- This topic has 7 replies, 6 voices, and was last updated 7 years, 10 months ago by
.
-
Posts
-
Hello All – Here in Central MA we’re feeling devastated this morning. We had 4 hatchlings and were feeding mealworms. We have had issues with a black bear raiding our feeders in the past. Been bringing them in every night and last night the hungry bear decided to eat something else. I don’t feel like putting the feeders out anymore or unplugging the other house. I feel sick to my stomach over this. Here’s the image I put onto Google photo, can’t seem to get the link feature to work. Can’t seem to get anything to work right today…
https://goo.gl/photos/MyNqQ613LdRsaAvr8Hi, Deb. Incredibly sorry for your loss. I grew up in northern CT, and I now live in NH. Your photo depicts a bear attack, to me, as well. I have previously posted, elsewhere, my practice of taking in all of my feeding stations during nesting season. We have a family of black bears that we have peacefully co-existed with for the past 12 years, but if I fed during the Spring/Summer, they would destroy my nest boxes, no doubt.
Randy
Bedford, New HampshireThanks Randy. That’s good advice. I see you’re from Bedford, NH. We bought this house from that store in Amherst, NH. I remember many years ago when we lost the male nesting in an ornamental house and when the babies finally fledged we thought something got them too, the owner of the store gave me similar advice but the house and the seed feeders are like 70 feet apart. I’m wondering had I left the feeders out the bear would’ve gone after them and not bothered with the box.
I imagine it depends upon the particular bear, but my approach is to discourage them from visiting my entire property, rather than to give them options once they arrive. My other issue with my feeding station is that it creates ridiculous amounts of traffic, noise, and chaos. During the winter, I don’t mind, and my 22 blues are part of the commotion at that time, as well. Come nesting season, however, my nesting pair want peace and quiet, so I stop feeding everyone except the Baltimore Orioles. At present, my blues are feeding 5 3-day old hatchlings, and I don’t even put out mealworms. They have 3 acres of prime EABL hunting grounds, and they do a great job! I love to watch them hunt, then return with their quarry to the box!
Randy
Bedford, New HampshireOh my gosh! And we think we have trouble here in the Mid-west with HOSP and HOWR. The bear doesn’t just climb the pole & grab babies out of hole, they literally destroy the whole box. So sorry. Randy’s idea of not inviting them anywhere on your property sounds like the way to go, instead of giving them a choice of what to eat! Even with my bluebird, I do not have any other feeders around during nesting season, just my cage feeder for them to eat mealworms. They really do need peace and quiet as much as possible. Of course, we have plenty of robins, woodpeckers, etc., which co-exist peacefully with the blues in their own nesting.
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.