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corvids vs gulls in mobbing birds of prey (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter scuba0095
- Start date
razorsharp
For the Laugh
I've never seen a gull mob a bird of prey in the flesh, but I have seen rooks giving kestrels a lot of hassle, it seems to b unending, even though the kestrel is no real threat. I have seen, both rooks and hooded crows mob buzzards at te same time, and even a huge raven got in on the action. I have also seen a hooded crow chasing a hen sparrowhawk around a group of trees, it went on for about 15 minutes and the sparrowhawk seemed to be doing a lot if the chasing of the larger crow.
i almost daily see gulls but never see them mob birds of prey. i have seen a photo of glaucous gull mobbing a bald eagle or white tail-eagle. i have seen corvids mob birds of prey. i have seen carrion crows mob fem sparrowhawks - sometimes the hawk nearly starts fighting in the air. i have seen 2 magpies mob a fem. sparrowhawk. i have seen plenty of crows and buzzards. i have seen crows mob kestrels. i have never seen rooks mob anything though. i have seen photos of hooded crows mobbing goshawks.
i have seen carrion crows mob a red kite. i have seen occasionally crows trying to mob gulls but they appea to keep well away from them nothing liek how they react to raptors.
i was in the lake district once and heard cawing and high above i saw 2 buzzards, countless crows and a few ravens. i got the feeling the crows were mobbing both the buzzards and ravens. the sky was swarming.
i have seen carrion crows mob a red kite. i have seen occasionally crows trying to mob gulls but they appea to keep well away from them nothing liek how they react to raptors.
i was in the lake district once and heard cawing and high above i saw 2 buzzards, countless crows and a few ravens. i got the feeling the crows were mobbing both the buzzards and ravens. the sky was swarming.
Gentoo
Guest
I see it all the time at work. The American Crows seem really get into it more than the gulls. They will mob any bird of prey. They even dive bomb the resident Cooper's Hawks which really aren't after crows. When a larger Red-Tailed Hawk swings by, they step up their assault and are joined by Western Gulls.
As far as the gulls are concerned, the smaller Ring-Billed and Heermann's Gulls don't seem to keen on the mobbing. They get out of the way of anything from Cooper's Hawk size and larger. Western Gulls ignore Cooper's Hawks although they may be momentarily startled by the panicking pigeons and smaller gulls. They get a little more alert when a Red-Shouldered Hawk appears but again not to the point where they would get air born, not usually anyway except during breeding season. When a Red-Tailed Hawk appears they mob with enthusiasm. They normally don't make physical contact like the crows do, again they are more aggressive when breeding. The one time I've seen Western Gulls around a Golden Eagle, the gulls this time didn't mess around. They got out of the area as fast as possible and far as possible away from the eagle.
As far as the gulls are concerned, the smaller Ring-Billed and Heermann's Gulls don't seem to keen on the mobbing. They get out of the way of anything from Cooper's Hawk size and larger. Western Gulls ignore Cooper's Hawks although they may be momentarily startled by the panicking pigeons and smaller gulls. They get a little more alert when a Red-Shouldered Hawk appears but again not to the point where they would get air born, not usually anyway except during breeding season. When a Red-Tailed Hawk appears they mob with enthusiasm. They normally don't make physical contact like the crows do, again they are more aggressive when breeding. The one time I've seen Western Gulls around a Golden Eagle, the gulls this time didn't mess around. They got out of the area as fast as possible and far as possible away from the eagle.
here is where i saw a flock of ring billed gulls joined with a couple of crows mobbing a red tail hawk
they would dive bomb the hawk, im assuming in this area red tails eat ring billed gulls which is why they caused such an uproar
I know ravens show no fear of golden eagles and actually have no respect for them because they are able to out maneuver them, im assuming gulls are not able to out maneuver eagles which is why they dont get as close?
they would dive bomb the hawk, im assuming in this area red tails eat ring billed gulls which is why they caused such an uproar
I know ravens show no fear of golden eagles and actually have no respect for them because they are able to out maneuver them, im assuming gulls are not able to out maneuver eagles which is why they dont get as close?
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Gentoo
Guest
I know in the air, corvids are more confident. Gulls seem to be more confident if their target is on the ground. I've seen gulls go after and make contact with large buteos that land on the ground, sometimes just to drink or rest, not actively hunting.OK I wonder do corvids like crows and ravens have better maneuverability then gulls which is why they are able to mob so much better and actually make contact?
Gentoo what do you think? I know you are a gull expert
Overall, corvids can maneuver better than gulls. Their wing shape allows them to turn and stop much more quickly than gulls can.
I agree with you on Ravens having little fear for eagles. I watched a wildlife special where a Bald Eagle was eating a fish on the snow. The Raven would walk up and pull it's wing and tail feathers knowing that the eagle would have to release the fish to go after it. The eagle eventually gave up!
calibird
Member
I've seen Western gulls mobbing red-tailed hawks on a few occasions, but they never do it as vigorously or skillfully as corvids seem to.
I once watched 2 Steller's jays mobbing/fighting with a male sharp-shinned hawk in a Eucalyptus. They got dangerously close while diving at the hawk from behind, and even made contact at least once. The battle went on for a couple of minutes with the jays alternately chasing and being chased by the hawk until the hawk finally retreated.
I once watched 2 Steller's jays mobbing/fighting with a male sharp-shinned hawk in a Eucalyptus. They got dangerously close while diving at the hawk from behind, and even made contact at least once. The battle went on for a couple of minutes with the jays alternately chasing and being chased by the hawk until the hawk finally retreated.
This is a good pic - a nice contrast too! http://www.flickr.com/photos/mountainpath/186113449/
what would be more deadly to a bird of prey? a large gull or a large corvid?
what advantage do gulls have over crows in flight? gulls are constantly in the air.
what would be more deadly to a bird of prey? a large gull or a large corvid?
what advantage do gulls have over crows in flight? gulls are constantly in the air.
corvid are more deadly to birds of prey in flight because they are smarter and just know how to handle them better
corvids will repeatedly nail a bird in the head sometimes eventually that can be dangerous, corvids are also faster flyers and out manuver ratpors I dont think gulls are good at that JMHO
corvids will repeatedly nail a bird in the head sometimes eventually that can be dangerous, corvids are also faster flyers and out manuver ratpors I dont think gulls are good at that JMHO
ColD
Save the Egyptian Vulture in Greece
Just got in from a coastal birding walk where we spotted 2 Yellow-legged Gulls constantly calling and harassing a common Buzzard over the sea. Have never seen this before, the gulls chased the Buzzard back to the shoreline when they were over the beach they flew back out to sea, the Buzzard then circled gaining height before it then headed inland. Has anyone else seen this behaviour ?.
Cheers ColD
http://www.cretewww.com
Cheers ColD
http://www.cretewww.com
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kcactionphoto
Well-known member
The gulls that live along the river and spillway of Lake Keystone seem utterly afraid of the eagles and hawks in the area. There are probably a thousand gulls, pelicans and blue herons that regularly fish the shallows and you can always tell when a bald eagle or red tail hawk comes in, they scatter like pigeons.
I would imagine it might be different if the bird of prey appoached their nesting areas. Just about any animal, no matter how peaceful, will fight like the devil when their offspring are threatened.
I would imagine it might be different if the bird of prey appoached their nesting areas. Just about any animal, no matter how peaceful, will fight like the devil when their offspring are threatened.
Hi. New member, 1st post! Just joined to say what I saw yesterday. I found this thread when searching the net for info on gull/mobbing behaviour which I hadn't seen before.
We are rural and about 1 mile from the sea at Marazion. A colony of perhaps 20 or 30 herring gulls hang around the estate on the edge of the village near me. I am surrounded by fields where the gulls feed after ploughing etc...like now the potatoes have just gone in.
Yesterday, with no other gulls around, I saw a pair chasing a buzzard away from the village, each took turns in flying at the buzzard until a few feet away and then backed off. I watched for about a minute until the buzzard was well away from 'their' patch and they broke off and flew back toward the village.
