Red-tailed Hawk

Here's a Red-tailed Hawk that was at Duke Farms last weekend. When I went to the Outdoor Education booth at noon, I was told there was a lot of activity earlier in the morning. A juvenile Red-tailed Hawk was flying close by before being chased out of the area by surprisingly small birds. Four hours later, it looked like the hawk had returned, letting people get pictures (like the one below) fairly close up. Perhaps because it's a youngster, the hawk flew fairly close to humans and let humans walk even closer.

It may be surprising to see a hawk being chased by a single small bird, but I've seen it happen fairly often. I suspect that the small birds are quick and maneuverable enough that larger birds generally can't successfully turn on their attacker, though I also suspect that the small bird has little margin for error. I'm sure fatal mistakes have been made by mobbing birds.

June 12, 2021 at Duke Farms
Photo 136371956, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)


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