A group of us went on a nature walk last week, finding all kinds of fungus, mushrooms, salamanders and tree frogs. Emerging from the woods, we were greeted by a high pitched 'skrreeeee', and looking up, found a red-shouldered hawk sitting right above us. He put on quite a show, calling to us, and looking around, before spreading his wings and vanishing back into the woods.
I went hiking with Quinn last summer. Quinn is an incredible young birder, with a fabulous ear for birdsong and a memory that puts the rest of us to shame. We found all kinds of birds and 'critters' in the bush. As we were crossing the road, he asked if I'd seen many hawks around. "No," I replied truthfully -- I keep an eye out for hawks, because we have chickens! I had no sooner uttered the word than we were stopped by the same high pitched cry, and Quinn told me, matter-of-fact, that there was a juvenile Red-Shoulder in the field. So there was. He flew down to a snag, right in front of Quinn, to say hello.
Maybe this is the same hawk, nesting here this summer!
As we wound our way home through the fields (full of deer!) we were also rewarded by seeing a pair of Coopers' Hawks.The chickens don't have to live in fear of the red-shouldered hawk or the Coopers. They're too big for them! It's when the big goshawks move through in the fall that we have to be extra vigilant.
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