Spotted a rather large redtail hawk perched on a post, watching the
pond. Over a year ago I saw one swoop down and hit the water with it's
talons but miss.

Maybe I need to get some really BIG fish that he couldn't lift out of
the water.

Mike Patterson
Please remove the spamtrap to email me.
"I always wanted to be somebody...I should have been more specific..." - Lily Tomlin

Too bad raptors are protected.

Jim

On Sun, 27 May 2007 20:05:33 CST, Mike Patterson
wrote:

Spotted a rather large redtail hawk perched on a post, watching the
pond. Over a year ago I saw one swoop down and hit the water with it's
talons but miss.

Maybe I need to get some really BIG fish that he couldn't lift out of
the water.

You mean bigger than the ordinary rabbit? It'll certainly take
squirrels and rabbits. I think you'll have to get your fish better
places to hide.

Even if you do get a humongous fish, it might still try and might
injure the fish badly in the attempt.

Netting is iffy. If you do netting, be sure that the hawk will be
easily able to see it. You don't want a dead hawk tangled in netting
in your pool.
--

r.bc: vixen
Minnow goddess, Speaker to squirrels, willow watcher.
Almost entirely harmless. Really.

http://www.visi.com/~cyli

Jaws...!
Make lunch out of the problem.

k :-)

Too bad raptors are protected.
Jim

Not too bad, as we wouldn't have any if they weren't. What's too bad is
they don't have more a taste for herons and water turkeys (as Brett use to
call cormorants).

Fishing line with metallic orchard tape should discourage it I would think.
~ jan
------------
Zone 7a, SE Washington State
Ponds: www.jjspond.us

Mike Patterson wrote:

Spotted a rather large redtail hawk perched on a post, watching the
pond. Over a year ago I saw one swoop down and hit the water with it's
talons but miss.

Yeah, Redtails aren't _good_ at fishing, but they do catch some.
--
derek
- Unless otherwise noted, I speak for myself, not rec.ponds.moderated
moderators.

I had a raccoon terrorizing my pond for 3 weeks and I netted the whole
thing (I also caught and euthanized him, which is legal, according to
fish and game). I also have a heron sculpture. I am told most birds
of that type only travel solo and if a bird sees another, he won't go
there. Owl sculptures are also supposed to work. Worth a try!


On May 27, 7:05 pm, Mike Patterson
wrote:
Spotted a rather large redtail hawk perched on a post, watching the
pond. Over a year ago I saw one swoop down and hit the water with it's
talons but miss.

Maybe I need to get some really BIG fish that he couldn't lift out of
the water.

Mike Patterson
Please remove the spamtrap to email me.
"I always wanted to be somebody...I should have been more specific..." - Lily Tomlin

You don't want a dead hawk tangled in netting
in your pool.

And you certainly don't want a live one trapped
in netting.
My mom works with birds of prey and one of her
fellow workers became very, very ill after getting
scratched by one of their raptors. The raptor in
question had come in contact with a mouse who
had something transmittable and it infected the
worker. Very ill for a long time.

Just for general purposes never handle a bird
of prey. If you find one (or get one wrapped up
in your netting) contact Fish and Wildlife asap.

k :-)

"Cyli" wrote in message
...

Netting is iffy. If you do netting, be sure that the hawk will be
easily able to see it. You don't want a dead hawk tangled in netting
in your pool.
==========================
My ponds have been netted with fine black bird netting for years. I never
found a bird of prey snagged in it. It's pulled tight about 18" over the
water. If they hit it at full speed they'd most likely get bounced back or
rip right through - depending how large they were and how hard they hit the
net. If we didn't net everything we wouldn't have one fish left.
--

RM....
Frugal ponding since 1995.
rec.ponder since late 1996.
My Pond & Aquarium Pages:
http://tinyurl.com/9do58
Zone 6. Middle TN USA
ISP: Hughes.net
~~~~ }((((* ~~~ }{{{{(ö

Ak!
No, I don't think a bird of prey will bounce off
a net. They come down with talons out to grab
their prey. More than likely you've never had one
visit. They are pretty smart birds.

I found this bit of info ~
Care must be taken when selecting and designing both temporary and permanent exclusion systems. Failure to do so can result in systems that are ineffective, cumbersome to work around, and a hazard to either the birds or the fish enclosed.
Selection of proper materials is of critical importance. Use small (1-
to 2-inch mesh) wire or net to exclude all birds, but avoid finely
textured netting that may entangle birds on contact.

Personally I would never net my ponds. Too dangerous for the dogs and
neighborhood cats and any bird, mouse or snake who stops by. My pond
is structured so that is not that easy for the neighborhood heron or
visiting kingfishers.
Also we don't have the big water snakes like in some parts of the
country and only one raccoon visit and they got treed much to their
dismay.

k :-)

wrote in message
ups.com...

brevity snips

Personally I would never net my ponds.

We had no choice. It was either netting them or giving up on fish. The other
problem was the endless stream of snapping turtles. I didn't want to reach
down for a plant pot one day and lose a finger. :-O

Too dangerous for the dogs and
neighborhood cats and any bird, mouse or snake who stops by. My pond
is structured so that is not that easy for the neighborhood heron or
visiting kingfishers.

Even our steep sided 2000g pond was being cleaned out by herons, snakes,
kingfishers, bullfrogs and turtles. There doesn't seem to be any way to
design ponds to keep these critters out. How is your pond built to keep
them out? The steep sided pond was just as infested with fish-eaters as the
smaller pond with less steep sides.

Also we don't have the big water snakes like in some parts of the
country and only one raccoon visit and they got treed much to their
dismay.

Racoons don't come near the homes on my road due to the number of dogs - I
think.
--
RM....
Frugal ponding since 1995.
rec.ponder since late 1996.
My Pond & Aquarium Pages:
http://tinyurl.com/9do58
Zone 6. Middle TN USA
ISP: Hughes.net
~~~~ }((((* ~~~ }{{{{(ö

"Derek Broughton" wrote in message
...
Yeah, Redtails aren't _good_ at fishing, but they do catch some.

brevity snips
=============================================
We have redtails here but have never seen them go after fish. People around
here with poultry have a problem with them I heard.
--

RM....
Frugal ponding since 1995.
rec.ponder since late 1996.
My Pond & Aquarium Pages:
http://tinyurl.com/9do58
Zone 6. Middle TN USA
ISP: Hughes.net
~~~~ }((((* ~~~ }{{{{(ö

I netted raptors and owls for a few years with ornithologists and a
big net with wide holes is used and it is draped so they hit and
"fall" into the folds. Birds need to get their wings ensnared or they
just fly off. I have had my pond netted for years and other than a
morning dove who persisted until they got under the net and drowned I
have had nothing else caught in the netting. it is plain "bird"
netting used all over the world and is not meant to actually catch
birds but keep them off of stuff.

we used leather gloves and grabbed the legs right above the feet, then
took the netting off the wings. At the raptor center I worked at they
conned me into hanging onto a Golden Eagle, hanging onto the feet (the
dangerous part of the bird) while they were doing some procedure to
it. Knowing what the talons can do to human flesh (our head
ornithologist got nailed by an owl one night because he tried to take
it out of the net at night... alone) I had a death grip on those legs.
It is doable.

netting is the only really reliable way to protect fish in a pond.
Ingrid

On Tue, 29 May 2007 00:23:49 CST, wrote:


Ak!
No, I don't think a bird of prey will bounce off
a net. They come down with talons out to grab
their prey. More than likely you've never had one
visit. They are pretty smart birds.

I found this bit of info ~
Care must be taken when selecting and designing both temporary and permanent exclusion systems. Failure to do so can result in systems that are ineffective, cumbersome to work around, and a hazard to either the birds or the fish enclosed.
Selection of proper materials is of critical importance. Use small (1-
to 2-inch mesh) wire or net to exclude all birds, but avoid finely
textured netting that may entangle birds on contact.

Personally I would never net my ponds. Too dangerous for the dogs and
neighborhood cats and any bird, mouse or snake who stops by. My pond
is structured so that is not that easy for the neighborhood heron or
visiting kingfishers.
Also we don't have the big water snakes like in some parts of the
country and only one raccoon visit and they got treed much to their
dismay.

k :-)

wrote
...it is plain "bird"
netting used all over the world and is not meant to actually catch
birds but keep them off of stuff.


Ingrid:

Thanks for your insight. Could you supply an internet link to a suitable
product? I don't mean to intend you to endorse any particular product or
vendor, just give us an example of the right type and an idea of the cost.


Michael
New Orleans, Louisiana USA
================================================== ==============

In article , "MLF"
wrote:

wrote
...it is plain "bird"
netting used all over the world and is not meant to actually catch
birds but keep them off of stuff.


Ingrid:

Thanks for your insight. Could you supply an internet link to a suitable
product? I don't mean to intend you to endorse any particular product or
vendor, just give us an example of the right type and an idea of the cost.


Do a Google search for "bird netting". There are a lot of choices.

--
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