About the Black Vulture

After the vulture attacked the ducks yesterday, several people commented that vultures normally only go after carrion, so I did a little Internet research. It turns out that there are two types of vultures in North America, the black vulture and the turkey vulture. The turkey vulture apparently only is equipped to eat carrion, but the black vulture has been known to eat live prey, including other birds. According to a USDA National Wildlife Research Center publication, it can be a danger to livestock, especially newborn animals.



The information I found on line also said that black vultures don't have a strong sense of smell, and sometimes rely on turkey vultures to identify carrion for them. They also sometimes urinate or defecate on their own legs to cool themselves down. Charming.

On the other hand, they also are said to mate for life, and have a strong social network.

Yesterday the vulture hovered overhead for a while, apparently trying to lull us (and perhaps the ducks) into a false sense of security. While he (she?) was doing that, a blue heron flew by, apparently heading for the pond. It changed course when it saw the vulture. Why? Are they rivals? Would it fear the vulture?

The picture below has the vulture above and the heron below.



Hopefully the ducks were just a target of opportunity, but they are easy prey. At our other house, we tried to stock the pond with female ducks, but they were just too small, and we lost two of the three to hawks.

The third one had...mental stability issues, and the last we saw of her, she was waddling down our street quacking madly. I think the male ducks who were already at the pond when we moved there were happy to see her go, as they had been exerting strenuous efforts to help her adapt and it just wasn't happening. Poor duck.

You Too, Halley?

Our dear cat Gus, who was killed by a car not long ago, was a charming cat, but not the sharpest knife in the drawer, even for a cat. Below is his version of bird-hunting. He just couldn't figure out why the hummingbirds never came.



The day after he died, Halley showed up. She's very different in personality, and we had some hopes for a while that she might have a little more upstairs.

Alas, it was not to be.



I can't imagine why the hummingbirds aren't letting her catch them.

Not that I want her to catch a hummingbird, but still, it's a little embarrassing, isn't it?

Video of the Vulture Attack

I managed to get a short video of the vulture attacking the ducks...

A Vulture Attacks the Ducks

My husband called me out onto the deck this morning to see a vulture that had landed on the roof of the boat dock. As we watched, he repeatedly swooped our three ducks.



They squawked in terror, and Gilligan, the domestic white duck who's larger than the other two, tried to spread his wings to cover Miss Penny, the small female.

We found Gilligan's white feathers all over the shore later.



Here the vulture tries again...



After a few minutes watching, we ran down to the shore, and my husband stood there to keep the vulture at bay. It finally gave up and flew away.



We can't help but wonder if it'll be back, though.

I imagine the ducks are wondering the same thing.

Attack of the Hummingbirds

We put a hummingbird feeder out front the other day because the two hummingbird feeders in the back have been getting overwhelmed. Now we're getting bombarded by hummingbirds out front as well.



We had a landscaper over a couple of days ago. He was walking around making drawings, using a red clipboard, and he said the hummingbirds were dive-bombing him.

Here are some visuals of the fights. There are only two hummingbirds in this picture, but I've seen as many as five fighting over this feeder.




I saw a really weird fight yesterday. One male hummingbird was using the feeder, while another attacked it in great, swooping arcs, making an odd, almost cooing sound as it neared its rival in the middle of each arc. I've never heard a hummingbird make that sound before.



We've been having hummingbirds since about April. My husband saw one, figured it was a scout, and set the first feeder out. Voila! -- we became Hummingbird Central.

Hmmm, I wonder if in hummingbird culture, we're thought of as pushers? ("Pssst! Here, little guy, come try some of this sugar water. It'll make you feel reeeaaaal good.")

Why Are the Hummingbirds Nervous?

We've been having lots of hummingbirds at our feeder, so many that my husband had to place a second feeder on the rail temporarily because the hanging feeder looked like the OK Corral with all the hummingbird fights. They are vicious little birds.



We were getting lots of action at the second feeder...



and then it stopped.

Hmmm, I can't imagine why.




Gus, the great hunter. He has absolutely no idea why they've stopped coming.



The birds should wish all cats were like this one.

Last year, Gus was asleep on a planter hanging from our neighbor's deck (squashing all of her flowers, of course). I was watching him, thinking that I should go get him, when I saw a squirrel sneaking up behind him. I swear this is true -- it crept right up to him, tapped him on the back, and ran away.

Gus slept through the whole thing. That squirrel had quite a tale for his friends....