I told Mr. Owl I saw a meerkat. lol

It sounds like the only thing you can do at this point is don't feed anyone for a few weeks, till the sparrows get the hint and go mooch off someone else.

 

[Mason Michaels]

We do have English sparrows; they're pretty much ubiquitous. They even live in Fairbanks although how they got there is anyone's guess. Pigeons too. But they're uncommon out in the woods where we live. Too much competition from native birds? Preference for city + people + more food sources? Predators? We have a number of those -- owls, peregrines, Cooper's hawks, etc. We also have martens and fishers, who will get into nests and eat both the young and the parents. Saw a fisher the other day when I was out foraging. He stood up on his back legs to try to see what I was. I told Mr. Owl I saw a meerkat. lol

It sounds like the only thing you can do at this point is don't feed anyone for a few weeks, till the sparrows get the hint and go mooch off someone else.

What about Eagles?We have eagles down here.

 

[ThatOwlWoman]

What about Eagles?We have eagles down here.

Same here. They mostly eat fish although they'll eat roadkill, garbage left out, and carcasses. Our first fall here someone left a deer carcass in the meadow at the end of our road. We had two flavors of eagle -- bald and golden -- plus ravens, crows, and blue jays dining on it. Probably we might have had vultures too but they had already left for the winter.

 

[ThatOwlWoman]

Oh look! We hit 2400! And no spite, nastiness, or pages of emojis.

 

[Mason Michaels]

Same here. They mostly eat fish although they'll eat roadkill, garbage left out, and carcasses. Our first fall here someone left a deer carcass in the meadow at the end of our road. We had two flavors of eagle -- bald and golden -- plus ravens, crows, and blue jays dining on it. Probably we might have had vultures too but they had already left for the winter.

We seem to have,the bald Eagles,lots of turkey vultures too

 

[ThatOwlWoman]

We seem to have,the bald Eagles,lots of turkey vultures too

Vulture ("wiinaange" in the local language) is one of my favorite birds! He and his fam live here too, but when winter comes they migrate south where the land isn't covered with snow.

This is probably really gross to most ppl, but I look forward to snow-melt because suddenly you can see all sorts of scavengers dining on roadkilled critters that were buried under the snow for months. Raccoons, fishers, coyotes, fox, ravens, crows, jays, eagles, vultures, etc. The northwoods look so bleak and sterile, but they're actually teeming with life.

 

[Bill]

We do have English sparrows; they're pretty much ubiquitous. They even live in Fairbanks although how they got there is anyone's guess. Pigeons too. But they're uncommon out in the woods where we live. Too much competition from native birds? Preference for city + people + more food sources? Predators? We have a number of those -- owls, peregrines, Cooper's hawks, etc. We also have martens and fishers, who will get into nests and eat both the young and the parents. Saw a fisher the other day when I was out foraging. He stood up on his back legs to try to see what I was. I told Mr. Owl I saw a meerkat. lol

It sounds like the only thing you can do at this point is don't feed anyone for a few weeks, till the sparrows get the hint and go mooch off someone else.

They can't get on the feeder, & as they have weak beaks they can't really do much w/ the sunflower seeds that fall..

So to get back @ me they are attacking my plants.

I get an occasional coopers hawk but they can't make a dent in them, breed like rats.. In some places they shot them...

We have real bad starlings during breeding season, once thats over they go out in the fields & rob the farmers...

I have netting I will likely put on tomorrow is I notice any more damage-the big heard didn't show up today that I noticed..

 

[Bill]

Same here. They mostly eat fish although they'll eat roadkill, garbage left out, and carcasses. Our first fall here someone left a deer carcass in the meadow at the end of our road. We had two flavors of eagle -- bald and golden -- plus ravens, crows, and blue jays dining on it. Probably we might have had vultures too but they had already left for the winter.

The pecking order..........lol The bald & golden both together bullying it??

Over the last few years we are finally starting to get bald eagles back over our lakes & rivers........

 

[RB 60]

The pecking order..........lol The bald & golden both together bullying it??

Over the last few years we are finally starting to get bald eagles back over our lakes & rivers........

We are as well. There's a pair of bald eagles that sit atop an abandoned train bridge watching the water the GF sees almost every day on her way to work. One of her coworkers has a farm and said an eagle swooped down and took on of their small ducks. I pretty much hate birds (I have a nice car and they seem to "target" it) but bald eagles are one magnificent bird.

 

[Bill]

We are as well. There's a pair of bald eagles that sit atop an abandoned train bridge watching the water the GF sees almost every day on her way to work. One of her coworkers has a farm and said an eagle swooped down and took on of their small ducks. I pretty much hate birds (I have a nice car and they seem to "target" it) but bald eagles are one magnificent bird.

LOL, I feed them, like them in my backyard, but I have that good deed punished many times by them..

As a kid I never seen any..

We have had golden eagles which are awesome & huge & fly out to the place I go kayaking all the time...

I was up hiking about 9,000 feet & saw one riding the thermals up.. I have no idea how high he went up as by the time I got my camera ready he had gone up circling up on the thermals out of sight-so I would guess @ least 12-13,000ft or more..

 

[RB 60]

LOL, I feed them, like them in my backyard, but I have that good deed punished many times by them..

As a kid I never seen any..

We have had golden eagles which are awesome & huge & fly out to the place I go kayaking all the time...

I was up hiking about 9,000 feet & saw one riding the thermals up.. I have no idea how high he went up as by the time I got my camera ready he had gone up circling up on the thermals out of sight-so I would guess @ least 12-13,000ft or more..

I never saw any when I was a kid either. It's cool they are around now, they do put a hurting on the small game here, but not nearly as bad as fox and coyotes. I shoot fox and especially coyotes when I see them.

 

[Bill]

I never saw any when I was a kid either. It's cool they are around now, they do put a hurting on the small game here, but not nearly as bad as fox and coyotes. I shoot fox and especially coyotes when I see them.

I can't recall where you are? If I may ask..

They compete here w/ some of the smaller Osprey but they can take bigger fish + whatever they happen upon..

 

[ThatOwlWoman]

The pecking order..........lol The bald & golden both together bullying it??

Over the last few years we are finally starting to get bald eagles back over our lakes & rivers........

No, the eagles were there at different times. I imagine that they would get into a fight if they showed up at the same time!

I never saw an eagle, hawk, Canada goose, or owl either as a kid. They've sure made a great comeback.

 

[ThatOwlWoman]

I never saw any when I was a kid either. It's cool they are around now, they do put a hurting on the small game here, but not nearly as bad as fox and coyotes. I shoot fox and especially coyotes when I see them.

Aren't you concerned that you might get an overpopulation of mice, voles, rabbits, squirrels, etc.? They were sure over-represented where we used to live, in a suburban area with few natural predators. Some years the squirrels were so bad that it was hard to get anything out of the garden. They'd even pick off the green tomatoes, take one bite out of them so you couldn't use them, and leave them lying there. The voles and squirrels dug up flower bulbs. They even got into flowers in pots and tore them up. I used to trap the squirrels in a live trap and take them a few miles away to different parks/woods. Didn't make much difference though. Once you removed one, another just moved in.

 

[RB 60]

Aren't you concerned that you might get an overpopulation of mice, voles, rabbits, squirrels, etc.? They were sure over-represented where we used to live, in a suburban area with few natural predators. Some years the squirrels were so bad that it was hard to get anything out of the garden. They'd even pick off the green tomatoes, take one bite out of them so you couldn't use them, and leave them lying there. The voles and squirrels dug up flower bulbs. They even got into flowers in pots and tore them up. I used to trap the squirrels in a live trap and take them a few miles away to different parks/woods. Didn't make much difference though. Once you removed one, another just moved in.

I've never had problems with squirrels, there's lots of them running around here. Rabbits? The damn feral cats killed most of them off after they timbered the woods next to me. There was one rabbit who would come out and tease my Basset hound back when I had her, it was funny because it knew how far it could get to her. After a few times running after it, the dog would just go to the end of her chain length and sit and watch it. I rarely see them any more.

 

[ThatOwlWoman]

I've never had problems with squirrels, there's lots of them running around here. Rabbits? The damn feral cats killed most of them off after they timbered the woods next to me. There was one rabbit who would come out and tease my Basset hound back when I had her, it was funny because it knew how far it could get to her. After a few times running after it, the dog would just go to the end of her chain length and sit and watch it. I rarely see them any more.

There aren't too many bunnies around here either; too many predators I guess. That being said, up in Big Bay (tiny town north of here) someone let their pet rabbits go free one year, and now they are all over town! Black ones, brown ones, white, multi-patterned. They're so cute. There is a restaurant right across from the school; both of them feed the bunnies leftover lettuce and veggies. The restaurant puts food bowls out by the entrance in the winter for them. Diners can stop and pet the bunnies. :~)

 

[RB 60]

There aren't too many bunnies around here either; too many predators I guess. That being said, up in Big Bay (tiny town north of here) someone let their pet rabbits go free one year, and now they are all over town! Black ones, brown ones, white, multi-patterned. They're so cute. There is a restaurant right across from the school; both of them feed the bunnies leftover lettuce and veggies. The restaurant puts food bowls out by the entrance in the winter for them. Diners can stop and pet the bunnies. :~)

My father and I used to hunt rabbits and ringneck pheasants, they were plentiful when I was young. Rabbits are few and far between and pheasants are all but extinct around here due to fox and coyotes.

Rabbits can reek havoc on a garden, just put a small fence around it and they won't bother it. Other animals will try to get through or under it though.

 

[ThatOwlWoman]

My father and I used to hunt rabbits and ringneck pheasants, they were plentiful when I was young. Rabbits are few and far between and pheasants are all but extinct around here due to fox and coyotes.

Rabbits can reek havoc on a garden, just put a small fence around it and they won't bother it. Other animals will try to get through or under it though.

We have a six-foot deer fence around ours for that reason.

I actually saw a pheasant last year when out hiking! First one that I've seen since I was a kid and we lived in Ohio.

 

[Eagle_Eye]

We have a six-foot deer fence around ours for that reason.

I actually saw a pheasant last year when out hiking! First one that I've seen since I was a kid and we lived in Ohio.

A 6 ft. fence won't stop a deer if they want in. I have seen security camera footage of deer jumping 10 ft. fences around alert facilities.

 

[ThatOwlWoman]

A 6 ft. fence won't stop a deer if they want in. I have seen security camera footage of deer jumping 10 ft. fences around alert facilities.

That's true but so far so good. They need a running start to get over it; the way the house/forest/hill is situated, they don't have much of a place to do that. But yeah, it is a constant thought in my mind!