How to Deter Hawks From Backyard Chickens

Overhead cover is the only reliable defence. What works, what is illegal, and the breeds and cockerels that change a hawk's calculation.

By Zakaria November 1, 2026 2 min read Save to Pinterest

A hawk perched on a weathered fence post scanning open ground — Photo: Pexels, Pixabay Content License, via Pixabay

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A hawk needs open sky above open ground. Take either away and the attack stops being worth attempting — which is why cover works and scare devices do not.

The short answer

Overhead cover is the only reliable defence: aviary netting across the run, or failing that a shade sail, pergola, criss-crossed lines or dense shrubs that break up the open sky and give birds somewhere to reach. Hawks are federally protected in the US under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and protected in the UK under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, so shooting, trapping or harassing one is illegal even while it is taking your birds. A good cockerel gives a distinct aerial alarm and sends the flock to cover. Bantams, chicks and pale breeds are taken disproportionately; scare devices habituate within days.

Overhead cover is the answer — netting, sail, pergola, shrubs
Hawks are protected. Shooting or trapping one is a federal offence in the US
A cockerel’s aerial alarm works — if there is cover to run to
Pale and bantam birds are taken first
Owls, tape and CDs stop working within days

Cover, in order of effectiveness

measure	effect
Full aviary netting over the run	Complete. The only certain fix
Welded wire roof over part of the run	Complete where they are
Shade sails or a pergola	Strong — breaks the dive line
Criss-crossed lines or tape overhead	Moderate; deters commitment
Dense shrubs and low trees in the run	Moderate; gives escape cover
Open run, no cover	None

Netting needs to be taut and anchored. Slack netting is both a trap hazard for wild birds and something a determined hawk will push through.

It is illegal to shoot, trap or harass a hawk

In the US they are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, with federal penalties; in the UK under the Wildlife and Countryside Act. That applies while the bird is actively taking your chickens. Depredation permits exist in the US for severe, documented cases and come from US Fish and Wildlife Service — they are not routine.

Flock-level measures

Keep a cockerel. The aerial alarm call is distinct from the ground-predator one, and the flock responds to it
Choose darker or barred breeds where losses are ongoing — Barred Rock, Welsummer, anything mottled
Keep chicks and bantams in covered runs entirely
Supervise free-ranging, and stop it during the autumn migration peak if losses spike
Feed inside or under cover, so the flock is not standing in the open at a predictable time

What does not work for long

Plastic owls and hawk decoys — days
Reflective tape, old CDs, scarecrows — days
Radios — days
Motion sprinklers — hawks habituate; also they stoop faster than the sensor responds

Use them rotated and moved, as a supplement. Never as the plan.

After a kill

A hawk that has fed successfully returns. Expect it back within a day or two, and get cover up before that happens rather than after the second loss — the pattern is predictable enough to act on.

Common questions

What actually stops a hawk taking chickens?

Overhead cover, and nothing else comes close. A hawk hunts by stooping from height into open ground, so netting, wire or even a partial roof over the run removes the approach entirely. Aviary netting across the whole run is the complete answer; where that is impractical, breaking up the open sky with shade sails, a pergola, criss-crossed lines or dense shrubs gives the birds somewhere to reach and makes the dive harder to commit to.

Is it legal to shoot or trap a hawk?

No. In the United States hawks are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and killing, trapping or harassing one carries substantial federal penalties, with state law adding more; in the UK all birds of prey are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act. This holds even where the bird is actively taking your livestock. Depredation permits exist in the US for severe documented cases and are issued by US Fish and Wildlife Service, not by a state agency, and they are not granted casually.

Do roosters protect hens from hawks?

A good cockerel helps more than most deterrents you can buy. He watches the sky, gives a distinct aerial alarm call that sends the flock to cover, and some will physically confront a bird of prey — occasionally dying doing it. He does not make an open run safe, because the alarm only works if there is cover within reach. One cockerel to eight or ten hens is the usual ratio, and a vigilant mixed-breed bird often does the job better than a show-quality one.

Which chickens are most at risk?

Bantams, chicks and white or pale birds, in that order of concern. Small birds are within a hawk's carrying capacity so they disappear entirely, while a standard hen may be killed and partly eaten on the spot. Pale plumage is visible against grass from a long way up, which is why white Leghorns are taken disproportionately. Darker and barred breeds — Barred Rocks, Welsummers, anything mottled — are genuinely harder to spot from height.

Do scare devices work?

Briefly, and then not at all. Plastic owls, reflective tape, old CDs and scarecrows produce a few days of caution before the hawk learns they never move or react. They are worth using as a rotation — moved every few days, combined with something else — rather than as the defence. Radios and motion-activated sprinklers suffer the same habituation. Nothing in this category substitutes for cover.

What about guinea fowl or geese?

Guinea fowl are loud and alert and will raise the alarm, which helps, but they are also taken by hawks themselves and they are noisy enough to cause problems with neighbours. Geese deter ground predators effectively and do very little against an aerial attack. A livestock guardian dog with run access is the one animal solution that meaningfully reduces aerial losses, mainly because its presence changes how long a hawk is willing to sit and watch.

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