steve49
107 posts
Jul 20, 2009
6:23 PM
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for the first time i had a coopers hawk fly past while my birds were flying. they flew really high, and then the hawk just kept going in the same direction (west). my birds finally started to drop lower, and i was calling them and they dropped to the kitbox. before they trapped in, the coopers (pretty sure it was the same bird) flew overhead traveling east this time. i saw all the wild birds tailing it, and then i counted my birds and i was missing one. damn, i thought, he got one and i didn't see it. i went in to eat dinner, and when i came out the missing red grizzle was sitting on the kitbox waiting for me to opent the trap. smart bird, he hid out while the hawk was about, and then when the coast was clear he came down. i was stunned, and proud at the same time. and grateful of course that i didn't lose any of my birds. it does make me realize that just like everyone else, i'll eventually get hit, its just part of the hobby. it still sux.
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Steve in Blue Point, NY
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PR_rollers
GOLD MEMBER
3217 posts
Jul 20, 2009
7:02 PM
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Yea Steve just part of hobby and part of the game .you be playing their game now learning the time they around when to stay in lock down for a couple of days. glad you got that red grizzle back..
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Ralph.
Life comes down to the choices you make, and then living with the results.
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Joe Valdivia
1 post
Jul 20, 2009
8:56 PM
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I love the relief you get when you see a bird make it back after an attack. I have a young coopers hawk in my neighborhood, he took 4 shots at my birds today and missed every time. I don't think I'll stay lucky for long though :(
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TheGame
582 posts
Jul 20, 2009
9:00 PM
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Steve my man just wait later into the year that Cooper will be actually going after your bird and not just cruising by. Had about 11 attacks last year towards the fall and then I finally gave up and put the birds on lockdown. Never actually saw the Cooper get a hold of one but some of my birds never returned.
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PR_rollers
GOLD MEMBER
3222 posts
Jul 20, 2009
9:05 PM
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Joe Valdivia I see its your first post Welcome,..what line you flying?where you from if you don't mind....
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Ralph.
Life comes down to the choices you make, and then living with the results.
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Joe Valdivia
2 posts
Jul 20, 2009
11:04 PM
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Thanks PR. I'm from ventura county, recently got back into rollers and got set up with some nice birds from a few guys in the area, JuJu, Fernando and Randy. Most of the birds go back to Richard Luna. I'm about to add some ruby rollers to my loft soon.
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Fire Brewed Rollers
68 posts
Jul 21, 2009
12:49 AM
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Consider yourself very lucky, I lose 1 to 2 birds a week to the Hawks, mostly Coopers. I lost 2 today that got eaten & 1 young that flew off, that’s 3 this week all young birds. I have Coopers year round for the last 4 to 5 years. My A-Team are all aware of the hawks. The Rubys are a very good at homing and most young come back after a hawk chase. I breed from 6 pair of Rubys plus others. Some other strains don’t work at all, poor homing abilities or slow learners. I lock down Nov. to March when the hawks are actually aggressive. All the guys around here have a hawk problem. I have to breed enough for me & Cooper.
Robert Miller
Fire Brewed Roller
SGVS
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PR_rollers
GOLD MEMBER
3225 posts
Jul 21, 2009
10:07 AM
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Joe Valdivia,good to hear that ...
are Richard Luna's family of birds the same as Richard Reyes?you know running in the same line..
Hey Robert I hear you about the all year cooper problem that's a bummer..hope things get better for you ..do you live near Hector .----------
Ralph.
Life comes down to the choices you make, and then living with the results.
Last Edited by on Jul 21, 2009 10:09 AM
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Fire Brewed Rollers
69 posts
Jul 21, 2009
10:48 AM
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PR rollers, I fly in the same club as Hector and everyone in our club SGVS deals with the Hawks. Everyone breeds extra for the BOP in our club.
Robert Miller
Fire Brewed Roller
SGVS (San Gabriel Valley Spinners)
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steve49
108 posts
Jul 21, 2009
11:52 AM
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hey guys, do you think i should lock it down or, run the risk of flying again today? i'm pretty confident that the cooper was just flying by, and it was more coincidence. then again, if it was hungry, i'm sure it would have been more aggressive. it also may have been a juvenile, since they look just like females, and that's why it wasn't aggressive, since it lacked experience. many young hawks, especially bird hawks suffer large percentage of losses due to starvation amongst that years young. i'm just wondering if a single, flying hawk would be a current yearling, since its only july20? either way, why don't these bop's just go hunt at the expressway overpasses where there are literally hundreds of common pigeons? i just drove by a big expressway overpass on the way home, and a giant flock was circling above the grassy areas in the cloverleaf.
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Steve in Blue Point, NY
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JDA
GOLD MEMBER
352 posts
Jul 21, 2009
12:07 PM
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steve49... Put them up,they need all the training they can get. When they get chased then you lock them down.JDA
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Joe Valdivia
3 posts
Jul 21, 2009
3:50 PM
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PR, im not sure if they go back to Richard Reyes, i'll find out soon though.
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TheGame
586 posts
Jul 21, 2009
8:11 PM
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Keep flying till one gets hit!
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steve49
111 posts
Jul 22, 2009
12:25 PM
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"Keep flying till one gets hit! ", ok, that's what i did, and it went ok (so far, knock on wood). i'm settling a second kit, but they won't be let loose for another week at least.
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Steve in Blue Point, NY
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