The weather has been gloomy and overcast all day, but we wanted to get out of the house, so we made the "loop" down Woods Road -- our favorite birding locale. The birds were low to the ground -- sitting on fence posts. We saw this bird first. It took me a while to identify it, but I think it's a Swainson's hawk. When it flew, I could see the mostly white underside, with a dark "chest".
Almost exactly across the street on another fence post was this beautiful Krider's Red Tail Hawk.CORRECTION: This is a juvenile Swainson's hawk. Thanks to Jonah for setting me straight!
Marc finally honked the horn to get it to fly, but I missed that shot. He flew a ways down the fence-line and was there when we back-tracked, but those shots were too far and turned out blurry. This will probably be one of my Photos for the silent auction at this year's Sausage Dinner.
Around the corner on Hwy 359 we saw another of our favorite local birds -- a Crested Caracara. The bird is looking directly down at the camera -- it has a very intense glare!
Here's a close-up so you can see its face!
4 comments:
I've always heard that hawks travel in pairs. If you see one, look around, his mate can't be far behind. Ever heard that?
Hi Nuke,
No, I hadn't heard that. We often do see hawks in pairs -- sometimes a mate and sometimes a sibling. But there are plenty of singles as well. Where we are usually looking for hawks is pretty open (rice fields!), so if there are others around, they can usually be seen.
Thanks for stopping by!
your Krider's hawk is a juvenile Swainson's Hawk
Jonah Saltas
Jonah,
That would make sense. Thanks!
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