Good sign, BAD sign for poults.

[Huntaholic]

I saw my first hen with poults yesterday! Little buggers weren't much bigger than the egg they came out of! That's the good news.
The bad news is 3 hours later I was back in the area and there was a *&)(*&(*()()* sparrow hawk sitting on a fence post with one of my babies in its claws. :evil:

 

[Wrangler95]

Poults have a tough time survive the many dangers they face and the hen nest is lucky if the eggs hatch out from the nest predators!!

 

[Gravey]

The odds are definitely stacked against them in the early stages.

 

[bobbuck]

My wife was talking to her sister on the phone yesterday. She lives in Hendersonville and while they are talking she sees a hen with one little poult. She telling my wife how cool it is then she says, oh no a hawk just swooped down and grabbed the poult. It sucks being a turkey!

 

[PickettSFHunter]

I think hawks are overpopulated and should no longer be given the same protections.

 

[Andy S.]

I think hawks are overpopulated and should no longer be given the same protections.

My localized observations align with this.

 

[bobbuck]

I think hawks are overpopulated and should no longer be given the same protections.

I remember as a kid(51 now) how excited I would be to see a hawk. Not the case any more way too many now.

 

[TheLBLman]

I think hawks are overpopulated and should no longer be given the same protections.

My localized observations align with this.

x 2

I remember as a kid(51 now) how excited I would be to see a hawk.
Not the case any more way too many now.

When I was a kid, there were "farmsteads" in huge numbers scattered across the landscape.
Almost everyone had free-range chickens.
Almost everyone shot hawks on sight.
There weren't many hawks.

And there were literally coveys of bobwhite quail everywhere.
Today's youth cannot believe how many people owned "bird" dogs back in the 50's & 60's
all across Tennessee.

IMO, hawks were instrumental in destroying our statewide populations of bobwhite quail,
and today, hawks kill more turkeys than do coyotes,
never mind everyone seems to think coyotes are the root of all evil.

 

[megalomaniac]

Coyotes ARE the root of all evil. Nothing good about those invasive canines. At least hawks are pretty.

I bet hawks take 10x more poults than adult turkeys, while coyotes kill 10x more adult turkeys than poults. Id rather sacrifice an entire brood of poults than her mother, who can raise another brood annually for the next 5 years.

Bottom line, if you arent doing your part removing turkey predators through the year on your properties, its hard for you to complain you don't have any birds to hunt.

Sent from my SM-G970U1 using Tapatalk

 

[Huntaholic]

Ive shot FOUR (&*^^*(*( coyotes right here around the house in the last 3 weeks! As bad as I hate to say it EVERYTHING that walks or flies that eats meat loves to decimate turkeys.