Wet weather and wild broods

[Rhodey 96]

This year ive seen no wild broods yet, the wet weather is no good at all. How is everyone else doing with there wild birds? The only other problems is the grass growing ive strimmed around the pens more times than enough.

[Born Hunter 17,841]

Not expecting to see much of anything with all this rain! I saw a melanistic hen with only 2 chicks with her about a week ago. After last Fridays torrential downpour I should imagine they are both dead.

 

Will it be a bumper year for foxes? I read somewhere recently that good spring rainfall has been proven to lead to higher survival rates in cubs.....

[kenny14 656]

Not expecting to see much of anything with all this rain! I saw a melanistic hen with only 2 chicks with her about a week ago. After last Fridays torrential downpour I should imagine they are both dead.

 

Will it be a bumper year for foxes? I read somewhere recently that good spring rainfall has been proven to lead to higher survival rates in cubs.....

 

I've not seen a single wild brood yet, and as you say with the rainfall we've had it's doubtful there'll be many.

I read that about the Foxes too, and also that a lot of wet weather when the Cubs are young can lead to higher mortality rates due to them getting wet from the Vixen. If it's right then the weather we've had should mean there'll be more about this year, but as yet it's hard to tell around here as everything's waist high still.

[Rhodey 96]

Just got to wait for the combines to start rolling a can seriously get on top of them. I have got four pairs of greys but havent seen them since the crops got up im hoping they have managed to rear few, fingers crossed.

[mikey 2]

have seen a brood today ,in the middle of the road!as far as foxes go weve had more cubs in cubs in traps in the last 2 months than in the last few years!

[alimac 882]

Mikey it's about the only dry place she can find for them no doubt..

Grouse lads north of here that shot 40+ days last season are saying there looking at only 12/15 this year.. There wild greys aren't fairing much better on the brood survival rate either

[Rhodey 96]

Its been really crap for everyone. People that are rearing must be tearing there hair out, i bet the poults havent been let out on grass much. Be lots of pecking being shut up all the time.

[Lab 10,979]

I've only had one lot of birds out so far and in a week and a half they have seen 2 good days.

Managed to get some out today and hopefully the rain won't come tonight, atleast it's warm tonight.

Was speaking to someone today about young birds and he has seen none, never seen any myself and not expecting it.......:-(

[killbilly 17]

The wild broods have takin a beating no doubt - the only ones I've seen this year where a number I've picked up soaked and dead from hypothermia in traditional nesting areas:(

[Ideation 8,216]

Nope, seen feck all in terms of wild young. It's just damn miserable!

[Gkeeper111 22]

Seen two wild broods- that's it. Haven't seen them for some time now though. I'm rearing and my birds are due out next week. Floods everywhere and rain rain and more rain. Non of my covers have grown on the clay we have here either. Gonna be a very very very tough year for everyone!

 

Gk

[lilvixen 26]

Is anyone else seeing late broods? On the concrete farm drive just up from my house I've seen 5 small broods of redlegs aged between 1 and 3 weeks and 2 hen birds with 2 chicks each of similar age. They've got 2nd year kale one side of drive and standing wheat the other, seems to be doing them well! Also saw on sunday a redleg on the park with 5 chicks that were no more than 48 hours old. There's a Mallard on one of our ponds with very young ducklings as well.

[ftm 3,357]

i saw 2 broodsof newly hatched ducklings yesterday but also saw jackdaws with building materials!

[neil cooney 10,416]

Unless they're all staying in the 1000s of acres of uncut corn around here I would say it's been a terrible year for all ground nesting birds.

When you add this to the fact that the hare bred badly too but the fox bred well I've noticed foxes doing some strang things this year.

ie. one caught in a fox trap that had no bait in it.

2 cases of foxes taking cats.

A fox attacking a woman and the following day chasing a child (the same fox both days).

A fox taking a goose from the back of a house at 12 in the day. This fox only let go when the owner of the goose kicked the fox and the goose lived.

And several cases of chicken killers in broad daylight.

So I would think that our fox population seems to be quiet hungry with little wild food for them.

I can see our club having to buy a lot of extra birds to compensate for the bad breeding season.