Baiting Buzzards

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Glidergoth

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Sarah
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I've got a local buzzard and set up a hide near one of its local haunt, but does anyone have any experience of baiting / feeding them?

I'm a bit nervous as I would hate to get a bird used to carrion only to have an unscrupulous neighbour leave poison bait. I also heard that they don't come to feeding stations well, but they seemed keen enough amongst the kites at Gigrin.
 
Got plenty of both - next door to game shooting estate! Just wonder if there are too many natural ones about for Mr Buzzard to come to me or if Mr Fox will get there first (I'm not staying out overnight with a trip - well not just yet!)
 
If your next to shooting estates, then they will be already well fed.

Years of senseless persecution has led to these birds being very wary, tempting them to a new place takes time.
 
Thanks for the advice, all. I got some decent shots of them this morning after leaving a tent hide out for a few days. They seem to come to this same area each morning where they are feeding on earthworms! Maybe I should have gone to a fishing tackle shop instead.

Here's a couple of the shots (2 different birds)

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And a token pheasant:
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Might have another go with a rabbit if it snows later in the year.
 
You can see up to 9 or more buzzards feeding on beetles and earthworms in freshly ploughed fields as they are an important part of their diet. ( found on google whilst researching where to find them)

Nice shots of one of my favourite birds,
Thanks for sharing,
Cliff
 
Hi mate, I bait Buzzards all the time at my private woodland hide and its only a matter of time before they come down. They are ultra cautious though and it takes a while to get them down readily. I keep all the road kill I come across in a large feezer and put one to two kills down a week. I now have 4 different Buzzards coming down plus kites from time to time. Tips I can give are once it comes down let it get in about the kil before shooting (unless on silent mode) and Rabbits are less messy than pheasants :) Thing is I think Pheasants look nicer in the photographs. There are days when the Buzzard perches near the kill and can wait hours to come down to it. Heres one from a while back from my old camera.
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Lovely shots here, I am toying with the idea of setting up a hide in a large area of woodland near to where I live; you'll usually see a buzzard or two, plenty of kites, and there is a resident kestrel there too. If I was to find a suitable post or platform, would they come down for a few chunks of chopped beef or something similar?
 
Jimwah said:
Lovely shots here, I am toying with the idea of setting up a hide in a large area of woodland near to where I live; you'll usually see a buzzard or two, plenty of kites, and there is a resident kestrel there too. If I was to find a suitable post or platform, would they come down for a few chunks of chopped beef or something similar?
Click to expand...

Very unusual for a Kestrel to come to Carrion mate, but Buzzards and kites are easy enough if you are patient. I wouldnt chop it up mate as they will just swoopw down and carry it of. Far better using whole Pheasant or Rabbit so they stay put. I find it better to open it up a bit as it makes it easier for the Kites. To save time pick yourself a quiet open spot and put a few kills down, prob one a week. They will find them quickly, but after a few weeks they will come in more confidently. Be prepared to wait though as they can sit up in a tree for hours checking all is safe before they come down. Also I dont think they will like a hide just to appear so maybe making a dummy hide first and when you go put yours up in the same place. One last thing when you go to photograph make sure there has been no meat down several days prior to your visit so there is more chance of them being hungry. Hope this helps.
 
Interesting info Alan, thanks for that. Scoping out a spot for a hide in the next few weeks, hopefully some decents results to follow...!
 
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