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"All things were made by Him; and without Him was not any thing made that was made." (John 1:3)
What an interesting day I had today! I saw a bird I had never seen before, a raptor - and it was in my neighbor's yard! It was an amazing sight to see! It was a Male I think, as it seemed pretty lean and smallish and the females are larger than the males. It is one of the smaller raptors, about a foot in length, a Sharp-shinned Hawk. As I said, I had never seen one, but today was my lucky day! (SMILE)
I was alerted by my mailman, who I think also likes to watch birds. He told me he saw it with a pigeon it had caught and was eating it next door. I watched it for a while and took a few pictures, then left it alone to eat. Two hours later when I was getting ready to leave the house I saw that it was still there - still eating! It was so well camouflaged that at first I didn't see it - it was in the shade of some bushes, on a dry lawn, that had some leaves on it. It was really something to see.
I walked closer and talked calmy to the bird, and it settled back down to eating - I was only about 8 feet away. Though a raptor eating a pigeon isn't a very pleasant sight, it is part of nature and as things should be. I could see why this Hawk is nicknamed a "Pigeon Hawk!"
One thing I noticed was the birds that normally come to the feeders weren't anywhere around - these Hawks eat other birds. And the birds realize they will. Also, the hawk was very wary - keeping an eye on the sky - maybe watching out for other raptors who would steal his prey? Or maybe a Raven? I am sure a raven would eat the pigeon if he could. So, without further ado, here are some of the amazing shots I got today. Hope you enjoy them!! (SMILE)
All photos © Barbara Logan 2007
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