To Kill a Mockingbird(s)

[Carbo]

A pair of mockingbirds have taken a fancy to my mango tree, currently bearing many fist-sized fruits, most of which are coloring up nicely.  Well, this bounty has apparently caught the eyes of the happy couple who are frequently not only in the area but in the tree.    I've seen any number of peck marks on some of the unripe fruits and I suspect this is only the beginning.  Oh, and they are aggressive buggers, too, and ready to take me on whenever I go out to confront them.  Any suggestions on dealing with these guys?

[Mark in Texas]

A pair of mockingbirds have taken a fancy to my mango tree, currently bearing many fist-sized fruits, most of which are coloring up nicely.  Well, this bounty has apparently caught the eyes of the happy couple who are frequently not only in the area but in the tree.    I've seen any number of peck marks on some of the unripe fruits and I suspect this is only the beginning.  Oh, and they are aggressive buggers, too, and ready to take me on whenever I go out to confront them.  Any suggestions on dealing with these guys?

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.  They will win.  To add insult to injury, they just don't peck and eat one....they'll sample all of the fruit by pecking on them.  Only solution is exclusion, netting.  Birds are smart too the way they communicate, spread the word.  I have to net my vineyard.

And no, blow up scarecrows and such don't work.  They get used to such devices.  Might try red/silver tape hanging from branches.   One apple grower I've known used CD's with some success.

Good luck

[LivingParadise]

Drape the whole tree with netting, or try bagging individual fruit. No reason to kill nature, more of it will just show up. One other option is to spray the tree with an organic scent that they do not like, but you'll have to do so repeatedly after every rain, and run the risk of harming beneficial insects.

For a more fun route, you can buy animal shooers - essentially sticks in the ground with a sensor on them that spray water in the direction pointed every time they detect motion. That might scare them off, or they might decide they like it. You can set up several - but be prepared to get wet yourself every time you try to care for the tree! These can be called
solar-powered animal deterrent," "motion-activated pet deterrent," "garden defense," "motion-activated sprinkler," etc.

[MangoFang]

...also called "scarecrow" deterrents, at least out here on the West Coast....


G

[HMHausman]

Hmmmmm.....Mockingbirds (Florida's state bird....something we share with Texas and apparently several other states) is ubiquitous here in South Florida but I didn't think they bothered with mangoes. Obviously, they would have a quite a selection at my house. I have never seen a mockingbird pecking my mangoes. They don't come to a bird feeder for seed either. I thought they exclusively were insect eaters. Reviewing the very informative Wikipedia article indicates that they are omnivores and will eat seed and fruit as well as insects. Here, they must have a preference for insects (which we seem to have a year round abundance of) as I am sure I would have noticed over the years some contact with my mangoes or bird feeders.  Could it be that the insect populations are down at this time from cold and that causes them to move on to other, less attractive to you anyway, choices?  Maybe an insect release (like earthworms) is in order.

[Mark in Texas]

I thought they exclusively were insect eaters. Reviewing the very informative Wikipedia article indicates that they are omnivores and will eat seed and fruit as well as insects.

They love fruit, especially my grapes.   As soon as they veraison (turn black) here they come, in mass.  Not attracted to the green grapes, thinking they're not ripe I guess.

They leave my peaches alone for some strange reason.

[LivingParadise]

They peck at my coconuts. I don't know if they ever get anything from them, but they like to sit on them and peck. It could be that they are picking off ants up there. But, there are rats in several of the trees up very high, and they chomp holes into the tops of some of them and then eat the inside. It may be that the mockingbirds are catching a free ride off of rat labor, and sipping inside for some coconut water or the fresh green coconut meat sitting right in front of them. Sometimes the rats get clumsy and chomp too close to the connection, and the open green coconut falls down with all of the meat and water still inside. It would sound like mockingbirds are maybe not that picky. If I were in the hot sun and could get a free drink of coconut water without ever having to leave my high perch, I would too.

[Tropheus76]

.22 cal bird shot. Takes care of many orchard problems and isn't a threat to anyone else.

[Carbo]

Shooting the birds, or anything for that matter, isn't an option I'd consider.  Sounds like netting the tree might be the best option.  But how to cover a tree that is about 13' tall and 8' wide?
Harry, with all your trees and fruit you don't have any Mockingbirds making their presence known?  Quite surprised.  And they are pretty fearless, too.  They'll hold their ground when I go out there to drive them away.

[Mark in Texas]

Shooting the birds, or anything for that matter, isn't an option I'd consider.  Sounds like netting the tree might be the best option.  But how to cover a tree that is about 13' tall and 8' wide?

I have a rig, a series of large rings, that goes on the bucket of my tractor.  You can duplicate this.  Meaning, you're gonna have to have plenty of width (I use 17'W)  and without expanding it hold it like a rope, climb on a tall ladder, have someone front and back position the strip out in single file, drop it over the top and middle of the canopy while your helpers pull outward on the sides.  The fun part is fighting the woodpecker that gets in thru the little hole you left around the trunk.  IOW, you have to tie the stuff together just right.  The 2nd fun part is getting it off.   

Mockingbirds are especially fearless come mating time.  They will attack you if they feel you're infringing on a nest or chicks.   When you hear that sqawking, they're pissed hehe.   They love dive bombing my cat.

[Carbo]

Mockingbirds are especially fearless come mating time.  They will attack you if they feel you're infringing on a nest or chicks.   When you hear that sqawking, they're pissed hehe.   They love dive bombing my cat.

Hehe.  Yeah, I always know when they've spotted my cat.  The warning calls start to fly and the birds start to galvanize to protect "their" mango tree.

[SWRancher]

A pair of mockingbirds have taken a fancy to my mango tree, currently bearing many fist-sized fruits, most of which are coloring up nicely.  Well, this bounty has apparently caught the eyes of the happy couple who are frequently not only in the area but in the tree.    I've seen any number of peck marks on some of the unripe fruits and I suspect this is only the beginning.  Oh, and they are aggressive buggers, too, and ready to take me on whenever I go out to confront them.  Any suggestions on dealing with these guys?

Luckily I have not had any mockingbird problems with mangos. In past years, I have had alot of issues with bluejays pecking at and eating nearly ripe hanging mangoes. I dealt with that by putting up some bird feeders loaded with bluejay seed.  They seem to prefer going to the feeder and eating the seed over pecking fresh mangos so my fruit losses went down.

[SWRancher]

.22 cal bird shot. Takes care of many orchard problems and isn't a threat to anyone else.

Birds are pretty hard to hit, works great for squirrels though....

[HMHausman]

Luckily I have not had any mockingbird problems with mangos. In past years, I have had alot of issues with bluejays pecking at and eating nearly ripe hanging mangoes. I dealt with that by putting up some bird feeders loaded with bluejay seed.  They seem to prefer going to the feeder and eating the seed over pecking fresh mangos so my fruit losses went down.

Yes, I have had the same issue with Blue Jays that have far more of a problem than Mockingbirds at my house. Woodpeckers are even worse than Blue Jays......they love mangoes and will even peck into citrus, like pommelo. In this last season, some unindentified bird has virtually destroyed my sapodilla crop on one side of my property.  Its a very reclusive bird and when I get a good look at him and make a positive ID I'm going to take some really drastic countermeasures.  This guy is really destructive.

[JeffDM]

Last year I finally beat back the ground squirrels and now the mockingbirds have shown up to fill the void.
They chased the Black Phoebes (little martin like birds that eat bugs and chirp sweetly) out of my yard and now hold contests to see which one can sing the most annoying tunes.

[Dangermouse01]

Oh, and they are aggressive buggers, too, and ready to take me on whenever I go out to confront them.

If the mocking birds are taking you on when you go out there, more than likely they have a nest they are protecting.

DM

[Carbo]

If the mocking birds are taking you on when you go out there, more than likely they have a nest they are protecting.DM

I wouldn't doubt they do, but let's hope they aren't thinking of setting up a crib in my mango tree.   

[JeffDM]

A heartwarming video, but not enough to make me want a cat:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HDqjX7gRyA

[LivingParadise]

Shooting the birds, or anything for that matter, isn't an option I'd consider.  Sounds like netting the tree might be the best option.  But how to cover a tree that is about 13' tall and 8' wide?
Harry, with all your trees and fruit you don't have any Mockingbirds making their presence known?  Quite surprised.  And they are pretty fearless, too.  They'll hold their ground when I go out there to drive them away.

If you have a large enough piece of net to start with (or several pieces tied/stapled together) you can do it by yourself if you don't have anyone to help simply by hooking it over the end of a long pole, raising it up as high on one side of the tree as you can, walking around, and pulling it over. No special equipment needed - as long as you have a long broom handle, pole saw, or whatever else to tie the net to. Another fun idea might be to raise it on a fishing line if you have a strong one, and reel it over the front, lol!

[Guanabanus]

Before you get too brazen or careless, check on whether insect-eating song birds are legally protected in your area.

I share your pain--- mockingbirds, after years of ignoring my carambolas, now destroy them.  Someone tried one, the others watched....