Mountain Lion Shot In Arkansas

[Al Agnew]

Killing coyotes just because they kill deer at times actually has something in common with being an anti-hunting animal rights idiot. You're letting emotions overrule pragmatism. It's easy to get all bent out of shape about poor little fawns getting torn limb from limb, but we should be concerned with population dynamics, not individual cute little animals. There is obviously zero evidence that coyotes in Missouri are depressing the deer population, so killing them for killing deer just doesn't make sense. IF the deer population ever dropped precipitously and it could be shown that coyote predation was a major factor in the decline, then by all means start shooting coyotes.

They will take deer. They'll take lambs, or anything else that's small enough and weak enough. We lost three or four chickens to them over the years when we kept free range chickens. Want to keep that from happening? Make it harder for them to do it. My brother-in-law has free range chickens all over the place, and never loses one to coyotes...because he has (or had) a dog that patrolled the yard where the chickens were. Got a sheep operation? Several breeds of dogs have proven to be excellent at guarding sheep from coyotes and even wolves.

If you're out and about and SEE a coyote going after your livestock, then by all means shoot it. But shooting one just because it MIGHT eat something sometime is a different story. For one thing, not all coyotes are the same. Some will take to eating livestock, others may never do it.

I also have no real problem if you want to shoot one now and then for the pelt. After all, they are pretty numerous and can stand some shooting. But just shooting them because they eat stuff you like to hunt or because you hate coyotes, and leaving them lay after you shoot them, is not something I have any respect for.

[Feathers and Fins]

Glen they move from time to time... Here is a real PITA Though... when I was doing construction in FL if a Osprey nest was on the property before you cleared it even if it hadn't been used in years you would have to put a new on up in its place... We had to put a telephone pole up with a plywood base and sides and hay in it to get the CO on the House

[Al Agnew]

Speaking of Eagles.... There's a big nest at the mouth of "my" creek that has been there for over 7 years, and last Fall/Winter there were 5 balds using it.

This Fall it is completely empty. The eagles are gone. Haven't seen a single one in the vicinity since late March - early April.

Why would they pull up stakes and bail like that ? Is that typical Eagle behavior or is it likely that something happened to them ?

I've never known them to "use" a nest in the fall and winter. Maybe it was just a convenient perch, but the young are fully gone from the nest by mid to late summer and the nest is not a focal point of their fall and winter living.

HWFS is right, they go wherever they can get fish easily.

Nests ARE used over and over again from year to year by the same pair of birds. If the old pair disappears a new pair might take over the nest. If it's an active nest, there should be a pair coming back in the spring to use it.

[HeWhoFishesSolo]

There are osprey regularly at the place i fish. Very beautiful birds. (The ones i see are always a pair, hopefully thats a good sign)

[fishinwrench]

Hmmm, interesting.

I always saw them in and around it in the late Fall and early Spring. Every Fall when the leaves cleard they'd be there.

You can't see the nest when the leaves are on so I just assumed they used it as a roost all year long.

[Old plug]

Wrench----They are around here somwhere Wrench. Not sure ware I watched them last week trying to take ducks out of a large flock. I have only seen that affair twice in my life. They make fools of the Eagle. It is really interesting to watch.

[fishinwrench]

You can see the nest over my shoulder here.

Closer look

Eagle carnage....

They are rather wasteful basturds, Only wanted the fresh red gills and the eggs out of this one.

[HeWhoFishesSolo]

Ah ha! NUISANCE!

Kill em!

(Kidding)

[Justin Spencer]

Cool pics wrench, thankfully we do have coyotes to take a few fawns here and there otherwise we would be even more over run with deer. I have a llama that normally protects the flock, but last year we just got overrun with yotes and she couldn't keep up, I have one very secure pasture where I will put my ewes to lamb this year, once they get some size on them I guess the coyotes go back to eating fawns. Hunting coyotes as a population control is an effort in futility, they are pretty good at adjusting litter size to available prey.

[ness]

Cool pics, wrench. I especially like the third one.