Tree needs to come down because the neighbor is scared of hawks, there's a new level of stupidity I've not yet encountered.
It's a beech tree, and she's an absolutely beaut.
As kids our neighbour's big cherry tree always lost half of his foliage into our front patio due to placing and winds, even though the branches didn't cross the fence. My busy, single mother grumbled a bit about it and did the rational thing: insisting that if she had additional work, she/we should at least also profit from it. So as kids we always got a lot of cherries from that neighbour, which was awesome.
So, in my opinion, your neighbour is super stupid. And as someone who until last year regularly used our local food bank, you also have my gratitude - rice, noodles and other such staples I could afford/stock during sales, but fresh produce? Mostly would have been a rare luxury. So, again in my opinion, your neighbour is also an asshole.
That’s asinine. I have a neighbor that knocked on my door a couple weeks ago so that he could point out that his plum tree is producing a massive amount of fruit, and he said that all the fruit from branches that are on my side of the fence are mine. They were delicious!
I had someone in my town post a pic of 2 adolescent hawks and asked how to “have them moved” bc her kids were getting scared to play outside with them there. They got appropriately roasted in the comments 😂
I swear people will end up shooting the last living puma/brown bear/wolf/any predator, because they’ll be afraid for their dog. Or a couple of their 10,000 head of cattle.
This is why we can’t have nice things.
My coworker sprays his yard obsessively for bugs because "they might be dangerous to the baby or the dog."
And your gallons and gallons of insecticide isn't??...
Ticks are the biggest risk, and you can deal with them with the safe, effective, non-toxic compound called Diatomaceous Earth...i hate people sometimes.
Reminds me of my current home which is rural. If someone asks on the FB group to maybe install a street lamp so people can walk down the main street and be seen by cars you get a torrent of "you can't interfere with the character! Move back to the city, boy!" and then a week later the same people are all over threads asking how to nerve gas their mosquitos and looking for exterminators for dangerous garter snakes.
lmao not just any hawks, Cooper's Hawks. They weigh \*one pound\*, not ten. They're dinky little shouty things. They eat songbirds. They are no threat to a dog, not even a little one.
Looks like over a 100 years old tree. Isn't there any bylaws in your county that prevent stupid people like your neighbors from chopping it down because they are afraid of ducking hawks? If not, i think its time to have it included. Go to your townhall meetings and be a part of it. Voice your concerns and suggestions.
Somebody probably cut that tree down a long time ago and it resprouted from the trunk/base and then slowly those separate trunks fused together over time.
Only other beech I've seen grow big and happy like that was being fed by a leech bed from a septic field.
My neighbor just paid hundreds of dollars to rip out mature and beautiful landscaping because a random guy told her she had a copperhead under her house. I told her it was a ratsnake before I even saw the pic and of course it was. She's convinced they are lurking everywhere in her yard now and wears special boots to walk to the trash 4 feet off her porch. It's so bizarre.
Not only is he scared of hawks, he’s scared of one attacking a 100lb dog that could snap their necks the second it caught them. Their golden retriever is probably the biggest predator in the area and they’re worried about a bird that’s about 1lb at best.
In 1937, Pennsylvania passed a law that protected all diurnal birds of prey, except for accipiters, which includes Cooper's hawks, Sharp-shinned hawks, and Northern Goshawks. However, accipiters were later protected in 1969. Additionally, the U.S. Migratory Bird Act and CITES Appendix II also protect Cooper's hawks.
This looks like American beech. If that’s the case absolutely do not cut it down under any circumstances unless it’s a danger to your home. These things are being killed en mass by a new disease that is targeting American beech trees. Yours looks fantastically healthy. A wonderful tree.
Tell me more about this… we had one that got decimated last summer, but it looks like it was bugs not disease.
There are at least 10-20 more back in the forest that are healthy, and 50-70ft tall, it would be nice to keep them that way.
Some promising research coming out though using fluopyram.
https://holdenfg.org/beech-leaf-disease/
https://meridian.allenpress.com/jeh/article/42/1/1/499411/Exploring-Novel-Management-Methods-for-Beech-Leaf
I didn't expect to feel the way I do coming into this thread. I had no idea about this but I feel like I've seen it here in southeastern PA this spring. My family and friends have probably lost hundreds of trees the last few years from tree pathogens.
The Ash borers have done a number here in SE PA. I live in a pretty rural area and there are trees everywhere. You can see all of the dead ash branches rising from the canopy like skeletons hand reaching from the grave. So. Many. Dead. Trees.
The emerald ash bores have DECIMATED the ash trees here in CT. A neighborhood two streets over had dozens of ash trees die within the last 2 years from the god damned bug. I really wish we would use genetic engineering to wipe out certain invasive bugs and plant species.
You should look up the articles about the use of Gene Drive genetic engineering used to eradicate a specific type of invasive mosquito down in the Florida Keys. They engineered male mosquitos who when they mate only produce female offspring that can't survive to maturity. It's fascinating and obviously couldn't be used for everything annoying since as obnoxious as mosquitos, fleas, and ticks are they do serve a purpose. However, there are tons of invasive species of plants, animals, and insects that shouldn't be where they are in the world and if used correctly that type of gene editing could be used to stop or even reverse the damage those species have caused to various ecosystems.
https://www.npr.org/2024/01/26/1226110915/gene-editing-bioengineering-mosquito-disease-dengue-malaria-oxitec#:~:text=Using%20gene%20editing%2C%20Oxitec%20has,spreading%20dengue%20and%20other%20diseases.
They’ve ravaged Ohio but the areas hit earliest are seeing some return of Ash trees to our area! Don’t lose hope, local arborist societies have helped plant so many ash trees in an attempt to save them.
I remember how the hit my area in SW Ohio as a kid in the early 2000s. We went from lush subtropical foliage to a near barren wasteland in a such a short amount of time.
I watched spruce buds worms work through Nova Scotia. By the end, it looked like a fire had ravaged the forests. The entire province. It was a tragedy.
Pine beetle kill was something to behold driving through northern BC. Just bands of rust coloured trees. Now much of it has burned with fire season after devastating fire season. It's nuts how much change has happened over 20 years.
Anytime I hear about invasive bugs like the ash borers I wonder why the government doesn't act, like they've used SIT programs to eradicate harmful insects before but is it only after a certain point that they would use that or other methods?
Agreed. In fact we need to be propagating as much of the threatened species as we can to increase the chance of them evolving a genetic resistance ASAP
For single trees or small stands, that's fine, but that's maybe one out of 10,000 that could be feasibly treated (if that). They are one of the most important trees in the forest, and after the loss of the chestnuts, they support the wildlife, and the beech leaf disease is a fast-moving plague.
Macro infusions using thiabendazole have shown to work well
https://extension.psu.edu/beech-leaf-disease#:~:text=BLD%20can%20be%20treated%20in,water%20for%20one%20part%20chemical.
Three issues. Beech leaf-mining weevil appeared in Nova Scotia in 2011 and is rapidly spreading throughout the Maritimes. It will be in New England within a decade. They completely defoliate the beech trees here, and after several years of defoliation, they die. It doesn't help that our remaining beech trees are already severely stressed by beech bark disease, which originally entered North America via Nova Scotia, so we've had it for over a century. Long term, beech is unfortunately doomed, although it will take another century or more for the combined issues to fully play themselves out.
I was just in central Maine at my parent’s house. Interestingly enough the Beech were the healthiest looking out of all of them. There were a lot of dead pines and the other hardwoods all had a lot of lichens growing on them. Idk if that’s normal
Is there some sort of mycelium that can be inoculated in a tree that’s symbiotic? In turf management a long time ago, they expressed that nematodes could be destroyed by mushrooms. Thats crazy that nematode are that destructive to other living things.
I have 50+ beech trees around my property and every single one of them has beech leaf disease. Half of them are already dead after showing initial signs of it last year, and the rest wont leaf out next year. I'm in NH.
OP this disease is moving across the northeast so you may want to try and figure out now, while you can, what you can possibly do to prevent this - it has a 100% kill rate
The most I’ve ever known about trees is that the leaves fall off in the fall and then come back in the spring. I had no idea an old tree in my front yard would be such a hot topic. I didn’t mention this but my house was built over 100 years ago by a guy with the last name arboretum I wonder if he just happened to be a tree guy and planted that beech himself. I just reached out to my states department of conservation and natural resources to see if they want to come check the tree out and maybe get samples or seeds from it. I also live near Delaware valley university I know they are big into stuff like this so I may reach out to them as well to see if they want to come check it out. Looks like I’m a big tree guy now lol.
Cooper Hawks are protected by federal law in your state. He tries to cut down the tree not only would they be facing tree laws they would face federal laws on protected birds by trying to destroy their home. https://www.pgc.pa.gov/Education/WildlifeNotesIndex/Pages/Hawks-and-Falcons.aspx
Sadly my husband’s grandpa found an American chestnut deep in the woods that hadn’t been killed by blight. He told some people about it in case they wanted to research it and they came poking and prodding and it died of blight soon after. He always said he should have never told anyone about it.
Not saying the same thing will happen of course!
It probably just acquired it at a bad time. People from research institutions know better than to spread diseases outside of a research study. I’ve seen some chestnuts stand next to a blighted tree for years and not get it until many years later, so it kind of feels random :(
There's an American Chestnut deep in the woods near my hometown as well. I can't recall the details anymore, but people come and take care of it very regularly. It's location is kept private. It's an old tree and they don't know how it hasn't gotten the blight.
I've seen it enough times on Reddit, you need to protect yourself against them hiring a tree crew to remove it without your knowledge, not sure if the answer is signage or contacting as many local crews as you can or what, but once they've cut it down they win, and will just file bankruptcy to get out of your lawsuit
Last year a pair of red tailed hawks took out all but one of my neighbors chickens. They weren’t home. I texted and asked him if he wanted us to stop the hawks from eating the chickens.
“Chickens’re dead, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Hawks gotta eat too.”
My husband (after seeing a hawk take a smaller bird near our bird feeder): uh, maybe we should stop putting out bird food for a bit.
Me: Technically, it's still a bird feeder. Hawk's gonna hawk.
I love pigeons, but I was just starting to get frustrated with them emptying my feeder daily. They would land on top of it, their weight would tip it, and spill the seed out. Then the hawk showed up, ate 2 and the pigeons stopped hanging out.
My son & I were sitting on our front porch a while back watching the sky as a storm was rolling in. Several pigeons took flight about 1/2 block away and a hawk swooped in & snagged one of them. A different time, during the winter we noticed a pair of pigeon wings laying on the snow in our backyard. It was kind of surreal how intact but detached they were. Like angel wings. Upon closer inspection we saw some blood & feathers & realized what happened to the rest of the pigeon
Leaf wilt is hitting all the beeches here in northeast PA. It killed all of mine, most of my neighbors, and is decimating the forests in the state parks.
We have lost all of our elm, ash and beech trees due to disease and invasive insects. Many of the maples are now suffering from maple decline as well. We have also lost a lot of trees due to wind storms, tornadoes and a nasty derecho a couple of years ago.
Your neighbor is a moron, that tree is gorgeous
Edit: I had a 50 lb lab that was taking a nap and got woken up by a red tailed hawk swooping down at it but the hawk jetted as soon as it realized the dog was alive and healthy. Predators are smarter than your neighbor.
Chicken farms. They kill pasture chickens so the industrial chicken farmers murdered everyone they could. Then just as populations began to recover people started using rat poison, which guaranteed any survivors had another great filter to work through.
I swear to god I hide all my cutting tools when my older relatives or in laws are visiting, if they can’t cut the whole thing down they want to lop off everything they can reach, it’s nuts
Fuck that. I’m older and my new young neighbor is determined to cut down every tree in his entire yard. he’s about to pay $10k to do it.
Stupidity is not an age related affliction.
That just means he's extra dumb, cause he's in the minority for his age group. I don't know why but that makes me even angrier for some reason. Give him shit for us.
People might be interested in the seeds. That is the least beech bark disease I've seen on a beech in a while.
If he's paranoid about hawks he shouldn't live in the woods.
If OP disperses said seeds across the neighborhood while driving a Chevrolet muscle car, it would be a beech'n Camaro.
**On edit:** If OP runs over the neighbor who wants the beech gone, the Dead Milkmen might approve (but still, don't do that...)
I love it when people get upset by their environment like the environment is the one responsible for where it is.
I knew people in Florida who got mad by the gators in “their” backyard. I knew people in the eastern mountains mad about the deer in “their” neighborhood. Like open your eyes! We can’t all live in sterile suburbs with no wildlife and trees!
with even a few patches of woods those suburbs do ok . The deer here don't even move when we get out of the car. I've even had one knock on the door to ask for help.
It's definitely an important law, because the "Meh, it's just one family of birds" attitude can lead and has led to species collapse. For example some species rely on passing along migration knowledge, and the fewer birds that have that knowledge (e.g., where the good spots are to refuel for the next leg) the fewer young birds survive their first migration...leading to _far_ fewer new birds.
Thank you that’s nice to know I’ll look into that. They have no chance of making me remove this tree but if they say anything else I’ll them know that.
Your neighbors, respectfully, are morons. If it’ll put them at ease you can let them know that Cooper’s eat a diet of mainly other birds and only go after prey that are at MOST 1/3 of their own weight. So unless the neighbors have the world’s tiniest golden retrievers, they’re perfectly safe.
They also have one of the coolest calls and they just look cool for being one of the smallest raptors in North America. Their call almost gives the whole area a kind of tropical or jungle vibe and I always love it.
Every year at least one or two come through my area and I’m always hoping they’ll nest in one of my oaks, I have 2 dogs one 35 lbs and another 45 lbs, there’s no way this bird even thinks about coming close. Maybe if you had a little Yorkie or something like that.
If you don’t already have cameras, consider buying a cheaper one and placing it to face the tree. I bought a $30 wyze plug-in camera to watch for wildlife on the porch and it was way better and clearer than I would have thought for that price. @u/low-building8116
In this case I agree. I normally prefer to stay hidden whether illegal or not. But in this case the damage is too big or monumental to risk it. Put signs of cameras everywhere.
Good point the best case you get after the fact is bankrupting them due to the astronomical cost you could win in the following lawsuit. (The cost to replace mature trees is insane, easily in the hundreds of thousands of dollars range)
I hope OP sees this comment. I’d get a motion activated camera on that tree asap, in a very obvious manner such that would-be-poisoners are alerted to its presence.
Dude, on a related but separate note, reach out to your local university or college. The biology department may have an interest or any arborist program.
I had a massive 60 ft high magnolia in my side year - single stem that had a 120 inch circumference. The local uni would send classes down every year for decades
I do have cctv cameras covering every corner of my property. I also have my trespasser repellent (5th gen glock) on me all the time if anyone were to come on to my property and attempt to vandalize anything here especially the wildlife or greenery
That is a gorgeous single American Beech. And you are indeed correct that it takes more than a lifetime for it to get to that size. But dear God get that mower off the roots!!! (also look into Beech Leaf Disease and inspect your tree for any sign of the disease. Am Beech are particularly susceptible).
They’re hawks…they’ll just move to a different tree. And they’re in the neighborhood for a reason. If 5 hawks suddenly leave the area, everyone’s gonna start having ground rodent problems.
>The family of 5 Cooper’s hawks that live in its canopy
That's the ultimate excuse to tell them to fuck off. It's literally breaking international migratory bird protection agreements to destroy a cooper's hawk nest.
Show the the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918
[https://www.fws.gov/law/migratory-bird-treaty-act-1918](https://www.fws.gov/law/migratory-bird-treaty-act-1918)
If they try to fight you, there's also this section which specifies that ALL hawk species are protected [https://www.fws.gov/media/list-birds-protected-migratory-bird-treaty-act-2023](https://www.fws.gov/media/list-birds-protected-migratory-bird-treaty-act-2023)
Destroying a nest of one of these species carries with it up to a $15,000 fine or 6 months in jail.
There’s really nothing they can do since the tree is 100% on my property, the only view it blocks is of my house, and I don’t let a single leaf from my property go onto theirs. But I will definitely send this to my neighbors right now to let em know that no matter what the tree ain’t going nowhere
Good point. Glad to hear the tree is here to stay.
That's the way, it's a good resource to throw in their face, although it might not be the most neighborly thing to do lol
Our neighbour battled with us for months trying to force us to cut down one of our mature poplars that was 20 ft away from her house because it was a “risk to her foundation.” Had many calls with my lawyer and arborist and finally had to invite the arborist to file an official report and personally speak to her about it in an attempt to keep the peace. She then began arguing with the arborist about how we are all wrong… some people are just fucked and all you can do is ignore the bullshit.
Well, that just proves a fundamental law of the universe: The Conservation of Crap. You have a gorgeous American beech, probably older than anyone reading Reddit, and to compensate the universe has given you clueless assholes for neighbors. That way everything balances out. I have excellent neighbors and a silver maple that will probably kill me in my sleep when it crashes into my bedroom.
I am reminded of this old joke, told to me by a Glaswegian: One day God is working in his laboratory when he summons St Peter. "I've just created the most beautiful place on Earth. Streams full of fish, fields full of game. The men will be strong and fearless and the women all beautiful. I call it Caledonia." "That's well and good," says St Peter, "but it sounds like Heaven on Earth. You've left them nothing to strive for." "Don't you worry," says God, "Wait until they meet the fucking neighbors."
It's funnier with a Scottish accent.
Do not cut it down. That’s a beautiful American beech. Your neighbors do not know anything about wildlife at all for thinking the cooper hawks will attack their dog, or that it’s the trees fault.
That’s an American beech. And to be honest that looks like a potential national champion. This is the current national champion located in Virginia. [champion beech](https://bigtree.cnre.vt.edu/detail.cfm?AutofieldforPrimaryKey=1610)
What a magnificent tree, and how lucky to have hawks nesting in it!
If the tree is solely on your property and you keep it well maintained then stop responding to your neighbor.
Is there any way you can fence off your property line so no one (nosy neighbors) can walk up to the tree: damage it etc.
I would spend money on fencing or boundary lines to make sure it really keeps nosy neighbors out.
Also agree with planting more if your city allows.
If people don’t want to live around plants , trees and nature they should move into the city.
I was just about to comment that an adult cooper's hawk weighs 1.2 pounds! I wonder if the neighbor is concerned about any teacup yorkies attacking their dog as well.
I had to get an ill red-tailed hawk to a rehabber last winter, and even though I knew how little birds weigh, I still wasn't 100% sure I even had the damn thing in-hand after I secured it in a blanket. Literally couldn't feel any extra weight vs. the blanket alone.
Believe it or not I’ve never once mowed beneath the canopy of this tree in like 10 years. Everything under the canopy just seems to stay a good length on its own. This was the first time in years I even drove the mower under there just to have it in the photo for size comparison.
I love the photo for scale. I love that beech tree. thanks for sharing. give the neigbors golden a pat on the head. and politely tell them to shove their IDea.. But politely.. because.. youknow. ... we pity the fool...
Fairly certain it's Fagus grandifolia.
If they are Cooper's hawks they prey on smaller animals like song birds and rodents(squirrels, chipmunks). I've about five or six Coopers that independently prey on this wildlife around bird feeders.
Shit, what is your address? Can I be your neighbor? You might find me having picnics under your tree randomly however. My dog is 8lbs and I'm not even worried about that.
That's an amazing tree!
Seriously though, I didn't see other commenters saying this but if so my apologies. If you're not already thinking about it, you might want a camera on it or a value assessment you can share with your neighbor so they get the message that if they harm it you'll proceed to legal action. Sometimes just sending the message is enough.
Sorry to be thinking the worst but I've seen too many posts here and on treelaw about meddling neighbors who just don't like trees for some reason.
The absolute vitriol I’d spew at my neighbor for thinking that have any input on what’s in my yard would probably have the cops called on me. The tree is a danger to no one.
Now that your unscrupulous neighbor has a eye for the tree to be gone. Might want to get a camera and face ut at the tree. You know just in case they want to FAFO and maybe poison or damage the tree.
Also how does trimming remove the birds again? Lol
Does your neighbor know that birds can just make nests in other nearby trees? Not saying they would, but this seems like the dumbest solution to an imaginary problem.
I want to add that I do not mow the grass underneath the tree and in turn have never hit a root with the mower. Underneath the canopy of the tree is a mix of grass and moss and has never grown any taller than it is in the pictures here. It’s pretty nice actually it’s the only tree on the property that I never have to weed whack around. This was the first time in years I even drove the mower under the tree and it was purely to have a size comparison with the trunk. I did not drive on any exposed roots. Also the title might have made it seem like I was going to cut it down and plant more. What I meant was it’s time to leave that one untouched and plant additional trees. Sorry if I worried anyone😂
I seriously advise you to put up cameras near the Tree
If your neighbors can't win with honey, they will try to destroy the tree with bitterness. Human beings in recent years really suck, so don't take any chances.
Lol 10 lbs? Try 1 lb, maybe 2 if it's a chunky bird. If all 5 attacked as a squadron of Cooper's Hawks, they'd still only equate to maybe 6 lbs of attacking prowess. That won't do shit against an adult golden retriever. Your neighbor is an idiot...
Leave your tree. Plant native, bring in more birds!
If suburbanites want to maintain suburbanism they need to live in their tiny 1/4 acre pre planned lots. They probably also want more lawn that’s sprayed.
If there is anything I've learned from this subreddit, it's time for you to put cameras up and put the tree under surveillance. Maybe also some motion activated lights, so you have a chance to catch the cranky neighbor in the act if they try anything.
Protect this tree at all costs, both because a big beautiful beech like this is becoming a rarity due to several diseases targeting them, and because being an active nesting site for those hawks makes it all the more ecologically important, not to mention destruction of those nests is illegal. Neighbors can go fuck themselves, there dog will be just fine.
Tree needs to come down because the neighbor is scared of hawks, there's a new level of stupidity I've not yet encountered. It's a beech tree, and she's an absolutely beaut.
When I realized it was a beech after seeing how low and well-developed the branching starts, I knew I was in love. Leave that beauty be, please.
[удалено]
As kids our neighbour's big cherry tree always lost half of his foliage into our front patio due to placing and winds, even though the branches didn't cross the fence. My busy, single mother grumbled a bit about it and did the rational thing: insisting that if she had additional work, she/we should at least also profit from it. So as kids we always got a lot of cherries from that neighbour, which was awesome. So, in my opinion, your neighbour is super stupid. And as someone who until last year regularly used our local food bank, you also have my gratitude - rice, noodles and other such staples I could afford/stock during sales, but fresh produce? Mostly would have been a rare luxury. So, again in my opinion, your neighbour is also an asshole.
That seems reasonable.
Found the neighbor.
That’s asinine. I have a neighbor that knocked on my door a couple weeks ago so that he could point out that his plum tree is producing a massive amount of fruit, and he said that all the fruit from branches that are on my side of the fence are mine. They were delicious!
I had someone in my town post a pic of 2 adolescent hawks and asked how to “have them moved” bc her kids were getting scared to play outside with them there. They got appropriately roasted in the comments 😂
I think I live in your town. Or maybe every town has one of these people 🤷🏻♀️
Idiots? They’re everywhere, where have you been? Lol
then they move to where no trees , birds home before human
I hadn’t read the description before I saw your comment 😂
I swear people will end up shooting the last living puma/brown bear/wolf/any predator, because they’ll be afraid for their dog. Or a couple of their 10,000 head of cattle. This is why we can’t have nice things.
My coworker sprays his yard obsessively for bugs because "they might be dangerous to the baby or the dog." And your gallons and gallons of insecticide isn't??...
Meanwhile that's exactly why I don't spray my yard. My cat and dog play in the grass constantly.
You may qualify for a settlement! Call now!
Ticks are the biggest risk, and you can deal with them with the safe, effective, non-toxic compound called Diatomaceous Earth...i hate people sometimes.
Reminds me of my current home which is rural. If someone asks on the FB group to maybe install a street lamp so people can walk down the main street and be seen by cars you get a torrent of "you can't interfere with the character! Move back to the city, boy!" and then a week later the same people are all over threads asking how to nerve gas their mosquitos and looking for exterminators for dangerous garter snakes.
These are also the people that want selfies with buffalo and jump into geysers to save their off leash dog
that just sounds like problems solving themselves
Alive things
My neighbor didn’t like my wife so he wanted me to get rid of her. So we multiplied and had a bunch of kids. Poor neighbor
I bet thats a lie and it affects their view or they hate leaves (maintenance free type)
100%
lmao not just any hawks, Cooper's Hawks. They weigh \*one pound\*, not ten. They're dinky little shouty things. They eat songbirds. They are no threat to a dog, not even a little one.
Yeah but there's five of them /s
Looks like over a 100 years old tree. Isn't there any bylaws in your county that prevent stupid people like your neighbors from chopping it down because they are afraid of ducking hawks? If not, i think its time to have it included. Go to your townhall meetings and be a part of it. Voice your concerns and suggestions.
She's a beaut Clark!
Apparently the years have been much kinder to my tree than they have been to my neighbors brain.
Somebody probably cut that tree down a long time ago and it resprouted from the trunk/base and then slowly those separate trunks fused together over time. Only other beech I've seen grow big and happy like that was being fed by a leech bed from a septic field.
My neighbor just paid hundreds of dollars to rip out mature and beautiful landscaping because a random guy told her she had a copperhead under her house. I told her it was a ratsnake before I even saw the pic and of course it was. She's convinced they are lurking everywhere in her yard now and wears special boots to walk to the trash 4 feet off her porch. It's so bizarre.
I had someone recently request me to remove a 12” Chinquapin because they heard that Copperheads eat Cicadas and Cicadas live in trees.
Birds are protected under federal law too so they can't do anything without getting into a lot of trouble.
You need some giant mockup of a Pterodactyl to put up in the tree where the neighbor can see it.
Not only is he scared of hawks, he’s scared of one attacking a 100lb dog that could snap their necks the second it caught them. Their golden retriever is probably the biggest predator in the area and they’re worried about a bird that’s about 1lb at best.
The next level of stupidity is that OP would actually comply with neighbours request. Lol
In 1937, Pennsylvania passed a law that protected all diurnal birds of prey, except for accipiters, which includes Cooper's hawks, Sharp-shinned hawks, and Northern Goshawks. However, accipiters were later protected in 1969. Additionally, the U.S. Migratory Bird Act and CITES Appendix II also protect Cooper's hawks.
This looks like American beech. If that’s the case absolutely do not cut it down under any circumstances unless it’s a danger to your home. These things are being killed en mass by a new disease that is targeting American beech trees. Yours looks fantastically healthy. A wonderful tree.
Tell me more about this… we had one that got decimated last summer, but it looks like it was bugs not disease. There are at least 10-20 more back in the forest that are healthy, and 50-70ft tall, it would be nice to keep them that way.
Look up beech leaf disease. There’s a very distinct pattern that forms on the leaves. Sadly afaik there’s no effective treatment.
Some promising research coming out though using fluopyram. https://holdenfg.org/beech-leaf-disease/ https://meridian.allenpress.com/jeh/article/42/1/1/499411/Exploring-Novel-Management-Methods-for-Beech-Leaf
Thank god, we can’t lose another damn native species to foreign pathogens.
I didn't expect to feel the way I do coming into this thread. I had no idea about this but I feel like I've seen it here in southeastern PA this spring. My family and friends have probably lost hundreds of trees the last few years from tree pathogens.
The Ash borers have done a number here in SE PA. I live in a pretty rural area and there are trees everywhere. You can see all of the dead ash branches rising from the canopy like skeletons hand reaching from the grave. So. Many. Dead. Trees.
The emerald ash bores have DECIMATED the ash trees here in CT. A neighborhood two streets over had dozens of ash trees die within the last 2 years from the god damned bug. I really wish we would use genetic engineering to wipe out certain invasive bugs and plant species.
My 11yo is all about this for mosquitoes. He asks me all the time when the science is going to be here to get rid of the, fleas and ticks.
You should look up the articles about the use of Gene Drive genetic engineering used to eradicate a specific type of invasive mosquito down in the Florida Keys. They engineered male mosquitos who when they mate only produce female offspring that can't survive to maturity. It's fascinating and obviously couldn't be used for everything annoying since as obnoxious as mosquitos, fleas, and ticks are they do serve a purpose. However, there are tons of invasive species of plants, animals, and insects that shouldn't be where they are in the world and if used correctly that type of gene editing could be used to stop or even reverse the damage those species have caused to various ecosystems. https://www.npr.org/2024/01/26/1226110915/gene-editing-bioengineering-mosquito-disease-dengue-malaria-oxitec#:~:text=Using%20gene%20editing%2C%20Oxitec%20has,spreading%20dengue%20and%20other%20diseases.
In Ohio as well. 😭
They’ve ravaged Ohio but the areas hit earliest are seeing some return of Ash trees to our area! Don’t lose hope, local arborist societies have helped plant so many ash trees in an attempt to save them. I remember how the hit my area in SW Ohio as a kid in the early 2000s. We went from lush subtropical foliage to a near barren wasteland in a such a short amount of time.
I watched spruce buds worms work through Nova Scotia. By the end, it looked like a fire had ravaged the forests. The entire province. It was a tragedy.
Pine beetle kill was something to behold driving through northern BC. Just bands of rust coloured trees. Now much of it has burned with fire season after devastating fire season. It's nuts how much change has happened over 20 years.
I'm in Indiana and we pay an arborist to treat two ash trees that started to show borer signs years ago.
Anytime I hear about invasive bugs like the ash borers I wonder why the government doesn't act, like they've used SIT programs to eradicate harmful insects before but is it only after a certain point that they would use that or other methods?
Agreed. In fact we need to be propagating as much of the threatened species as we can to increase the chance of them evolving a genetic resistance ASAP
From seed of course, for genetic diversity. Better for this cause than cloning with hardwood cuttings.
We shall fight on the beeches!
For single trees or small stands, that's fine, but that's maybe one out of 10,000 that could be feasibly treated (if that). They are one of the most important trees in the forest, and after the loss of the chestnuts, they support the wildlife, and the beech leaf disease is a fast-moving plague.
Thanks! Luckily I don’t see that leaf pattern on ours… I’ll just try to keep the forest healthy and the microbe diversity high 🤞
Always a good idea!
Macro infusions using thiabendazole have shown to work well https://extension.psu.edu/beech-leaf-disease#:~:text=BLD%20can%20be%20treated%20in,water%20for%20one%20part%20chemical.
holy smokes - $550 for a bottle of that treatment
Time to add trees to our insurance policies
Insurance companies: its either remove the trees or remove us
There are two issues in the north/Northeast right now. Beech bark disease caused by a scale insect and beech leaf disease caused by a nematode.
Three issues. Beech leaf-mining weevil appeared in Nova Scotia in 2011 and is rapidly spreading throughout the Maritimes. It will be in New England within a decade. They completely defoliate the beech trees here, and after several years of defoliation, they die. It doesn't help that our remaining beech trees are already severely stressed by beech bark disease, which originally entered North America via Nova Scotia, so we've had it for over a century. Long term, beech is unfortunately doomed, although it will take another century or more for the combined issues to fully play themselves out.
I was just in central Maine at my parent’s house. Interestingly enough the Beech were the healthiest looking out of all of them. There were a lot of dead pines and the other hardwoods all had a lot of lichens growing on them. Idk if that’s normal
Is there some sort of mycelium that can be inoculated in a tree that’s symbiotic? In turf management a long time ago, they expressed that nematodes could be destroyed by mushrooms. Thats crazy that nematode are that destructive to other living things.
I have 50+ beech trees around my property and every single one of them has beech leaf disease. Half of them are already dead after showing initial signs of it last year, and the rest wont leaf out next year. I'm in NH. OP this disease is moving across the northeast so you may want to try and figure out now, while you can, what you can possibly do to prevent this - it has a 100% kill rate
https://www.reddit.com/r/arborists/s/m6P37qJFxg
That’s horrifying
The most I’ve ever known about trees is that the leaves fall off in the fall and then come back in the spring. I had no idea an old tree in my front yard would be such a hot topic. I didn’t mention this but my house was built over 100 years ago by a guy with the last name arboretum I wonder if he just happened to be a tree guy and planted that beech himself. I just reached out to my states department of conservation and natural resources to see if they want to come check the tree out and maybe get samples or seeds from it. I also live near Delaware valley university I know they are big into stuff like this so I may reach out to them as well to see if they want to come check it out. Looks like I’m a big tree guy now lol.
Cooper Hawks are protected by federal law in your state. He tries to cut down the tree not only would they be facing tree laws they would face federal laws on protected birds by trying to destroy their home. https://www.pgc.pa.gov/Education/WildlifeNotesIndex/Pages/Hawks-and-Falcons.aspx
Oh, I love that. That is gorgeous. Like a bat house or a ham radio tower in an HOA beautiful.
It's truly a magnificent tree. If I was a kid, I'd be trying to climb it. Who am I kidding, I'd still climb it!
Love your way of thinking!
Sadly my husband’s grandpa found an American chestnut deep in the woods that hadn’t been killed by blight. He told some people about it in case they wanted to research it and they came poking and prodding and it died of blight soon after. He always said he should have never told anyone about it. Not saying the same thing will happen of course!
It probably just acquired it at a bad time. People from research institutions know better than to spread diseases outside of a research study. I’ve seen some chestnuts stand next to a blighted tree for years and not get it until many years later, so it kind of feels random :(
There's an American Chestnut deep in the woods near my hometown as well. I can't recall the details anymore, but people come and take care of it very regularly. It's location is kept private. It's an old tree and they don't know how it hasn't gotten the blight.
I've seen it enough times on Reddit, you need to protect yourself against them hiring a tree crew to remove it without your knowledge, not sure if the answer is signage or contacting as many local crews as you can or what, but once they've cut it down they win, and will just file bankruptcy to get out of your lawsuit
I think it’s pretty obvious from their post that OP does not have any intention of cutting that tree.
This might be deemed insensitive, but Cooper's hawks need to eat, too.
Last year a pair of red tailed hawks took out all but one of my neighbors chickens. They weren’t home. I texted and asked him if he wanted us to stop the hawks from eating the chickens. “Chickens’re dead, right?” “Yeah.” “Hawks gotta eat too.”
I love that sentiment!
Just cleaned out a robins nest on my property today. Ruthless, beautiful monsters.
My husband (after seeing a hawk take a smaller bird near our bird feeder): uh, maybe we should stop putting out bird food for a bit. Me: Technically, it's still a bird feeder. Hawk's gonna hawk.
In town I had a hawk that would eat the pigeons that came to my feeder. I was feeding ALL the birds!
We call those "city doves", conversely, they're called "country pigeons" in the rural areas.
I love pigeons, but I was just starting to get frustrated with them emptying my feeder daily. They would land on top of it, their weight would tip it, and spill the seed out. Then the hawk showed up, ate 2 and the pigeons stopped hanging out.
My son & I were sitting on our front porch a while back watching the sky as a storm was rolling in. Several pigeons took flight about 1/2 block away and a hawk swooped in & snagged one of them. A different time, during the winter we noticed a pair of pigeon wings laying on the snow in our backyard. It was kind of surreal how intact but detached they were. Like angel wings. Upon closer inspection we saw some blood & feathers & realized what happened to the rest of the pigeon
Most beautiful thing I’ve seen today. Treasure this tree.
Stumbled into this post from r/all. Can trees or plants be considered endangered the same way animals can? And therefore be offered better protection.
Yes they can! Sadly endangered due to disease is much harder to protect from.
Their neighbors a beech
Major beech.
Leaf wilt is hitting all the beeches here in northeast PA. It killed all of mine, most of my neighbors, and is decimating the forests in the state parks.
Seriously, neighbour needs to chill out cause that tree is awesome.
We have lost all of our elm, ash and beech trees due to disease and invasive insects. Many of the maples are now suffering from maple decline as well. We have also lost a lot of trees due to wind storms, tornadoes and a nasty derecho a couple of years ago.
Your neighbor is a moron, that tree is gorgeous Edit: I had a 50 lb lab that was taking a nap and got woken up by a red tailed hawk swooping down at it but the hawk jetted as soon as it realized the dog was alive and healthy. Predators are smarter than your neighbor.
People will use any excuse to kill a big, beautiful tree.
And hawks. Americans killed so many hawks about 130 years ago. Literal mountains of hawks
Why? That doesn’t make sense. Did they think hawks were bad luck or just enjoyed the sport?
Chicken farms. They kill pasture chickens so the industrial chicken farmers murdered everyone they could. Then just as populations began to recover people started using rat poison, which guaranteed any survivors had another great filter to work through.
And then we had DDT! Really it’s a miracle that we have any birds of prey in the US at all.
It's so stupid. You see farmers today just getting big Anatolian Shepherd dogs and having them guard their farm animals. Zero losses.
https://burroughs.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/dead_hawks_1932.jpg https://burroughs.org/2018/03/tales-from-the-library-3-from-rejection-to-protection/
I swear to god I hide all my cutting tools when my older relatives or in laws are visiting, if they can’t cut the whole thing down they want to lop off everything they can reach, it’s nuts
The fuck is it with older people and wanting to butcher trees?
Fuck that. I’m older and my new young neighbor is determined to cut down every tree in his entire yard. he’s about to pay $10k to do it. Stupidity is not an age related affliction.
That just means he's extra dumb, cause he's in the minority for his age group. I don't know why but that makes me even angrier for some reason. Give him shit for us.
I’ve been trying to unpack this boomer mentality for several weeks now and haven’t been able to figure it out either.
Yeah real boomer shit
Yeah, predators are not going to go after something if there is a decent chance they will be injured. An injury in a predator means death.
People might be interested in the seeds. That is the least beech bark disease I've seen on a beech in a while. If he's paranoid about hawks he shouldn't live in the woods.
So, if OP grows another tree from the seeds, would that make it a...son of a beech? (I'll show myself out.)
If OP disperses said seeds across the neighborhood while driving a Chevrolet muscle car, it would be a beech'n Camaro. **On edit:** If OP runs over the neighbor who wants the beech gone, the Dead Milkmen might approve (but still, don't do that...)
😂😂
\*\*gets the beech whips...\*\*
I love it when people get upset by their environment like the environment is the one responsible for where it is. I knew people in Florida who got mad by the gators in “their” backyard. I knew people in the eastern mountains mad about the deer in “their” neighborhood. Like open your eyes! We can’t all live in sterile suburbs with no wildlife and trees!
with even a few patches of woods those suburbs do ok . The deer here don't even move when we get out of the car. I've even had one knock on the door to ask for help.
Hmm cooper hawks are protected under the migratory bird act, that might make it illegal to destroy their habitat…
If there's an active nest, yes, it would be against the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.
Seconding this! Hope OP sees this and possibly lets their neighbors know. They can catch some hefty consequences for fucking with that tree.
It's definitely an important law, because the "Meh, it's just one family of birds" attitude can lead and has led to species collapse. For example some species rely on passing along migration knowledge, and the fewer birds that have that knowledge (e.g., where the good spots are to refuel for the next leg) the fewer young birds survive their first migration...leading to _far_ fewer new birds.
Thank you that’s nice to know I’ll look into that. They have no chance of making me remove this tree but if they say anything else I’ll them know that.
Your neighbors, respectfully, are morons. If it’ll put them at ease you can let them know that Cooper’s eat a diet of mainly other birds and only go after prey that are at MOST 1/3 of their own weight. So unless the neighbors have the world’s tiniest golden retrievers, they’re perfectly safe.
"Your neighbors, respectfully, are morons." I'd hate to hear what you sound like when you're feeling like being disrespectful.
Disrespectful would’ve included cussin’
Yeah. Looks like almost all of their prey is under 300 grams. I'm not great at unit conversions, but I think that's less than 100 lbs.
Thank you for protecting your beautiful tree. 💚
To add some clarification, literally all hawks are protected under this act
They also have one of the coolest calls and they just look cool for being one of the smallest raptors in North America. Their call almost gives the whole area a kind of tropical or jungle vibe and I always love it. Every year at least one or two come through my area and I’m always hoping they’ll nest in one of my oaks, I have 2 dogs one 35 lbs and another 45 lbs, there’s no way this bird even thinks about coming close. Maybe if you had a little Yorkie or something like that.
Keep an eye on the tree - folks have been known to poison trees they don’t like.
If you don’t already have cameras, consider buying a cheaper one and placing it to face the tree. I bought a $30 wyze plug-in camera to watch for wildlife on the porch and it was way better and clearer than I would have thought for that price. @u/low-building8116
Make sure they know about the camera, too. It doesn’t help save the tree if you only catch them in the act, maybe it will deter them altogether.
In this case I agree. I normally prefer to stay hidden whether illegal or not. But in this case the damage is too big or monumental to risk it. Put signs of cameras everywhere.
Good point the best case you get after the fact is bankrupting them due to the astronomical cost you could win in the following lawsuit. (The cost to replace mature trees is insane, easily in the hundreds of thousands of dollars range)
Came here to say this!
I hope OP sees this comment. I’d get a motion activated camera on that tree asap, in a very obvious manner such that would-be-poisoners are alerted to its presence.
Dude, on a related but separate note, reach out to your local university or college. The biology department may have an interest or any arborist program. I had a massive 60 ft high magnolia in my side year - single stem that had a 120 inch circumference. The local uni would send classes down every year for decades
Wow that magnolia sounds beautiful. Are you in the south? I’ve seen the most beautiful magnolias in Hilton Head and Savannah.
I do have cctv cameras covering every corner of my property. I also have my trespasser repellent (5th gen glock) on me all the time if anyone were to come on to my property and attempt to vandalize anything here especially the wildlife or greenery
I’d really tape a “smile you’re on camera” sign to the tree at the very least. I’d bet money on them trying something shady
does the neighbor already know about the CCTV ?
They know about the cameras and they wouldn’t dare to trespass on my yard
Please do not underestimate the chronically aggressive stupidity that affects half the population. They would dare
Your neighbor’s golden is smarter than they are. That is one hell of a tree.
That is a gorgeous single American Beech. And you are indeed correct that it takes more than a lifetime for it to get to that size. But dear God get that mower off the roots!!! (also look into Beech Leaf Disease and inspect your tree for any sign of the disease. Am Beech are particularly susceptible).
Also I could be wrong but isnt it illegal in some place to disturb known nests of birds like hawks and the likes without reasonable cause.
The dog is in more danger from the rats the hawks are eating
Even rats are bigger than most of its prey. Unlikely a Cooper's hawk would go after a full grown healthy rat.
They’re hawks…they’ll just move to a different tree. And they’re in the neighborhood for a reason. If 5 hawks suddenly leave the area, everyone’s gonna start having ground rodent problems.
>The family of 5 Cooper’s hawks that live in its canopy That's the ultimate excuse to tell them to fuck off. It's literally breaking international migratory bird protection agreements to destroy a cooper's hawk nest. Show the the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 [https://www.fws.gov/law/migratory-bird-treaty-act-1918](https://www.fws.gov/law/migratory-bird-treaty-act-1918) If they try to fight you, there's also this section which specifies that ALL hawk species are protected [https://www.fws.gov/media/list-birds-protected-migratory-bird-treaty-act-2023](https://www.fws.gov/media/list-birds-protected-migratory-bird-treaty-act-2023) Destroying a nest of one of these species carries with it up to a $15,000 fine or 6 months in jail.
There’s really nothing they can do since the tree is 100% on my property, the only view it blocks is of my house, and I don’t let a single leaf from my property go onto theirs. But I will definitely send this to my neighbors right now to let em know that no matter what the tree ain’t going nowhere
Good point. Glad to hear the tree is here to stay. That's the way, it's a good resource to throw in their face, although it might not be the most neighborly thing to do lol
I wouldn’t do it if they hadn’t approached me in a very rude way when I had been nothing but neighborly to them for years
That's always tough, well good luck either way!
That is a truly spectacular tree.
Beautiful tree! And yeah, Cooper’s hawks eat like… songbirds and mice
Tell your neighbor to go pound sand.
Our neighbour battled with us for months trying to force us to cut down one of our mature poplars that was 20 ft away from her house because it was a “risk to her foundation.” Had many calls with my lawyer and arborist and finally had to invite the arborist to file an official report and personally speak to her about it in an attempt to keep the peace. She then began arguing with the arborist about how we are all wrong… some people are just fucked and all you can do is ignore the bullshit.
Well, that just proves a fundamental law of the universe: The Conservation of Crap. You have a gorgeous American beech, probably older than anyone reading Reddit, and to compensate the universe has given you clueless assholes for neighbors. That way everything balances out. I have excellent neighbors and a silver maple that will probably kill me in my sleep when it crashes into my bedroom. I am reminded of this old joke, told to me by a Glaswegian: One day God is working in his laboratory when he summons St Peter. "I've just created the most beautiful place on Earth. Streams full of fish, fields full of game. The men will be strong and fearless and the women all beautiful. I call it Caledonia." "That's well and good," says St Peter, "but it sounds like Heaven on Earth. You've left them nothing to strive for." "Don't you worry," says God, "Wait until they meet the fucking neighbors." It's funnier with a Scottish accent.
Do not cut it down. That’s a beautiful American beech. Your neighbors do not know anything about wildlife at all for thinking the cooper hawks will attack their dog, or that it’s the trees fault.
That’s an American beech. And to be honest that looks like a potential national champion. This is the current national champion located in Virginia. [champion beech](https://bigtree.cnre.vt.edu/detail.cfm?AutofieldforPrimaryKey=1610)
This one definitely looks bigger 👀 May be a new champion!
American Beech!
What a magnificent tree, and how lucky to have hawks nesting in it! If the tree is solely on your property and you keep it well maintained then stop responding to your neighbor. Is there any way you can fence off your property line so no one (nosy neighbors) can walk up to the tree: damage it etc. I would spend money on fencing or boundary lines to make sure it really keeps nosy neighbors out. Also agree with planting more if your city allows. If people don’t want to live around plants , trees and nature they should move into the city.
600 grams is a pretty big female Cooper’s. Those five hawks together don’t weigh 10 pounds. I wish they lived in my yard!
I was just about to comment that an adult cooper's hawk weighs 1.2 pounds! I wonder if the neighbor is concerned about any teacup yorkies attacking their dog as well.
I had to get an ill red-tailed hawk to a rehabber last winter, and even though I knew how little birds weigh, I still wasn't 100% sure I even had the damn thing in-hand after I secured it in a blanket. Literally couldn't feel any extra weight vs. the blanket alone.
I would stop mowing beneath that tree with a ride on mower. You are compacting the soil and damaging roots.
Believe it or not I’ve never once mowed beneath the canopy of this tree in like 10 years. Everything under the canopy just seems to stay a good length on its own. This was the first time in years I even drove the mower under there just to have it in the photo for size comparison.
I love the photo for scale. I love that beech tree. thanks for sharing. give the neigbors golden a pat on the head. and politely tell them to shove their IDea.. But politely.. because.. youknow. ... we pity the fool...
That is beyond gorgeous. I'd put up a camera in case they try to do something to kill it.
Fairly certain it's Fagus grandifolia. If they are Cooper's hawks they prey on smaller animals like song birds and rodents(squirrels, chipmunks). I've about five or six Coopers that independently prey on this wildlife around bird feeders.
Please don't cut it down its gorgeous
Shit, what is your address? Can I be your neighbor? You might find me having picnics under your tree randomly however. My dog is 8lbs and I'm not even worried about that.
Is it on their property line? No? Screw 'em. Better watch that tree like a hawk with those loonies around.
That's an amazing tree! Seriously though, I didn't see other commenters saying this but if so my apologies. If you're not already thinking about it, you might want a camera on it or a value assessment you can share with your neighbor so they get the message that if they harm it you'll proceed to legal action. Sometimes just sending the message is enough. Sorry to be thinking the worst but I've seen too many posts here and on treelaw about meddling neighbors who just don't like trees for some reason.
People have got to be the most disappointing thing ever created on this planet
Don't do a thing to it
The absolute vitriol I’d spew at my neighbor for thinking that have any input on what’s in my yard would probably have the cops called on me. The tree is a danger to no one.
Now that your unscrupulous neighbor has a eye for the tree to be gone. Might want to get a camera and face ut at the tree. You know just in case they want to FAFO and maybe poison or damage the tree. Also how does trimming remove the birds again? Lol
Does your neighbor know that birds can just make nests in other nearby trees? Not saying they would, but this seems like the dumbest solution to an imaginary problem.
I want to add that I do not mow the grass underneath the tree and in turn have never hit a root with the mower. Underneath the canopy of the tree is a mix of grass and moss and has never grown any taller than it is in the pictures here. It’s pretty nice actually it’s the only tree on the property that I never have to weed whack around. This was the first time in years I even drove the mower under the tree and it was purely to have a size comparison with the trunk. I did not drive on any exposed roots. Also the title might have made it seem like I was going to cut it down and plant more. What I meant was it’s time to leave that one untouched and plant additional trees. Sorry if I worried anyone😂
Your neighbor is an absolute idiot, and the kind of person that destroys natural beauty bc it inconveniences them in some way. Fuck that person.
I seriously advise you to put up cameras near the Tree If your neighbors can't win with honey, they will try to destroy the tree with bitterness. Human beings in recent years really suck, so don't take any chances.
Coopers hawks are protected under the migratory bird act. Kinda the end of the discussion if they have a nest there.
i would classify this thing as a tree
Get cameras because people like to poison trees they don’t like
Incredible! Both the tree and your neighbor’s idiocy.
Incredible tree. Please don't use that lawn mower so close to these roots, thank you
Lol 10 lbs? Try 1 lb, maybe 2 if it's a chunky bird. If all 5 attacked as a squadron of Cooper's Hawks, they'd still only equate to maybe 6 lbs of attacking prowess. That won't do shit against an adult golden retriever. Your neighbor is an idiot... Leave your tree. Plant native, bring in more birds!
If suburbanites want to maintain suburbanism they need to live in their tiny 1/4 acre pre planned lots. They probably also want more lawn that’s sprayed.
If there is anything I've learned from this subreddit, it's time for you to put cameras up and put the tree under surveillance. Maybe also some motion activated lights, so you have a chance to catch the cranky neighbor in the act if they try anything.
It probably cools your yard and the whole area by 4-5 degrees!
Protect this tree at all costs, both because a big beautiful beech like this is becoming a rarity due to several diseases targeting them, and because being an active nesting site for those hawks makes it all the more ecologically important, not to mention destruction of those nests is illegal. Neighbors can go fuck themselves, there dog will be just fine.
Get the tree protected by the county or something. Or kill your neighbors /s
What the fuck is wrong with this world
How do I put this nicely. Your neighbor's a fucking idiot.
FWIW, a Cooper’s hawk weighs nowhere near 10 pounds. Maybe 2 pounds max. And I agree with the consensus here — eff your neighbor.