View Full Version : Attack of the Mockingbirds - haaaalp!
bananimal
05-15-2014, 02:00 PM
For the last week a pair of M birds have been swooping down on me when I walk the puppy in the backyard. When I turn my back they nip me in the shoulders or the neck. Puppy is so distracted she doesn't do her business.
The only way to get rid of then is to locate the nest and find the chicks, if any, a new home. In the past they favored the Robellini palms.
If I lived rural they would get plinked.
Any other ideas?
For the last week a pair of M birds have been swooping down on me when I walk the puppy in the backyard. When I turn my back they nip me in the shoulders or the neck. Puppy is so distracted she doesn't do her business.
The only way to get rid of then is to locate the nest and find the chicks, if any, a new home. In the past they favored the Robellini palms.
If I lived rural they would get plinked.
Any other ideas?No but thanks for the laugh--better you than I. I was pooped on 2x by a pigeon but otherwise I've escaped unscathed. There were a pair of mocking birds that lived in downtown DC several years ago who attacked nearly all that dared walk down their busy city streets. The news stations took videos and we all giggled then avoided the area. (I suspect they're still nesting there.) I had a cardinal in Ohio that insisted on tapping incessantly on the basement window; he followed me to Jacksonville I believe but lifting the curtain and waving it made him leave for sometimes days. He was protecting nothing but apparently just itching for a confrontation with the "bird inside". In Port St. John there are dive bombing hawks; people are wearing helmets until nesting season is over. So maybe a helmet and suit of armor is your solution...
jjjankovsky
05-15-2014, 05:56 PM
I've resorted to using a tennis racquet on swallows and other bothersome birds...but it tends to be a lethal solution...check your level of comfort first.
hanabananaman
05-15-2014, 05:59 PM
I have had the same problem for most of the past 15+ years, it only lasts a few weeks until the babies grow up. I have not had any problem in my yard for the last few years which is good, but they are around I see them every day foraging in my yard. I took in a 14 year old cat whose owner passed away and she had never been outside much, she is 18 now and loves being outside. I don't know if she could handle the bird's dive bombing her at that age. She is a tiny Russian Blue that rules over all my other animals, her nickname is Lisa Putin. Her previous owner named her Lisa.
Maybe it's about time us humans try to learn a little parenting from the animal kingdom. :ha:
pniksch
05-15-2014, 09:09 PM
With all the bugs birds eat, isn't the few weeks a year they're nesting a small price to pay? Could be wose- you could have grackels dive bombing you!
With all the bugs birds eat, isn't the few weeks a year they're nesting a small price to pay? Could be worse- you could have grackles dive bombing you!Yeah birds are great except they don't just eat bugs; they eat the fruit you grow! Just a few pecks often instead of just having "1" so they ruin the crop for you. I can live with them; I can outsmart them. But being attacked by them is really not pleasant from what I've been told and seen.
amantedelenguaje
05-15-2014, 10:21 PM
Just had to chuckle at this thread. I like the tennis racket idea with its "level of comfort." I've never experienced the situation before. I have had a squirrel that kept attacking my leg every time I neared his/her tree. I just steered clear of the tree. The whole situation was a little comical.
Never fear; if both birds are off the nest, then it means the eggs have [probably] hatched & you only have a couple-few more days of the little guys being in the nest.
If you ever find a way to shut them up from midnight to 4 AM, let me know, eh? Our "locals" can do a great blender impersonation.
bananimal
05-17-2014, 08:36 PM
This afternoon I walked the puppy and was strafed with renewed vigor. Five mins later found out why. The chick was out of the nest and hopping around the lawn. To save it from the puppy I shooed it to the fence where there were gaps big enough to scoot under. Now it's out on the street side and mama and papa M birds are really pissed off. Had to return to the pool enclosure and walk puppy later.
Gimme a break!!!!!!!
How long before the chick can fly off?
This afternoon I walked the puppy and was strafed with renewed vigor. Five mins later found out why. The chick was out of the nest and hopping around the lawn. To save it from the puppy I shooed it to the fence where there were gaps big enough to scoot under. Now it's out on the street side and mama and papa M birds are really pissed off. Had to return to the pool enclosure and walk puppy later.
Gimme a break!!!!!!!
How long before the chick can fly off?I don't know how long. I am not a bird person though I had a nest of 4 starlings hatch in my yard when I lived in the city. Weird thing is the babies are bigger than the parents! Watching flying lessons from fence to window sills was fun; those birds cleared my yard of grubs so they were quite welcome.
Maybe some kind careful driver will solve your problem. I have been known to aim for squirrels. Never hit one. Did run over a raccoon in my MG-B years ago not on purpose. I stopped; it ran off but my muffler had a definite hum until it rotted out and was replaced.
bananimal
05-18-2014, 12:53 AM
Video shows bird attack.............
https://video.search.yahoo.com/video/play;_ylt=A2KLqICRSXhTwCMAJcz7w8QF;_ylu=X3oDMTB2Y3VxNjFvBHNlYwNz cgRzbGsDdmlkBHZ0aWQDVjE1MgRncG9zAzg-?p=mockingbird+attacks+humans&vid=fd25d1850cd6699ac36a687d62151782&l=1%3A14&turl=http%3A%2F%2Fts2.mm.bing.net%2Fth%3Fid%3DVN.607996266355099 089%26pid%3D15.1&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DLa0PE34tNLM&tit=Attacked+By+Mockingbirds&c=7&sigr=11ahffgcn&sigt=10ob9r3lc&age=0&&tt=b
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