Bird reduction numbers

[one hogman]

Stop buying into the propaganda. Feral cats have been around as long as birds have. I take care of a feral colony of about 30. They lie in the yard, side by side with the birds that feed and drink from the bird baths. In 21 years on my land, I've found maybe 4 birds killed by a cat and it was always the same cat, the only one that could actually survive on her own.

Feral cats are not a new thing. Declining bird numbers are. This is pure junk science made up by people who don't want to admit that pesticides, over hunting, progress of big business and other predators are the true reason. Birds would have long been extinct if feral cats were the reason for the decline.

You ever seen a cat stalk a mockingbird? It's not a pretty sight, the cat ALWAYS loses.

Spoken like a true cat LOVER

 

[JustUs4All]

They are birds. They are hunted (when they can be found). The numbers are declining.

Like the sun came up. I have a tooth ache. Sunrise must cause tooth aches.

I think most of it is habitat realted. Around here quail got scarce when row cropping ended leading to much less "edge", no good nesting areas, drastic change in food sources. The invasion of non native ants may have played a part as there is hardly an eighth of an acre on my place without several fire and mounds. Development by humans has changed a lot as well.

I miss the bats. Used to watch them a lot as a kid. Sort of like watching the fish bowl that we didn't have.

 

[AceOfTheBase]

I blame it all on filthy yotes and feral cats .

 

[Bigga Trust]

I had one cat that I know for a fact killed many hundreds of birds. I had to take my birdfeeder down. It killed birds every. single. day. Several scientific studies have shown that up to 4 billion birds are killed every year by feral and roaming pet cats. Every new study confirms the same thing. You call it "junk science" and ignore it because you are a cat lover and can't believe that cute little Garfield is one of the most effective predators of small animals on the planet.

I'm with you on that. Cats kill all kinds of critters

 

[Bigga Trust]

I see less than 10 meadow larks a year nowadays, unlike when I was a youngun and the fields would be covered with them. As for everything else you mentioned, there are more than a gracious plenty of all of them around here.

A few others I know longer see in any quantity, honey bees and hornets. Been a long time since I`ve seen a hornet nest, and I`ve only seen one wild hive of honeybees in a long time. The swarms I used to see every summer have disappeared.

Had a Hornet's nest in the back yard over the stream and another one 500 yards away this year. First time i have seen one here.

 

[killerv]

my cat is a bird killin machine, I'd get rid of it but the wife loves it too much. He likes to leave them half dead at the door to show off. He brought a live one in the other day, made for some excitement inside the house.

 

[NOYDB]

My Sis had a cat that was a great hunter. She learned to check her bed before going sleep as the cat left presents under the pillow.

 

[Gary Mercer]

Plenty of crows. About 20 in the front yard as we speak.
But have you noticed the shift in the Buzzard population? All I am seeing is black buzzards. I don't think I have seen a turkey buzzard in over a year.
What's happening?

 

[redneck_billcollector]

I was talking about modern day, since conservation came to the forefront examples. Quail, Pheasant, Woodcock, snipe, blah blah blah are not in a bind due to overhunting.

Quail, woodcock and snipe are in decline due to land usage and habitat. Where I live we have a lot quail, but I live in an area where quail are intensively managed. I saw more woodcock today than I have seen in years. I have been burning clear cuts the past week in prep for planting longleaf pine for conservation purposes as opposed to timber income. I got a number of my site prep burns to run into the hardwoods over the week and today, I must have flushed 20 or more woodcock, the most I have seen in ages. They were all in the areas that burned into the hardwoods and canebrake. I firmly believe pesticides and their over use has contributed to a decline in certain species of birds. I have been keeping track of the insects on my property, and actually rotate my burns in a manner so that I can keep a healthy insect community. My property is in Mitchell Co. and has a lot of pecan orchards surrounding it...when they spray, I stop seeing most of my pollinators. We have screwed up our environment so much due to industrial style agriculture, water usage, and land management practices....it is a wonder we have the birds we do.

 

[king killer delete]

I haven’t seen a covey of quail in 20 years. No red wing black birds.

 

[redneck_billcollector]

I blame it all on filthy yotes and feral cats .

The "yotes" actually help the bird population....that is not me saying that, but the most extensive study...ever done in the southeast on Bobwhite. The Albany Quail Project, that was run by Auburn and taken over by Tall Timbers. They placed thousands of nest cams annually on lands managed for wild quail. What they learned was that "yotes" fed heavily on the meso-predators, the coons and possums, that would destroy up to 80% of quail nests in some areas. They found when there was a healthy population of "yotes" the quail nest survival rate increased, the more brush wolves, the higher the population of quail. Do not take if from me, take it from the people who basically wrote the book on modern wild quail management....you can also extrapolate the same results for wild turkeys. When brush wolves were around, the coons and possums did not venture out into the savannas to prey upon quail nests. They also rarely, if ever, had a yote raid a quail nest.

 

[Nicodemus]

The "yotes" actually help the bird population....that is not me saying that, but the most extensive study...ever done in the southeast on Bobwhite. The Albany Quail Project, that was run by Auburn and taken over by Tall Timbers. The placed thousands of nest cams annually on lands managed for wild quail. What they learned was that "yotes" fed heavily on the meso-predators, the coons and possums, that would destroy up to 80% of quail nests in some areas. They found when there was a healthy population of "yotes" the quail nest survival rate increased, the more brush wolves, the higher the population of quail. Do not take if from me, take it from the people who basically wrote the book on modern wild quail management....you can also extrapolate the same results for wild turkeys.

Jay, the place I hunt right here around the house, over the last 20 years I have witnessed that very thing you speak of. Quail and turkey populations are flourishing, and we have an abundance of predators. We also have a very healthy ecosystem

 

[redneck_billcollector]

Jay, the place I hunt right here around the house, over the last 20 years I have witnessed that very thing you speak of. Quail and turkey populations are flourishing, and we have an abundance of predators. We also have a very healthy ecosystem

Brother Nick, I flushed around 20 timber doodles today, never seen so many in my life. I wasn't hunting but putting out longleaf pine seeds in clear cuts I have been burning all week. I am picking up an L C Smith 16 Bore Field Grade, 26 inch factory barrel (I did not even know they made them til I started researching the serial number...was special order) in modified and I C. Gonna be my go to upland game gun. Perfect LOP for me too....I bumped into Chris (Turtleman) today too, he apparently was in town. Stopped by Pretoria Fields after sowing LL seed all day...and he walked in.

 

[Bigga Trust]

There is a quail covey off Hwy 44 and New Phoenix that hang around a fence row that has good cover. I see them scatter from time to time when i drive by.

 

[NCHillbilly]

Plenty of crows. About 20 in the front yard as we speak.
But have you noticed the shift in the Buzzard population? All I am seeing is black buzzards. I don't think I have seen a turkey buzzard in over a year.
What's happening?

Thousands of them up here, and you hardly ever see a black vulture. About a 60/40 mix on my place in SC, in favor of the blacks.

 

[Nicodemus]

Brother Nick, I flushed around 20 timber doodles today, never seen so many in my life. I wasn't hunting but putting out longleaf pine seeds in clear cuts I have been burning all week. I am picking up an L C Smith 16 Bore Field Grade, 26 inch factory barrel (I did not even know they made them til I started researching the serial number...was special order) in modified and I C. Gonna be my go to upland game gun. Perfect LOP for me too....I bumped into Chris (Turtleman) today too, he apparently was in town. Stopped by Pretoria Fields after sowing LL seed all day...and he walked in.

If I can get around some this week, I`ll check some coverts around here and see what shows up. I`m not getting around real good right now, and I haven`t seen one in a couple of years.

 

[ancienttrails]

Gone Cedarwax wings , robins scarce, blackbirds, quail, but lots of hawks,eagles,sandhill, possum, coon, house cats, ratsnakes,rattlesnakes, Turkey this is in balance of predators and people with sprays. We have been feeding with old quail feeders last few years and finally quit last covey disappeared a year ago. Still hear a catbird down on creek edge saw a woodcock other afternoon almost cryed it moved me somuch.

 

[oldguy]

Saw a bald eagle just east of Leary Thursday! Got up out of the road on a road-kill coon.
I often wonder about the big flocks of cedar wax wings we used to see as kids in the 50s around Albany. They used to cover the pyracantha bushes for the red berries. But then again you don't see pyracantha bushes anymore either.

 

[Nicodemus]

Saw a bald eagle just east of Leary Thursday! Got up out of the road on a road-kill coon.
I often wonder about the big flocks of cedar wax wings we used to see as kids in the 50s around Albany. They used to cover the pyracantha bushes for the red berries. But then again you don't see pyracantha bushes anymore either.

Steve, over around home in Wheeler County this time of the year the trees would be covered in rice birds (cedar waxwings) and up till about 20 years ago, there would be some fairly good flocks here in Lee. Now I`ll maybe see a flock of 30 or 40, at the most.

 

[NCHillbilly]

Still a lot of cedar waxwings here in the mountains. About late February, there are always huge mixed flocks of waxwings and robins going around stripping every berry that's left off the hollies, privets, hawthorns, and other trees and bushes.