GILES COUNTY, Tenn. -
A Giles cattle rancher is experiencing attacks on his calves and cows by black vultures.
Black vultures usually eat carrion, but Wesley Archer says he has already lost several cows and calves to the birds.
"About two months ago we started our calving season and when the calves would hit the ground if the mother was having a bit of trouble giving birth, they would come in and pluck a mother's eyes out while the cow was giving birth to a calf," Archer said.
Charles Hord, the Executive Vice President of the Tennessee Cattlemen's Association, said that they have been hearing a lot about this issue the last few years.
The association has been trying to raise awareness of vulture attacks.
"I think a lot of times people find a calf like that, and maybe they think it was a coyote or a dog or something that did it, just letting them know that they are out there attacking animals," Hord told Nashville's News 2.
Hord says black vultures are federally protected under the Migratory Bird Act.
In order to kill one, a rancher has to apply for a federal permit through the USDA and US Fish and Wildlife.
"They want to work with you, but they also have their own rules. They are a protected animal and you aren't just allowed to shoot them, you have to go through their process," explained Hord.
Archer says he loves wildlife and doesn't want to indiscriminately kill vultures, but would like to have some alternative solutions to keeping his cattle safe.
"If the government is going to protect them and they want us not to shoot them then they should do the research to figure out alternative ways to warding off the birds. It just can't be left to the cattle producer to figure that out," he said.
Archer also did some research of his own on black vultures. He found out they are very invasive and smart, adapting to their environment and attacking live animals whereas most vultures look for dead animals.
"At the end of the day she is a target out here," explained Archer, talking about a cow.
"Unless you are going to have someone sit out here eight hours a day, and pay them just to sit out here and baby sit this cow, you have got to get them in under cover, but it is not economically feasible to baby sit all the cows and calves all day long," he continued.
Each calf that dies or is killed by a vulture equates to a loss of around $800.
