bird cover

[jef]

We built a pen this year at the top of a strip of Larches. Having shot it twice now it has produced two birds. Now from the begining I used to meet a Buzzard at the pen most evenings getting his supper and what he wasn't eating he was spooking away and eventually 60 became 0. Buzzard aside, half way down the strip the larches become very sparse with thick green grass, south facing and sheltered with a dyke at each side.

 

What we want to know is can we grow something among the trees to help hold birds next year. If so, what and when?? We tried tick beans last year but too late in the year I think. The tractor can fit in and around the trees very easily with the rotivator on the back.

 

The rooks use the same wood for nesting but they get hit hard every night from May until there are none left. There is also an abundance of Roe.

 

 

Any suggestions???

 

James

[proTOM1]

On a small shoot that i run there is a small drive where we had a similiar problem and so this year we have put maize every other row of trees and it has worked ok there are also some good long grasses you can get but we chose maize and it has worked for us , as long as you controll the rooks and crows for the first few weeks after drilling !

 

good look

[jef]

On a small shoot that i run there is a small drive where we had a similiar problem and so this year we have put maize every other row of trees and it has worked ok there are also some good long grasses you can get but we chose maize and it has worked for us , as long as you controll the rooks and crows for the first few weeks after drilling !

 

good look

 

And did you just sow it by hand? What time of year should it go into the ground?

 

Thanks

 

James

[keen shot]

hmmm, elephant grass?

[webber]

We are going to try dwarf sunflowers next season.

 

webber

[proTOM1]

And did you just sow it by hand? What time of year should it go into the ground?

 

Thanks

 

James

 

 

yes by hand and end of may time i think rows by hand a foot and a bit apart ! works well !

[proTOM1]

We are going to try dwarf sunflowers next season.

 

webber

 

have you tryed them befor ?

[webber]

have you tried them before ?

 

No, we've not tried anything before.

 

I got the idea from a neighbouring shoot, whom plant a cover crop right up to our boundary. Part of the mix was sunflowers. I thought that they would be quite easy to propagate and then transplant. We intend to plant them right on the edges of our woods which face south. A dwarf variety should mean that the pheasants can gain access to the seed heads.

 

webber

[anser2]

Jef , the trouble with sowing game cover in larch woodland is that the needles make the soil very acidic unless the soil is chalky. I suspect you would do better planting shrubs under and along the edge of the plantation as this will make the covert much warmer and provide a limited supply of berries for food. And maybe plant a game crop strip along the outside of the wood.

 

As for your buzzard , it might scare thea few pheasants but from 12 years of raptor study ( its part of my job ) I have never seen a buzzard take a pheasant ( indeed the only bird I have seen them take has been a 1\4 grown coot) . From your description I would guess its more likely the woods too open and drafty for pheasants to stay in it.

[webber]

Jef , the trouble with sowing game cover in larch woodland is that the needles make the soil very acidic unless the soil is chalky. I suspect you would do better planting shrubs under and along the edge of the plantation as this will make the covert much warmer and provide a limited supply of berries for food. And maybe plant a game crop strip along the outside of the wood.

 

As for your buzzard , it might scare thea few pheasants but from 12 years of raptor study ( its part of my job ) I have never seen a buzzard take a pheasant ( indeed the only bird I have seen them take has been a 1\4 grown coot) . From your description I would guess its more likely the woods too open and drafty for pheasants to stay in it.

 

We now have 4 buzzards on our shoot, plus other raptors. I read repeatedly that buzzards only fed on carrion. I now know for absolute fact that this is a load of sphericals. I saw 2 pheasant poults taken by buzzards in the same week.

 

webber

[CharlieT]

A little lime added to the soil will pay dividends. If you don't have a spreader it could be broadcast from a trailer with a shovel.

We use predominantly Kale and Maize for our plots but this year we tried some Winter Triticale in situations such as you describe and I must say it has worked very well. It is still standing and providing food and cover. Well worth a try and if I was in your situation I would alternate with blocks of dwarf sunflower as Webber suggested.

The Triticale is fairly tall and as I said stands up very well and therefore affords protection from the bloody Buzzards which we are plagued with. I hate to think how many poults they take every year, far more than foxes !.

 

Charlie

[anser2]

I can only guess you have a rouge common buzzard Webber. In Norfolk birds are a rare part of their diet. I spend about 1,000 hours a year watching about 10 pairs of common buzzards in North Norfolk. I also collect t their pellets under nests to see what they have been eating. The majority of their diet are voles and invertebrates. they also take a lot of rabbits and rats and some amphibians and lizards. I have never found bird bones , but did once see one carrying a small coot. Carrion forms a small part of their diet localy , unless they get used to it being put out for them , something several keepers do in my area in winter.

 

The main game predators in my area are foxes , badgers , rats , stoats and by far the biggest .... CARS. I know of one quiet country lane where its not uncommon to see the remains of over 50 pheasants at release time. There must be several hundred killed on this one road during the course of a year. Even the 2 mile long lane where i work where there are no released birds 50 + pheasants are killed each year.

[bjlfishing]

all buzzards are rougues round here anyway nowt to do with bird cover but i would suggest trying to scare off the rogue first and foremost or you will never have any birds he might only eat one a day but can quite easily scare every other one into the mouth of any takers there isnt a lot of bottom in larches so some cover would be an idea

[Popgun]

We get no end of hasel from Buzzards killing poults, we have a mixed wood and on the south side of it we planted artichockes ( sorry about the spelling) they've been in for 3 years now and are going strong and doing a good job.they are easy to plant just like spuds and after 2 or 3 years you can dig some up and plant them where you need more cover done a good job for us, could be worth a try for you.

[fallarben]

on are small shoot i but empty cds on strings round the edge of the woods to keep raptors away as they shine in the light as for game crop we use artichokes which we flail of at the end of the season and they come back better next year

[jef]

Thanks for the input guys, plenty food for thought.

 

James