[islandgal]

I am really upset. I love sitting on my lanai and watching the many birds that visit my birdfeeder (I live in a courtyard villa).
I just went out to my lanai to read the paper and drink my coffee and there was a fairly large bird on the ground with grey feathers all around him. He had attacked one of the doves that frequents the feeder. When I walked out on the lanai he flew away and is now on a wall several doors down from me devouring it.

I don't know what kind of bird it is. It is about the size of a large crow but is not black. It has brown feathers with a beige chest and feet. I googled to see if crows are colors other than black but such is not the case. There are now several birds making loud noises diving down trying to attack him!

Any ideas? I don't want him to come back

[graciegirl]

Awwww.

I hate when that happens. We have hawks here in Ohio who stalk my bird visitors. Are there hawks in Florida?

You have a bird feeder. People have said they attract snakes. I was crossing it off my list. I know you need permission for any not hung in trees or from the house.

Tell me what birds come to feed and what do you feed them? What kind of feeder do you have?

[Donna]

aw...

How sad..Sounds like a Hawk to me..We have them in Pa too, they attack anything small enough..

[jadebox]

Check your Villages phonebook. It has pictures of our native birds and animals.

[njgranny]

Sounds like a small hawk to me, too. We've started getting them in our backyard in just the past couple of years. I'm afraid they'll get my fish, so I try to chase them. They do get a bird once in awhile. I hate it when they do.

[islandgal]

Thanks so very much for your input. I'm not familiar with hawks, but it looks like it might be a Cooper's Hawk after googling hawks in Florida. (Is there such a thing as a "Google Nerd"???)
I hope he was just passing through!

http://pelotes.jea.com/Flhakpic.htm

[graciegirl]

Speaking of birds. There are cheeky little brown birds at the Lake Sumter restaurant on the dock, where you eat outside, I can't think of the name. They are awfully brassy, and will steal something right off your plate if you aren't looking. They fly with it clear across the lake and then return for more. One guy looked like he had a crew cut. Never saw a bird like that up north. Cute little pests.

Been bird sitting with a few cockatiels http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cockatiel the last ten days or so and these birds even seem to have some personalities. Did not notice much of a personality in birds I have watched in the wild. Seemed to be more about eating and/or not getting eaten.

[renielarson]

I just put 2 feeders out this past week and haven't had one bird yet! I'm sitting on my lanai wishing hummingbirds would be drawn to the sweet syrup and seed eaters to the seed feeder. But not one visitor yet!

[MSNPA]

Last fall, just as I was looking out the front window, a big bird flew down and got the baby doves out of their nest in our oak tree. This bothered me for days. A few weeks later the mother dove had more babies and these two made it. It was wonderful watching them get bigger and eventually leave the nest. Everyday I would watch them return from a day of adventure with Mom and Dad dove and they would all groom each other. It was heart warming.

I have a bird feeder. All I get are little birds (sparrows maybe) and the doves eat whatever falls on the ground. I know people say bird feeders attract rodents, but so far I have not seen any. One thing, without having the squirrels as I did in PA, the feeder stays full a long time!

[samhass]

Wiw. We have many raptors in TV. We have a huge oak in the yard. I have seen various hawks and even eagles roost in it's branches. Owls also visit the canopy of this tree and a great blue heron spends the night.

[ConeyIsBabe]

In my neck-of-the-woods, bird feeders attract bears

[nONIE]

Originally Posted by Taltarzac

Been bird sitting with a few cockatiels http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cockatiel the last ten days or so and these birds even seem to have some personalities. Did not notice much of a personality in birds I have watched in the wild. Seemed to be more about eating and/or not getting eaten.

Tal,

I had cockatiels for years and they are just so smart and funny. Mine were handled by people since they came out of the egg. That makes a huge difference. If you interact with them from day 1 they will become very sweet and attach themselvs to you. My cockatiels would snuggle with me under my chin and talk to me. They also sang jingle bells all day long!!! Which would drive some people in our house crazy! Sorry to go on and on about them but I sure was crazy about my little guys.

Tal, will they sit on your shoulder? Try talking to them, they will probably answer you! They are funny enjoyable little characters try interacting with them!

[zcaveman]

It could be a kestrel (page 32 in the Villages phone book). I see them at Lopez all of the time.

[swrinfla]

graciegirl:

I suspect the birds at the Lighthouse were common grackles. It's possible they were boat-tailed grackles, but I don't think their tails are big enough. They're pestiferous birds around food! ;D

SWR