18 August 2012 - Hanging with the Hawks

For years, this area has had breeding pairs of Cooper's Hawks.  Several years ago we were lucky enough to have a nest in the yard. It was such a thrill to watch the process: parents feeding the babies then the babies fledging and leaving the nest. 

We currently have babies learning to fend for themselves. Two weeks ago I heard the Cooper's call and looked up in time to see a parent with prey in his/her talons flying overhead. Behind the parent was a baby. The parent dropped its catch and the baby swooped in and caught it, then landed in our big pine and proceeded to eat. Who knew they taught babies to hunt?

Ever since then we have been hearing the babies calling. It varies from a plaintive mew mew to a harsh sounding kak kak kak. Today I was out watering when I heard KAK kak kak kak repeated over and over. 

It finally dawned on me I was hearing a our hawk. There he was sitting on my fence and lucky me!  My camera was in my pocket. 

Normally when a hawk flies overhead the world gets very still, very quiet. All the little birds dive for cover and no one makes a peep. But not today. A blue jay was giving this youngster a very hard time. I believe the hawk was trying to catch the blue jay and the blue jay was either acting as a decoy to keep its own kids safe, or maybe it was just taunting the predator. 

The blue jay would circle around the hawk while squawking madly. When the hawk tried to grab it, the blue jay would dive into a thicket of pyracantha. This went on for about 20 minutes before the rather frustrated hawk gave up. 

But in the process, I was able to get some nice shots of him. 

 

Here he is launching off the roof of my neighbor's shed. Blue jay is right over my head. 

The blue jay flew off, but now the hawk is almost directly over my head. Wow. According to Sibley's, this is first year coloration. 

I don't have enough words to tell you how fabulous an experience this was, but it is the kind that makes you so happy to be alive and so lucky to be in the right spot at the right time.