[CT Birds] Screech Owl -

[Carrier Graphics]

Hi Steve,

Guess you witnesed a life and death situation that nature usually hides 
so well from our eyes.

  This is not so unusual though. Prey can often become the killer, and 
killers can become prey. The key is - both must stay on their regular 
natural track of things. When one gets just a little out of place, the 
other takes advantage of it.
When a Sharpie surprises birds at the feeder, the sick, wounded, or just 
plain not with it bird is the most likely taken, culled out of the flock 
for the good of that species overall.

On the other side of the coin, I once witnessed a wounded Im Coopers 
hawk, trying to get at my chickens from the ground, attacked by a flock 
of Crows - killed, and then, not to waste -  eaten. As cruel as we might 
think it, this is survival, or not, in the daily workings of nature.

I also have read in Owls, the larger species will often kill smaller 
ones when given a chance. Guess we can sum all this up by saying - 
nothing in nature is ever completely safe from predation of some kind. 
But the longer they can stay healthy and alert, the better chance they 
will live for another day.

Question: Is the Cow a predator of Grass? Any thoughts on this one?

Paul Carrier