Help - birds going missing

[shayne]

Hi all,
After some help.
Last night I lost one double bar and two zebra finches (one still dead in cage). About 4 days ago I lost a St Helena.
About a week ago I found an Olive python in the cage with a Gouldian, it couldn't get out with the Gouldian inside ( too thick for the bars ).
I can't figure out what is taking them. If it's a snake then it should be getting stuck in the cage.
Can things like possums, bandicoots, lizards, whatever get the birds through the cage?
Bars of the cage are about 10mm apart.
Never had mice or rats but, could also be a possibility.
Got to find out what it was and how to protect the birds.

cheers

sw

[Finchman1]

Is it a cage or avairy ,it could be a number of things,snakes,birds,cats etc..take a photo of the cage for us to look at it will give us a better idea

[Pictorella]

I'd still be putting money on it being a snake

[shayne]

Was hoping it wouldn't be a snake. I would have thought with two birds it wouldn't fit back through the bars.
I guess the only way to stop a snake is to put 6mm mesh on cage? Is there such a thing as a snake trap?
Sorry, took a while to resize the photos

[vettepilot_6]

Those gaps look wider then 10mm? could be butcher bird or they could just be getting out if scared?

[shayne]

Yeah, they are 12mm.

Product Dimension (L x W x H) 80cm x 47cm x 155cm approx
Cage Dimension(L x W x H) 76x46x97cm approx
Construction Wrought Iron and Black Vein
Gap between wires 12mm approx
Accessories 4 Particle Board Perch
2 Ladders & 2 Platforms
Tray for Excretion

I can't imagine they fit through the bars? One dead zebra on cage floor this morning with two missing.
I'm off to buy 6mm wire and an animal trap. I'll fit the wire today.
Might put the gopro on overnight to catch the culprit (if it's still hungry...)

[arthur]

Obviously 12mm bars will allow a larger snake than 12mm square mesh

If snakes cannot escape by the way they have entered because of the bulge from their prey, they have a couple of options.

One is to remain and digest; the other is to regurgitate their dinner

That may explain the dead Zeb on the floor . . but it would have been covered with slime (digestive juices)

[TomDeGraaff]

Those vertical bars may have some give in them too. They may bend a bit to let the stuffed snake to escape/enter.

[shayne]

Just got back with some 6x6mm wire, will recover the cages. Also got an animal trap just in case, have been meaning to get one for a while anyway.
Alright, off to the shed for an afternoon of wire. Too bad the crickets finished.

[POLAR GOULDIANS]

Hi Shayne,

Did the bird left dead in the cage have a wet head, or was maybe wet all over ?
This happens when the snake starts to eat the bird and then tries to back out of the cage, discovers it wont fit and regurgitates the bird.

I think your culprit may be a Brown Tree snake, they are very thin and would have no trouble getting through your 12mm bars and maybe getting back out with a bird inside.

The Brown Tree snake is common in the Darwin area. http://lrm.nt.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_ ... _snake.pdf

I had a lot of trouble with these several years ago and the only solution is 6mm mouse mesh, even then they can find the smallest gaps.