Comments

  1. lumipuna says

    I totally expected to see eagles, vultures or condors in this post.

    Here in Finland, pig carcasses were (and perhaps still are?) used to provide endangered white-tailed eagles a food source that’s relatively free of environmental pollution. The eagles were first driven to near extinction by human persecution, and then in late 20th century they suffered from pollutants – the sort of long-living chemicals that accumulate in top predators and reduce their fertility. The white-tailed eagle is now making a good recovery.

    Pig and cow carcasses are also used in rural areas to attract bears, wolves and wolverines for nature photographers and safari tourists. Incidentally, just a couple weeks ago I joked to my dad that he could try using pig carcasses (rather than suet balls) in the backyard to see if any animals more interesting than small birds and squirrels would show up.

  2. davidc1 says

    What Birds are those,they look like some kind of Woodpecker.
    Just had a look on the interwebs ,they look like Pileated Woodpeckers.

  3. brightmoon says

    Putting out a carcass we’d get rats , mice and maybe the occasional coyote in NYC. People don’t realize that coyotes live in the city . They just walk over the bridges . Worst rat infestation I ever saw was at night right around the new World Trade Center while they were building it. The sidewalks were rippling with rats. If you parked there you’d get your wires chewed up

  4. Paul K says

    @6 davidc1: Pileated woodpecker, the largest in North America, almost as big as a crow. Lots of animals depend on the large holes they gouge into trees for nesting sites. I’ve watched them excavate; it’s amazing how quickly they chop into wood.