Did you ever hear such nonsense?

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by RKB

Careful, Carrion Crows don't have much equipment either, yet they can do a lot of damage to a bird or mammal. This idea that Kites are as feeble as a wet rag is a bit overstated. They can and do catch and kill live prey, and those talons aren't just for show. They've been recorded taking live fish from water, in the manner of an Osprey, and anyone in the Chilterns will tell you how adept they are at grabbing food from the ground using their feet.

yeah but they only go into trees to nest/roost , they are very adept at snatching food from an open area (road, roadside, grassland etc) whether that is carrion or small mammals, but they are not morphologically equiped for chasing a small agile prey item like a squirel arround in the woodland canopy.

It is conceivable that a kite might take the occasional red squirel stupid enough to sit on the top of an exposed tree waiting to be grabbed,but thats survival of the fittest in action - stupid squirels dont live long anyway , and it certainly wouldnt occur often enough to justify the claim that kites are devastating the population

[RKB]

Originally Posted by eeyore

yeah but they only go into trees to nest/roost , they are very adept at snatching food from an open area (road, roadside, grassland etc) whether that is carrion or small mammals, but they are not morphologically equiped for chasing a small agile prey item like a squirel arround in the woodland canopy.

It is conceivable that a kite might take the occasional red squirel stupid enough to sit on the top of an exposed tree waiting to be grabbed,but thats survival of the fittest in action - stupid squirels dont live long anyway , and it certainly wouldnt occur often enough to justify the claim that kites are devastating the population

Indeed, I wasn't quibbling that in the slightest. But let's not go too far the other way either.

[Dick Glasgow]

Originally Posted by RKB

... anyone in the Chilterns will tell you how adept they are at grabbing food from the ground using their feet.

Mmmm ... I think an agile Red Squirrel, on the run, would be just a little bit trickier than say ..... a Sandwich!

Sorry RKB, just funnin' .. I couldn't resist it!

[STYRBJORN]

Two stage solution here.
1.) Teach kites to read.
2.) Provide red squirrels with little day-glo jackets with a notice on the back reading "Warning! This product may contain nuts"

Sorry, been saving that one up. I'll get me coat . .

Ric

[GilesBradshaw]

Originally Posted by RKB

Careful, Carrion Crows don't have much equipment either, yet they can do a lot of damage to a bird or mammal. This idea that Kites are as feeble as a wet rag is a bit overstated. They can and do catch and kill live prey, and those talons aren't just for show. They've been recorded taking live fish from water, in the manner of an Osprey, and anyone in the Chilterns will tell you how adept they are at grabbing food from the ground using their feet.

Indeed and they kill lambs

(warning gore)

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-..._8236400_n.jpg

[RKB]

Originally Posted by GilesBradshaw

Indeed and they kill lambs

(warning gore)

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-..._8236400_n.jpg

Any evidence that the live lamb was killed or attacked by a kite? I very much doubt they could kill one, seeing as they don't seem able to kill an adult rabbit. They will, however, make short work of a dead lamb in an afternoon.

[GilesBradshaw]

Originally Posted by RKB

Any evidence that the live lamb was killed or attacked by a kite? I very much doubt they could kill one, seeing as they don't seem able to kill an adult rabbit. They will, however, make short work of a dead lamb in an afternoon.

I meant carrion crows