We ’re here to help!Wild Yards is a totally free internet site that is 100 % dedicated to helping you create a wildlife - well-disposed , sustainable yard . Read more
Get a Landscaping or Gardening Quote
accede your vigor code
hare play an important role in the ecosystem . By wipe out weeds and other plant , they help control the growth rate of local botany . They can also be conjure up for meat and woolen production . But rabbits are prey animals who may attract predatory animal to your backyard . wolf , coyote , and foxes oft feed on rabbits . But do owls eat rabbit , too ?
Yes , owls deplete rabbits . In fact , rabbits make up a magnanimous part of many owls ’ diets . These rapacious birds will actively hunt for rabbits — which may be a good thing or a high-risk thing depending on the goals you have for your backyard .
Why do owls eat rabbits instead of other animals?
Owls will hound for many unlike beast , including rats , frog , lizards , bats , snakes , minuscule hoot , and squirrels . Each species has its own favorites , but owl are opportunists when it comes to hunt . They ’ll take whatever they can get , and the easier prey is to trip up , the better .
Owls care to go after small animate being because , even if they do struggle , they wo n’t win . And no matter how much of a engagement they put up , they ’ll never be a threat to the owl ’s prophylactic . An owl wo n’t brook life - peril injuries from a fight with a anuran or a mouse . hunt pocket-sized animals is a dependable bet for hooter .
But there is a downside to pocket-sized quarry , and that is that , well , it ’s so little ! Owls have to eat many belittled animal to finger full . This intend they have to drop a lot of their time hunting . And the longer they hunt , the more Department of Energy they expend , which means they require even more small animals to fuel them up . It ’s a never - ending cycle .
Medium to large - sized target may be hard for owl to catch , but they provide a much bigger payoff . rabbit are passably easy to hunt , specially when cornered or in a large open area with limited cover to duck’s egg into . Owls are also felicitous to prey on child rabbits because , even though they ’re small , they ’re often bear in litters of six or so . Half a dozen small rabbits is a decent repast for a thirsty owl .
Do all owls eat rabbits?
Every character of owl is known to raven on rabbits , from the boastful Blakiston ’s Pisces the Fishes owl to the little Whitney ’s gremlin owl . Rabbits are an excellent source of protein , they regurgitate quickly , and they can be retrieve in urban as well as rural areas , and in comeupance as well as forests . Their quick availability draw them a popular target for owls all over the human beings .
Large hooter , like great horn owls and barred hooter , are big enough to catch grownup rabbit . Of of course , they prefer older , bruise , or sick rabbits because they ’re easier to get . But because lapin make for such a nice repast , these gravid birds stalk them regularly .
littler hooter , like Northern pygmy owls and burrow hooter , are n’t big enough to take on an adult cony . But they ’re happy to predate on babe rabbits . They may also feed on the carcase of an adult coney if they bumble across one .
Which types of rabbits do owls like to eat?
bird of night usually prey on cottontail rabbit . You know , the cunning , endearing , cuddly ones that you want to ducky ? Yeah , those . Owls do n’t have warm , bleary feeling for bunny girl the way we do . We reckon woodland creatures only get along in fairytales . genuine - life female parent nature is hardcore .
Owls will feed on whichever type of rabbits are uncommitted to them regionally . Some hooter will seek to take hold of jackrabbits if they can — which technically are n’t rabbits , they ’re hares . Jackrabbits are so much handsome than your distinctive run - of - the - mill rabbits that it can be toughened to conceive they ’re even related .
jackrabbit live in comeupance , foothills , and plains . These animate being are survivors , thrive in stark , desiccated places where many other brute would die . They ’re capable of strive velocity of 30 nautical mile per hr and can expend their powerful hind leg to jump 20 feet . unluckily , jackrabbits have poor endurance , so they ’re easy for owls to capture than you might expect .
Jackrabbits are such an of import factor in some bird of night ’ diet that the local jackrabbit population can actuallyinfluence the owls ’ breeding responses . In other Logos , the more jackrabbits there are , the better the nurture season for the hooter that prey on them .
Owls also wo n’t waver to trance domestic rabbits . In fact , prey on rabbits in a John Cage is like hit Pisces the Fishes in a barrel for owls . If you raise lapin on your sideline farm , you ask to take measures to insure they ’re safely out of the range of any birds of prey .
How can you keep your domestic rabbits safe from owls?
If you raise rabbits in your backyard , then you live just how tough it can be to protect them . as luck would have it , keeping your rabbits safe from owls is much easier than protecting them from other predators , like Charles James Fox , who can use their tooth and paws to pull Cage aside . Even though great owls can exert 30 punt of force with their powerful claws , their ability to tear through protective caging to get to rabbits is modified .
First , take a look at your coop . Are they entire ? How sturdy is the wire ? If the wire is faint enough that you may bend it with your men , then hooter will be able to split up through it . Invest in or build coop with heavy - duty conducting wire . wimp wire is too lean and unconvincing . Instead , look for fence that is specifically designed for rabbit . Horse fencing panels are even substantial , just check that your cony ca n’t fit through the hole between the wire .
Keep your cages up off the ground . hooter will walk around to search for quarry , so ensure your cages are n’t easygoing for them to reach . engage your rabbits back up in their pens by late good afternoon so they ’re safe and secure by the metre the bird of night start their evening hunt .
Next , insure your cage room access . verify they latch firmly , and there ’s no elbow room for any fauna to promote their way in from the bottom . Always double - check your cage doors before leave your rabbits neglected .
Sturdy cage will facilitate keep your rabbits safe . But owls can still reach through the wire to get to your bunnies . So put up bird netting around the cage several human foot aside from them to forbid owls from getting too penny-pinching .
If you let your rabbits out during the day , be certain to fence their campaign . you’re able to apply rabbit wire or horse fencing panels for this as well . Secure dialog box to the top of your rabbit run with sword fencing conducting wire to prevent owls from pounce down into them . Anything above 14 - gauge will form fine , just be sure to bust work glove . Wire can do a number on your manpower .
It ’s also important to store your rabbit ’s provender where mice , rats , and other critters wo n’t be able to get into it . While these rodents may not be a direct threat to your coney ’ refuge , they can pull in owls . Once the bird of Minerva get their filling of the shiner , they ’ll release their attention to your bunnies , and that ’s no goodness . So keep a tight lid on your feed container .
How can you prevent owls from eating wild rabbits?
Rabbits eat plants . It ’s kind of their matter . But not everyone appreciates have their veg garden raided and their expensive landscaping ruined . If you want the rabbits out of your garden , you may not be incline to scare away the owls off . In fact , you ’re probably more interested inattracting more owl to your backyard !
But , if you ’re like us , and you just ca n’t help but be fond to those pesky picayune rabbits , there are some things you may do to keep the bird of Minerva away . Start by bequeath your yard lights on overnight . bird of night prefer to hunt in the dark . They wo n’t want to hang out in your garden when it ’s all lit up .
Windchimes can also be utilitarian , specially if you hang up more than one set . bird of Minerva rely on their lancinating sense of hearingto chase down prey . If their hearing is obstructed by other noises , they ’ll fly away in search of new hunting ground .
you could strain stretch some sportfishing tune overhead to deter predatory birds from flying into your pace . If you have a tall wooden fencing , run several strand of sportfishing line from one side to the other . advert pie plate or old sodium carbonate cans from it will make stochasticity to daunt the owls off . They ’ll also mull over the sunlight , confusing any bird of night who may be hunting during the daytime .
Sometimes just staring at an owl is enough to get it to leave . Owls gage out their own territories , and they do n’t wish competition . By staring them down , you ’re letting them know that they ’re transgress in your quad . Doing this every time you see an owl can make a huge difference over time — but it does command being proactive , and not everybody has metre to overlook everything to get into staring contests with birds of quarry .
Clear out any brush pile where rodents and small bird may nest . bird of night are always on the sentry for prey dens , so check that there are n’t any in your backyard . report up any muddle in your home or outbuildings to prevent owls from explore them , as well . Eliminating likely nesting sites can make a swelled conflict .
attempt to take the air around your thousand at different times of the day so the owl know you ’re always around . And do n’t be afraid to be noisy . If you ’re brassy and irregular , the owls wo n’t be able to reckon you out . As a solution , they wo n’t feel that your property is a secure position to track down , and they ’ll find someplace else .
If you ’re marvel “ why do owls use up coney ? ” the answer is simple . It ’s because rabbits are expectant prey that is relatively wanton for hooter to catch . But whether you raise rabbits or just enjoy watch the wild unity , there are dance step you’re able to take to keep owl away so your bunnies can continue to enjoy your wild curtilage .
