Friday, August 23, 2019

A LIFER FOR ME!

     Those who follow me very much know that I'm a bit of a birder. For those into birds know that a lifer is seeing a bird that you've never seen before.

     I'm not reporting a lifer but something in the bird world that I'd never seen before.

    Many people have told me about seeing a Cooper's hawk that's caught a bird and is sitting on the post ripping the feathers off so that it can be eaten. Well this week I saw that event happen. I didn't see the bird being caught , but Cooper's hawks chase their prey through the trees and catch up to it and seize the bird.  they will also catch squirrels and chipmunks. Cooper's hawks now are found in wooded urban areas. Cooper's hawks are about 16 in long and have a wing span of about 30 in.

    The bird I saw is a juvenile which means that it was hatched last year. They are a very neat clean looking bird with the creamy white and brown plumage.

    These photos were taken through the window.  The first shows the bird on the fence with it's prey. In the second photo I wanted to show the upper markings. The third photo shows that he's caught a house sparrow and the barred under tail parts.