Will a Hawk attack a Macaw?

[Featheredsamurai]

Great photos! Is that the dad in the picture? He's so small he looks like he just hit puberty. Lol

What does your friend do that she has all these raptors?

lol that is the dad, raptor females are always larger. The female is also SUPER puffed up in that photo, making her look even bigger.

My friends dad is in abatement, so he gets paid to fly his birds(awesome job!) over wineries seasonally, and anywhere that wants to naturally scare away wild birds, or other animals without harming them. He has a peregrine falcon, aplomado falcon, 3 hybred saker falcons, one large female saker falcon, 3 augur buzzards(breeding pair and their 5 year old son), lanner falcon, merlin falcon, 2 harris hawks, and a australian kookaburra. Then my friend has a red tailed hawk, and American kestrel.

 

[Birdman666]

Now there's a dream job for you.

Take the birds out to a winery... and get paid for it!

 

[MonicaMc]

I really don't care for those zoo videos showing birds of prey attacking parrots. Many people assume that the birds of prey are wild when they aren't. The birds of prey are also a part of the show! Just not intentional for them to come in contact with parrots.

Wild birds of prey don't *NORMALLY* act like that! They normally avoid people. That said, if a bird is hungry enough, then yes they will take a pet that's within a few feet of you, if not a bird sitting on your shoulder.



If taking your birds outside you should use common sense. Scan the skies. Scan the trees. Look for any signs of danger! If you see danger, either don't take your bird out, or use a carrier instead and keep a close eye on your surroundings.

 

[DallyTsuka]

unsupervised cages are also a bad idea... hawks wont hesitate an easy meal if they can get their talons on the bird.


[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTTeNdamLfA"]Sparrowhawk vs Budgie - YouTube[/ame]



ive also been swooped by a sharp shinned hawk, a hawk only about the size of a sun conure, only much heavier and stronger. hawks are fearless and i'd be cautious... theyre the reason i will never free flight. my birds go on a harness and never on my shoulder outside. they stay in front of me, at chest level while walking, so i can see any attacks.

 

[MonicaMc]

DallyTsuka, you reminded me of another video.... the comments vary from attacks to the owner, to the parrot having a beak, being able to defend itself. Owner of amazon says his bird was safe because the hawk could not reach into the cage to harm the amazon. The amazon was, however, chewing on the hawks nails.



[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4L2AoXqQN_o"]Hawk on Parrot Cage in Suburban Yard! - YouTube[/ame]

 

[DallyTsuka]

yeah, that suuuure looks like a happy zon... -.-

but it goes to show that hawks are gutsy and not afraid of people if theyre hungry enough.

some graphic photos here... from google...

here's some photos of hawks with prey in the wild, SOME quite capable of "defending" themselves. if they can take down these prey items, then most of them would not hesitate at a domestic unaware pet bird, regardless of size.


northern goshawk, prey is a smaller cousin of this accipiter.

http://cdn1.arkive.org/media/1D/1D6...rthern-goshawk-male-with-sparrowhawk-prey.jpg


northern goshawk with pheasant, a bird bigger than itself...

http://cdn2.arkive.org/media/CF/CFB...rthern-goshawk-feeding-on-common-pheasant.jpg



oh, and if a red tail is willing to take a rattlesnake, i dont think macaw beaks would scare them much

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjmJla-q880"]Red-Tailed Hawk vs. Rattler - YouTube[/ame]


golden eagles will take DEER. think about the weight compared to a macaw...

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02094/bird-deer_2094466c.jpg


bald eagles, normally scavengers for fish... will often attack waterbirds...

swans are among the heaviest of all north american birds, weighing over 20 lbs. bald eagles are around 10 lbs.

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2009/08/10/article-1205597-06033C4A000005DC-866_964x400.jpg




i dont know... being an avid bird watcher myself, especially focused on the raptors, theres some scary things out there, and knowing these facts... i wouldnt be the owner of that zon taking a video while the hawk stresses my bird out... i'd be shooing the hungry hawk away!

hawks are strong, gutsy, unpredictable and deserve respect.

 

[Billy29]

That's insane, I have a redtail that flies over the neighborhood. This past summer I was taking Mango out for walks with me and the dog. Now I'm nervous to even take him outside, he always had his harness on but still after seeing that video.

 

[Betrisher]

Raptors aren't the only ones to worry about, either! We've had a Butcher Bird hanging around our cages on and off for a few years. Just yesterday, a Kookaburra was parked on my clothesline looking intently at Barney and Madge! If he'd seen the Lovies just around the corner, I think he'd have made a meal of them in a heartbeat!

Butcher Birds are sort of like Shrikes in that they will hunt and kill a small songbird, given the chance. They're famous for horrifying caged birds (especially budgies and finches) and stabbing them through the cage with their long, lethal bills. If they know chicks are about, they'll hang around like a bad smell, just waiting for the opportunity to whip in and grab one.

Kookaburras don't muck around! That huge bill is really deadly and a caged bird would be an easy meal. Small birds seem to lose all sense of direction when a predator is nearby and it's not hard for them to be picked off as they bang about inside the cage. Kookaburras love eating baby birds in the wild and they've easily adapted to nabbing take-away from cages.

We have other large, possibly predatory birds as well. Our Bell Magpies could, conceivably, have a go at a small caged bird. Our Currawong would and does. Our Ravens and Crows are very predatory, but not as confiding and as comfortable around human beings as the aforementioned: I've never heard of a Raven or Crow taking a tame bird, but that's not to say they never would.

So yeah, lots of food for thought in all this.

PS. Australian members might want to check out Episode Four of 'Hello Birdy' on ABC iview. It's all about Australian raptors and has some wonderful shots of a few of the less common species. Eg. a Black Breasted Buzzard using a fat rock to crack an emu's egg and a Black Kite being used to teach Carnaby's Black Cockatoos to be afraid of predators before being released into the wild. It's a great show and will be on iview for a week or so.

 

[MonicaMc]

Besides the amazons safety, it's also teaching the hawk that it's ok to come close to humans and our dwellings. That in itself can pose it's own dangers. I agree that the man should have chased the hawk away from his amazon.



Billy, you shouldn't stop the walks, just keep a close eye on your surroundings and be prepared to act if you need to.

 

[Birdbrain91]

Now that I think about it I guess it was a dumb question. Lol I was thinking due to the size a smaller bird would be an easier target.

I know birds of pray are built for hunting and could easily kill/eat anything. I just forgot how bold they were.

I would never leave any of my parrots outside UNATTENDED and without a cage. I was just thinking about walks here and there.

 

[DallyTsuka]

never a dumb question never be afraid to ask, because what you think is dumb, someone else may not know and be too afraid to ask themselves. its good for all to learn.


yes, crows, shrikes, and even some gulls can be a problem. plus, not just avian predators... cats, dogs, raccoons, possums (wild animals are more likely to attack around dawn/dusk or overnight if you leave a cage outside at night), foxes, coyotes, etc. but in cities the bigger risks are cats and dogs... never know other peoples dogs in parks, walk by and SNAP. hurt or worse bird.

 

[MonicaMc]

I definitely think some people reading this thread and some that replied have learned something from it! Definitely not a dumb question at all! There are some things that people just don't think about so wouldn't even bother asking anyway!

 

[cateyes221981]

It has to be a large experienced hawk, if the hawk does not kill the macaw instantly its going to lose its toe. Hawks often do not kill instantly. Hawks have broken toes from gulls and all sorts of prey. I think a macaw has a worse bill than those. I dont think a hawk is going to attack one, eagles will but not our hawks. The kestral was mobbing the macaw from fear and territory. There is a lot of tales about hawks when the real killer was a coyote people will blame hawks and other predators. Some think hawks hunt cats well they dont because its not possible. cats bacteria is lethal to a hawk even a kittens so if one started hunting cats it will die in 24 hours. WIld hawks are not as stupid as people think they actually do have some kind of common sense on what to attack and what is a risk. A falconry hawk is not the same thing. A BIG red tail is only 2 pounds and they cant carry more than their own weight. So them carrying away small dogs is also impossible. Red tails are not bird hawks they are mostly mammal and reptile killers. They kill the odd bird when it is an easy kill. Macaws did evolve with the most fierce hawks on earth in south america. These hawks and eagles are much more agile than a red tail so no a flying macaw is not going to be seen as a weakness unless the macaw is not healthy or not flying proper. KILLING a snake is very easy for some hawks like red tails the venom is not instantly lethal to them. The snake is a easy kill. These hawks are expert specialized snake hunters. If a wolf or puma or some other apex predator tried the same thing it will probably die because its not what they know how to kill. But a mongoose or a snake hawk can kill almost any snake.

 

[Birdman666]

It has to be a large experienced hawk, if the hawk does not kill the macaw instantly its going to lose its toe. Hawks often do not kill instantly. Hawks have broken toes from gulls and all sorts of prey. I think a macaw has a worse bill than those. I dont think a hawk is going to attack one, eagles will but not our hawks. The kestral was mobbing the macaw from fear and territory. There is a lot of tales about hawks when the real killer was a coyote people will blame hawks and other predators. Some think hawks hunt cats well they dont because its not possible. cats bacteria is lethal to a hawk even a kittens so if one started hunting cats it will die in 24 hours. WIld hawks are not as stupid as people think they actually do have some kind of common sense on what to attack and what is a risk. A falconry hawk is not the same thing. A BIG red tail is only 2 pounds and they cant carry more than their own weight. So them carrying away small dogs is also impossible. Red tails are not bird hawks they are mostly mammal and reptile killers. They kill the odd bird when it is an easy kill. Macaws did evolve with the most fierce hawks on earth in south america. These hawks and eagles are much more agile than a red tail so no a flying macaw is not going to be seen as a weakness unless the macaw is not healthy or not flying proper. KILLING a snake is very easy for some hawks like red tails the venom is not instantly lethal to them. The snake is a easy kill.

Well a red tail in NorCal took a macaw right off his owner's shoulder. The birds that live in the parks, and are used to humans, lose their fear of us.

The bird was literally just sitting there. "Sitting duck" so to speak.

When they are nesting, they are targets of opportunity.

I imagine, as hard as these birds hit, when they hit, broken toes are a fairly common problem. We saw a lot of broken feet and broken legs at the Lindsay museum...

 

[Birdman666]

One of the things that is missing from the debate in this thread is the REASON hawks are now going after pets...

The hawks didn't move to Suburbia. Suburbia encroached on the hawks. Natural prey has been significantly reduced, and they still have chicks to feed.

Ergo, targets of opportunity get taken.

If it looks like an easy meal, and the bird or it's chicks are hungry, a hawk, or an eagle, or any other predator will do what it does to survive.

 

[cateyes221981]

what kind of macaw was it? I don't doubt a red tail can do it but unlike goshawks they are not really bird hunters unless they are desperate for a easy target (like chickens) I know of falconry hawks going after cockatoos. I never lost a pigeon to a hawk in 8 years of flying them because once they get up in the air they can out fly them easy. I have lost a fewchickens to them but they never died instantly I would hear screaming and them struggling with the hawk. I agree though when animals get desperate predators will do ANYTHING i saw a cat kill a whole family of falcons on a youtube video that was documenting the falcons nesting there was hardly any fear from the attacking parents the cat just started eating everything alive.


Hey if you are from cal when I lived there snowy egrets use to nest in huge trees behind our house sometimes red tails would try to raid the colony but usually nesting crows would attack them so bad they would abort the attacks.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KE_4QpSC1hY"]Crows vs. Hawk Deathmatch - YouTube[/ame]

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOB24oweSC8"]You will be surprised! Sparrowhawk vs The Jackdaw - YouTube[/ame]

 

[Birdman666]

A full sized Male Greenwing! About 1700 grams or so...

From what was described, he was hiking in the Berkeley hills with his bird on his shoulder, i.e. going for a walk in the woods, thinking that his bird (which was very well trained) would not fly off on him, and the hawks wouldn't take him...

A red tailed hawk swooping down from above and behind, took the bird by the neck, right off his shoulder.

I have been in that same area many times, and I can tell you that the hawks that frequent that particular park have no fear of people. There was one perched on the back of a park bench, around a playground where I was watching my daughter. I was sitting at the other end of the SAME bench.

They have lost their natural fear of humans...

WHICH IS A BAD THING...

I lived in the SF bay area for 25-30 years.

I also lived in Huntington Beach. Went to college at Long Beach State & UCLA...

I miss it, but it was too hard to make ends meet in Cali anymore...

Been out here for about 4 years now.

 

[Birdman666]

I've seen crows fend them off before... they attack and mass.

One of the more interesting things I saw was a really windy day, a couple of little house sparrows vs. a hawk. The hawk was having a hard time with the turbulence, and the smaller wing span of the little birds enabled them to could fly right through the turbulence...

The little birds circled back and actually started pulling tail feathers out of the hawk in flight! Which upset the hawk in no small amount...

We have a roosting spot for grackols - I'm sure I spelled that wrong. Which are funny flock birds with a very high IQ... There is a peregrine falcon in the neighborhood that has attempted a couple of times to take the grackols...

If he comes within a block of the roosting spot, the entire flock mobilizes and masses. It's about 250 to 1. So far, I haven't seen him take any grackols...

 

[DallyTsuka]

you tend to have some knowledge of hawks, but red tails CAN go after birds, DO go after birds, and DO go after prey that weigh more than them. they are our most adaptable buteo hawk and are opportunists who hunt a variety of prey.

for example, red tails can and DO fly off with eastern cottontails. theyre a rabbit that weighs quite a bit...

for example, from wikipedia:

This rabbit is medium-sized, measuring 36–48 cm (14–19 in) in total length, including a small tail that averages 5.3 cm (2.1 in).[12][13] Weight can range from 800 to 2,000 g (1.8 to 4.4 lb), with an average of around 1,200 g (2.6 lb). The female tends to be heavier, although the sexes broadly overlap in size.[14][15] There may be some slightly variation in the body size of Eastern cottontails, with weights seeming to increase from south to north, in accordance with Bergmann's rule. Adult specimens from the Florida Museum of Natural History, collected in Florida, have a mean weight of 1,018 g (2.244 lb).[16] Meanwhile, 346 adult cottontails from Michigan were found to have averaged 1,445 g (3.186 lb) in mass

Eastern cottontail - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia



but if you look:

http://m5.i.pbase.com/g6/35/779835/2/150028995.40xO0Tuq.jpg

http://www.miriameaglemon.com/photo_gallery/Birds/Bird Images/P5290798 Red-tailed Hawks Sta Marg.jpg

http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/M5X8ZrHYKss/maxresdefault.jpg



yes theyre main prey MAY be mammals, BUT they do and are capable of taking birds.... for example, you can see wild birds below that wound up as prey items.

https://uwaterloo.ca/ecology-lab/si...es/resize/uploads/images/P2050040-300x225.JPG

http://www.shaughey.com/images/Hawk/Hawk.jpg


this one is a broad winged hawk, a buteo, a cousin of the red tail, another who specializes in reptiles, amphibians, and rodents, but still quite capable of taking birds

http://ninnescahlife.wichita.edu/sites/default/files/private/images/9_22_3R_copy.jpg



i'm sorry, but it is a great injustice to the red tail to claim that it is not a threat and not capable of taking larger prey. and red tails arent the ONLY bird of prey out there and others are much more capable of doing damage to our PETS, who have not been raised in the wild, who do not have the needed instincts their wild cousins do to AVOID these predators. they are easy prey and hawks know this. if hungry enough, or feeding a family you can bet your last dollar that they will definitely think about taking a pet bird.

peregrine falcons. theyre a city raptor in many many many areas, in my city we have a pair who nest here and theyve made big news... they take ducks who weigh more than they do. easily. ducks are actually one of their favourite prey items. so there's peregrines who'd likely take a larger parrot. and peregrines dont kill first hit--they swoop, smash/stun, THEN go down for the kill.


accipiters are true bird hawks and theyre clever and ruthless hunters who have even been known to chase their prey on foot, drown their prey, or purposely chase their prey into windows. that could happen with a parrot as well.

its not worth the risk to assume hawks cannot do damage. even if they dont kill in the first place, is it still worth the injury to your family member?



attached are some of MY OWN photos...


sharp shinned hawk, an accipiter. long skinny legs, thin sharp talons... this bird will hunt birds as big as it is such as blue jays. this is a true bird hawk. for those who have birds up to the size of large cockatiels, this bird lives in cities and WILL not hesitate to take easy bird prey... its one who often drives its prey into windows.

talons who could do massive damage to your bird whether it survives the initial attack or not. not worth the risk or ignorance in my opinion these are of a great horned owl, another opportunist who will even eat skunks and snowy owls!

and meet the merlin, a small falcon who will take birds larger than it. its a bold bird and look at that falcon "tooth" on its beak, which all falcons have... that notch is designed to break the vertabrae in its prey's neck... it's small, but a lethal predator, and yes that is myself holding her, a wild banded bird that i got to release, a few years back.



whether a hawk can or cannot kill your bird, its still not worth the injury and still a risk. theyre amazing birds, but people should be aware that they are clever, will take an easy meal, and our parrots have not lived in the wild and lack the survival instincts needed. most of our birds are not used to flying miles each day for food, theyre not as physically fit as their wild cousins, and they may not fully be able to defend against a hawk attack like their wild cousins could.

 

[thekarens]

FWIW it's grackle. We have 3 types here in Texas, common (which is what you see most often,) boat-tailed, and great-tailed.