Do Buzzards eat fruit? (1 Viewer)

[orbec]

This might seem a bizarre question. But this afternoon on going into our orchard I was surprised to see a Buzzard on the ground underneath one of our apple trees. This tree happens to produce the sweetest apples in our orchard & there are many windfalls on the ground.

The Buzzard made a quick exit & I went to take a look at the apples on the ground, there were many that had been recently pecked at & some by quite large bills but whether they had been chewed by a Buzzard I don't know!

We get both Common Buzzards & Honey Buzzards in our orchard but I couldn't say for sure which this one was.

I'd be interested to know what you all may think.

Cheers...

 

[grebefeet9]

i don't think that a bird of prey would eat fruit, more likely it was trying to find rodents or insects.

 

[chris butterworth]

There is also the possibility that it was opening the apples while looking for insect larvae.

Chris

 

[Himalaya]

Are nt HB's known to eat fruit at times?

 

[Nightranger]

Common buzzards will eat earthworms and honey buzzards eat bees and wasps so it is likely that is what attracted the birds down. I am not sure that either species has been conclusively proved ot eat fruit but all birds are opportunistic so it would not surprise me if the buzzards had tried the fruit.