Just read this in the Times, there's a Guardian article and Mirror one too. Apparently it's believed the Ostrich at Noah's Ark Zoo Farm was killed by a feral big cat. Big cat 'could be to blame for death of Olivia the ostrich' | World news | guardian.co.uk
The article only mentions its head being bitten off, surely if it was a feral big cat it would of tried to get more of a meal in before disappearing again?
It seems more likely that she also ran into the fence and then got her head eaten. It's not that I don't believe in the ferel big cats, but I agree that if it was one, it would have taken more than just her head!
It makes better press maybe? Doesn't sound like a big cat, although undoubtedly there are many in that part of the country.
Don't be too quick to judge.... Removing/Eating the head only is typical of a Fox attack , but not of Dogs or Cats- big or little. Admittedly an Ostrich is an awfully big bird for a fox to tackle- if it was Fox possibly it only did so after the bird had fallen down or hit the fence.
It was the fox predating the ostrich bit I was targeting. For example, farmers have been known to kill buzzards claiming they killed their sheep which they saw them eating, even though this is impossible and it would've been scavenging an already-dead individual.
That would depend on how big the sheep is i have seen a Buzzard take a large lamb so how can you say its impossible we are still finding things that we once thought impossible to be posssible within the animal world.
Sounds like a typical fox attack to me although I've not heard of a fox killing a bird that big before. We've had flamingos and a white stork killed by them but never an ostrich. Will have to keep an eye on the cassowaries. Unfortunately fox proof perimeter fences are not always feasible and very expensive. We had no problems with foxes at Bristol for the first ten years I was there and then they were everywhere and took 8 flamingos, a white stork, red-breasted goose, palawan peacock pheasant, Pink pigeon and mongoose lemur within a few months. Efforts were stepped up to keep them out but suddenly they were seen all the time within the zoo. Luckily we've had no problems for quite some time and the flamingo paddock has now been meshed over. I don't feel it's fair on the zoo animals for the to have to be shut in every night but sometimes it's the only way...
I think i remeber some flamingos being taken on the zoo uk, and wow a lemur! that must have been one swift fox.
