The world turned upside down: a farmyard flock chases a bear

In the United States, where the owner of the B&J Facebook account carries out his wildlife photography work, we can mainly find three species of native bears. The American black bear is the most common and widespread in the country. The subspecies of brown bear that inhabit North America are the grizzly and the Kodiak. The polar bear lives only in the Arctic and coastal regions of northern Alaska.

Rebellion in the hen farm

The presence of a bear near the henhouse prompts a reaction from the free-ranging birds. Instead of fleeing, they stand up to the surprised plantigrade. Hens and roosters retain a strong instinct to protect their territory and flock. The fowl’s behaviour frightens the predator. They do not need to spread their wings and peck the bear to make it back away and flee.

The gregarious nature of hens

In 2019, a group of hens pecked a fox to death at an agricultural school in north-western France. There were 6,000 birds at the Le Gros Chêne farm when the predator decided to enter through the hatch. The birds’ natural tendency to live in groups is their most effective survival strategy against predators. They rely on the flock’s passive and active cooperation to reduce each individual’s risk of being hunted.

The more hens there are in the group, the lower the statistical likelihood of being preyed upon. If they flee in different directions when attacked, they create visual chaos that makes it harder for the predator to focus on a single target. The flock makes it possible to detect a threat much earlier.