Sulcata Predator

[TheCobbler]

So I let my tort MoMo out almost every day for a few hours. But I just noticed that a hawk has set camp in the hills near my house and I'm worried that it will go after MoMo. Should I be concerned? I doubt the hawk knows what a tortoise is or even how to approach getting one. Also, for future reference when MoMo becomes big enough. Coyotes wander the streets once in a while. I'll build MoMo outdoor housing, but I'm worried the coyotes will go after him. Should I just keep MoMo indoors at night forever?

 

[Jacob]

The hawk or large bird will go after it, if its a baby or small!
Be cautious, keep an eye on them!
I heard stories about birds scooping them up

 

[John]

I don't know if hawks make a habit of eating chelonians but I bet if you have any indigenous turtles, that hawk will know just what a tort is.

 

[Tom]

I've never seen or heard of a hawk going for a tortoise. Anyone else? How big is MoMo?

I live in coyote country. I see them nearly everyday. My sulcatas have been outside in their slumpstone pens for 13 years without a problem. Very unlikely that coyotes would jump into your back yard at night and go get your sulcata out of his house. However, anything is possible. You can always build a cover out of metal hardware cloth or something similar to make absolutely sure nothing gets in there. Once they are 8 to 10" they are pretty safe. Once they are 18" or better the coyote better look out!

 

[dmmj]

As far as I know hawks are not a tortoise predator, ravens and crows are another story and here in california they work together to overturn larger desert tortoise in the wild.

 

[John]

As Tom said you can build a cover.Its good to keep in mind that although predators do prefer certain food items,if times are tough the can tend to be opportunists.

 

[HLogic]

Raptors are known to prey on small torts. Red-tailed hawks and others, similarly sized, prey on turtles in the wild. It's not typical of the western hemisphere raptors except for Golden Eagles to target tortoises but I wouldn't put it past any larger raptor to view a hatchling or juvenile as a food item...

 

[Jacob]

Simply watch your baby outside or create a pin with some kind of neting!

 

[Livingstone]

Just sit outside with a shotgun. Blast the first one, then hang it up as a warning to the others.

 

[Tom]

Just sit outside with a shotgun. Blast the first one, then hang it up as a warning to the others.

I'm pretty sure you are joking, but I know people who do that sort of thing for real. One guy had dead coyotes strung all along the barbed wire of his 15 acre horse pen.

The fact that there is more then one dead coyote should be a good indicator that it doesn't work.

 

[ALDABRAMAN]

Welcome. We use wooden pens and strong covers for all of our hatchlings. Never had a problem, just not worth the chance!

 

[Bubba30]

I worry also about Bubba, because she is still tiny and hawks fly around all the time I alway have to watch her when I let her out and about.

 

[Laura]

hawks take small dogs..chickens,,, so they might try a tort..

 

[TheCobbler]

I've never seen or heard of a hawk going for a tortoise. Anyone else? How big is MoMo?

I live in coyote country. I see them nearly everyday. My sulcatas have been outside in their slumpstone pens for 13 years without a problem. Very unlikely that coyotes would jump into your back yard at night and go get your sulcata out of his house. However, anything is possible. You can always build a cover out of metal hardware cloth or something similar to make absolutely sure nothing gets in there. Once they are 8 to 10" they are pretty safe. Once they are 18" or better the coyote better look out!

MoMo is only 5" and i let him free roam in the backyard while i study or work. I'm thinking that limiting his outdoor time is better than having him be taken away. From now on I'll probably practice golf while he roams about so that i can ward off any attackers. Thanks for all of the info!

 

[cueboy007]

Welcome. We use wooden pens and strong covers for all of our hatchlings. Never had a problem, just not worth the chance!

We have hawks and racoons, I'd be more worried about racoons than any other predators, they are known to eat turtles and their eggs.

This is a great outdoor pen against birds, I want to build something like this, but the fence should be burried at least 1 foot deep, so nobody digs in or out.

 

[dmarcus]

I think anything is possible when it comes to a young hatchling so I would not leave him out unless I was there to watch or had something to protect him. But I have no concerns with my older Sulcata because I know he is feisty and has charged me when he didn't want to be bothered, lol...

 

[Tom]

Cobbler, Once my babies are around 3", I'll leave them in open topped sunning enclosures with no worries for a few hours. Its a five acre ranch, so I'm always in the vicinity, but at that size, I don't hover directly over the pen and watch every move they make. There are several people moving about the ranch, but sometimes I'm 100 yards away. I don't leave them out over night until they are 10-12".

 

[Dr. Coffee]

Welcome. We use wooden pens and strong covers for all of our hatchlings. Never had a problem, just not worth the chance!

That's really nice. I'm going to build something like this for Dr. Coffee when it gets warm. I have had Dr, Coffee (8" Sulcata) around cats before and they're just interested, hardly make an effort to hurt him, they quietly observe. That being said, pretty sure I'm still going to put wire over the top of the enclosure just in case.

Anybody else have problems with cats?

 

[dmarcus]

My cats don't care for our bigger tort, he will chase them if they get to close. They havent figure out what our little one is, they just stare and keep moving away if it get to close..