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As long as we're talking predators, does anyone know if bald eagles or osprey will prey on cats? We have quite a few of both up here and haven't noticed any attacking. One day the cats were out and 3 ospreys were circling the house, I think they were just riding the air currents, they didn't bother them. Just wondering if we got lucky. (can't remember if I asked abotu this before-senior moment).
I've had issues with owls before, I saw one go after a cat, and we had lost a couple others shortly before that. Started keeping the 12ga by the door...'bout that time they headed elsewhere.
I knew an old man some years back who had a cat that would look over its shoulder periodically when outdoors. The old man told me that he had let the cat out one evening, and an owl had swooped in and carried it off. He never expected to see the cat again, but it showed back up a couple of days later. He said the cat was always looking over its shoulder after that. I don't think birds of prey often go after cats, due to the tremendous amount of fight most cats are capable of, and predators usually avoid prey that has a good chance of damaging them.
As long as we're talking predators, does anyone know if bald eagles or osprey will prey on cats?
Quote:
Originally Posted by countryboy73
I knew an old man some years back who had a cat that would look over its shoulder periodically when outdoors. The old man told me that he had let the cat out one evening, and an owl had swooped in and carried it off. He never expected to see the cat again, but it showed back up a couple of days later. He said the cat was always looking over its shoulder after that. I don't think birds of prey often go after cats, due to the tremendous amount of fight most cats are capable of, and predators usually avoid prey that has a good chance of damaging them.
Threats to cats by birds of prey is greatly exaggerated and is often just tall tales. A great horned owl only weighs 3 1/2 pounds, and an adult domestic cat is double or triple that size, and would be a huge risk for an owl to take on, with the cat very likely to kill or inflict a major injury on the owl. Owls prey on small rodents and birds, not predators that can kill them. A rabbit or duck is even a large target for an owl.
Bald eagles and ospreys eat fish, carrion, and small rodents, not predators such as cats or foxes. Kittens of course, would be an exception, and would be for owls as well, am considering only adult cats. According to the raptor experts, a bird of prey can only lift and fly off with something up to one third of their own body weight. Anything heavier that is killed would have to be eaten on the ground. A raptor feeding on the ground is then very vulnerable itself to an attack by a larger predator such as a bobcat or coyote. Tales of owls flying off with cats and eagles zooming away with sheep or goats is sheer bunk, just apply the one third rule.
The one bird that is a real threat to cats, foxes, skunks, possums, and small racoons is the fierce golden eagle, with a big female as much as 15 pounds. These big eagles will also take deer and pronghorn fawns. Predators usually have a high sense of risk/reward, and will avoid taking on a target that can kill or injure them, but inexperienced or overly ambitious goldens have been observed, on rare occasions, attacking an adult bobcat or coyote. Usually this does not end well for the eagle, but they have been seen trying.
Threats to cats by birds of prey is greatly exaggerated and is often just tall tales. A great horned owl only weighs 3 1/2 pounds, and an adult domestic cat is double or triple that size, and would be a huge risk for an owl to take on, with the cat very likely to kill or inflict a major injury on the owl. Owls prey on small rodents and birds, not predators that can kill them. A rabbit or duck is even a large target for an owl.
Bald eagles and ospreys eat fish, carrion, and small rodents, not predators such as cats or foxes. Kittens of course, would be an exception, and would be for owls as well, am considering only adult cats. According to the raptor experts, a bird of prey can only lift and fly off with something up to one third of their own body weight. Anything heavier that is killed would have to be eaten on the ground. A raptor feeding on the ground is then very vulnerable itself to an attack by a larger predator such as a bobcat or coyote. Tales of owls flying off with cats and eagles zooming away with sheep or goats is sheer bunk, just apply the one third rule.
The one bird that is a real threat to cats, foxes, skunks, possums, and small racoons is the fierce golden eagle, with a big female as much as 15 pounds. These big eagles will also take deer and pronghorn fawns. Predators usually have a high sense of risk/reward, and will avoid taking on a target that can kill or injure them, but inexperienced or overly ambitious goldens have been observed, on rare occasions, attacking an adult bobcat or coyote. Usually this does not end well for the eagle, but they have been seen trying.
Blackshoe, I don't know about the great horned owls in your neck of the woods, but we have some BIG owls here in MO, I have seen them up close when deer hunting. Well more than the three and a half pounds you quote. I have seen owls here with wingspans over 6 ft, and standing close to two feet tall when perched. Shoot, a family member has a stuffed barn owl that their mother had for years, no one knows where we got it, thing has been in the family for close to a hundred years now, and it is close to a foot and a half tall. Nowhere near as big as some owls I have seen in the woods here. I had one land on top of a dead snag directly behind my deer stand one November, scared the bejesus out of me when it hooted from its perch about ten feet behind me. I turned around to see an owl that was big enough to make me nervous staring at me. Been in the woods all my life, not much makes me nervous. But sitting there 20 feet in the air, with a bird that big staring intently at one does jangle the nerves, especially after you never heard him land and he just announced his presence in a fashion that made ear protection seem like a good idea. I know they don't attack people, or even things larger than a rabbit very often, but a good flogging followed by falling out of a tree stand did cross my mind, and the bird did nothing to correct my notions. I am more than confident he was capable of lifting a housecat. Maybe not a Maine Coon cat, or an obese tomcat, but he would have had zero trouble with the weight of my own adult female housecat at the time. (Of course, eating her once he landed somewhere might have been problematic.)
Little more info i found on the great horned owl's eating habits. Wikipedia, so take it as you will, and I am sure not all prey listed are carried off, but these birds have an impressive variety of diet, which jives with my personal experience with them. Durn things will attack almost anything that they thing they can kill, and they have a serious predatorial attitude. It should be noted that the striped skunk carcasses found in the owl's nest mentioned, belong to an animal with an average weight of 6-8 lbs., which sometimes gets as heavy as 15 lbs. I'd say a cat is not safe from this bird, although I am sure instances of predation on cats are rare.
Prey
Prey can vary greatly based on opportunity. According to one author, "Almost any living creature that walks, crawls, flies, or swims, except the large mammals, is the great horned owl's legitimate prey".[18] The predominant prey group are small to medium-sized mammals such as hares and rabbits, which are statistically the most regular prey,[5] as well as any small to moderately sized rodent such as rats, squirrels, flying squirrels, mice, lemmings and voles.[4][5] Other mammals eaten regularly can include shrews, bats, armadillos, muskrats, martens and weasels.[4][5] Studies have unsurprisingly indicated that mammals that are primarily nocturnal in activity, such as rabbits, shrews or muroid rodents, are generally preferred. Red-tailed Hawks (Buteo jamaicensis) often considered a potential competitor to the Great Horned due to their overlapping range (in North America), habitat preferences and broadly similar (and similarly broad) prey selection, often focus their diet largely on the diurnally active squirrels.[19] It is even a natural predator of prey two to three times heavier than itself[5] such as porcupines,[20]marmots[21] and skunks.[22] In fact, per the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the Great Horned Owl is the only regular avian predator of skunks.[2] In one case, the remains of 57 striped skunks were found in a single owl nest.[23]
Birds also comprise a large portion of a Great Horned Owl's diet, ranging in size from kinglets to Great Blue Herons (Ardea herodias) and young swans.[5] Regular avian prey includes woodpeckers, grouse, crows, pigeons, herons, gulls, quail, turkey and various passerines.[4][5][19] Waterbirds, especially coots and ducks, are hunted fairly often; even raptors, up to the size of Red-tailed Hawks and Snowy Owls, are sometimes taken.[4] Other birds, being primarily diurnal, are often snatched from their nocturnal perches as they sleep.[19] The Great Horned Owl is a potential predator of any other owl species found in the Americas, of which there are several dozen. Bird prey are often plucked before eaten and the legs and much of the wings are torn off and discarded.[5] Reptiles (to the size of young American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis)[5]), amphibians, fish, crustaceans and even insects,[24]centipedes, scorpions and earthworms are occasional supplemental prey. In addition, the Great Horned Owl will predate on domesticated animals, including cats[25][26] and small or young dogs (Canis lupus familiaris).[27][28][29]Carrion is eaten with some regularity, including road-kills.[5] It is common for people to deal with troublesome wildlife by placing plastic replicas of Great Horned Owls on their property, since many small animals will actively avoid areas inhabited by them.[30]
Here is a link to a news story from IL, where a GHO attacked a chihuahua WHILE THE OWNER WAS WALKING IT!
Friends of ours south of Sandpoint had their cat taken by a GHO. I guess they saw it happen. It was such a cute kitty, too . So it can absolutely happen.
There is an owl living in our neighborhood the last three years. And now that you've brought it to my attention, I haven't seen a cat in a couple years. There are plenty of signs posted through the year though. Reward for lost cat.
There is an owl living in our neighborhood the last three years. And now that you've brought it to my attention, I haven't seen a cat in a couple years. There are plenty of signs posted through the year though. Reward for lost cat.
Coyote, bobcat, cougar, wolf, domestic or feral dog, golden eagle. Any or all the likely culprit.
Coyote, bobcat, cougar, wolf, domestic or feral dog, golden eagle. Any or all the likely culprit.
A big rattlesnake can eat a small cat. The list of possibles is very long.
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I am more than confident he was capable of lifting a housecat. Maybe not a Maine Coon cat, or an obese tomcat, but he would have had zero trouble with the weight of my own adult female housecat at the time. (Of course, eating her once he landed somewhere might have been problematic.)
. So it can absolutely happen.
