Even wildlife is bent out of shape with the price of eggs.
What's happening?
Bobcats in Minnesota have attacked chickens and are increasingly showing up around homes, WTIP reported March 3. The animals were looking for easy meals with feet of snow on the ground.
In and around Grand Marais, in the northeastern part of the state, at least 17 chickens and two ducks were killed in three incidents. In the city, the small wild cats were spotted in the streets at all hours.
A Canada lynx was also seen in the region.
Why is this important?
In the depths of winter, the bobcats likely see the chickens as easy pickings — even if they're behind a heavy screen or door. One bobcat tore open a steel screen to get to a chicken run, while another incursion included an animal's attempt to create a hole in a coop door, according to WTIP.
Small pets and even bird feeders can attract the creatures, which are known to kill fawns as well. But young bobcats may look elsewhere.
"Something the size of a chicken is very obvious on the landscape and very appealing to a bobcat," Nancy Hansen, Two Harbors area wildlife manager for the state Department of Natural Resources, said, per WTIP.
What's being done about bobcats' killing chickens?
Hansen told WTIP people should try to scare off a bobcat if one gets close. Do not approach or feed it. The cats do not normally attack humans, dogs, or cats.
Anyone with a chicken coop should install motion-activated lights or solar-powered flashers. A radio can also help mask the sounds of chickens. If a bobcat or other animal has probed a run or coop, owners should shore up their defenses.
While these problems are unfortunate and the sightings are reportedly uncommon, humans are the ones in wildlife territory and not vice versa. In some areas, development and habitat destruction has all but wiped out bobcats.
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"We live in a place where there are wild animals and lots of predators," Hansen told WTIP. "And winter is especially a time period where animals may come a little closer to people than we're used to."
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