Yesterday I spent some quality time with a pair of highly entertaining hatch year Red-tailed Hawk siblings. It’s been a while so it was great fun.
1/5000, f/7.1, ISO 640, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
Like most youngsters of the species this one was often tentative in “his” actions while he was perched on the rock above me. Here he was apparently thinking about taking off.
1/3200, f/7.1, ISO 640, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
But then he thought about it some more…
1/4000, f/7.1, ISO 640, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
and began to fold his wings as he changed his mind,…
1/4000, f/7.1, ISO 640, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
and then turned his head to watch something behind and above him. He ended up staying perched on the rock.
1/5000, f/7.1, ISO 640, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
Soon a cloud approached from behind and in my opinion made the background more interesting for the handsome and slightly puffed up young hawk. I like this shot very much.
I think I know what really happened here although I can’t be sure because I had my eye glued to my viewfinder. In the first photo I believe he may have been reacting to his incoming sibling who was approaching from the left to land behind and above him to the right – sort of a fight or flight reaction. In the third photo he was probably watching his sibling on the higher rocks while it was landing or soon after it touched down.
Yesterday was a Red-tailed Hawk kind’a day. I spent time with four of them and often they were close so I have many photos I like a lot. Readers are likely to see more of them soon but after yesterday’s marathon post I wanted to keep this one reasonably short.
I’ll post other birds too of course but I hope you won’t become weary of red-tails. Feathered Photography has been in a raptor drought for much too long so I think it’s time to make amends – to myself if to no one else.
Ron
On an unrelated note (I’m posting a lot of these “unrelated notes” lately, aren’t I) :
I had a small victory yesterday that turned out to be huge and my opponent was a single small insect. For almost a week there’s been a boisterous cricket in my house. You simply can’t believe how much noise a single one of those cute little devils can make while they’re “singing” at night and that sound has a ventriloquist effect that makes them very difficult to locate. Many nights the sound was coming from the chinks in and near my brick fireplace but that tiny monster moved around – always to inaccessible places.
One night the singing was coming from behind the stove in my kitchen. It would invariably start singing as soon as the outside crickets started up at about 8:40 PM and keep it up most of the night which often ruined my sleep. Yesterday morning I was up for the day at 2:25 AM!
I hate using poisons and chemicals anywhere in or near my house but yesterday I finally relented and used Raid in the area of the fireplace where the sound had come from the previous night. I got that little bastard too so I had a blissful, restful and long sleep last night.
Small victories can mean a lot.
I enjoy the lighthearted humorous tone you take in presenting the pictures and discussing the termination of an unwanted insectual intruder (yes I took some creative license and invented a word lol). Your writing amplifies your photographical efforts. Keep it up.
Good. Thanks, Brandon.
I love BOTH of these shots for different reasons–yeah, you knew I would! After all, we’re talking baby redtails here! LOL! One thing is I’ve neglected to mention is the sheer beauty of the lichen. I’m a BIG lichen fan to the point that when we hunt at a friend’s place just east of here and a couple hundred feet higher, I struggle to pay attention to what the birds are doing. Instead, I’m ooohing and ahhing over all the pretty rocks and different lichens. I’m so easily amused!
During my time as a PR floozy in professional motorsports, I learned about paying attention to backgrounds with stuff sticking out of folks’ heads or out of their ears, etc. That, among the other factors you mentioned, can make a huge difference in press photos, too!
Just because it’s been a while since I’ve said this, I love your photos and your blog!
Love this beauty! Can’t wait to see more (yes, I look most every day even though not commenting often). So bring ‘em on! 😬
I plan in it, Chris. Glad you’re looking forward to them. Tomorrow will have a little different twist but it will still be a red-tail.
I love birds! Thanks you for sharing. We used to have many squirrels frequent our backyard. A hawk swooped down for my Chihuahua last Summer. We were wondering why we don’t see many squirrels like we had been. Luckily my Chi wasn’t harmed. Ever since, my eye is trained to find them perched or flying for small prey. Happy Bird Watching👀
Thanks, Joy. Birds, all birds, are special indeed.
Ron, I like them all but the last one is my favorite. “Slightly puffed up” gives the appearance of confidence and satisfaction. So glad you are able to catch up on your sleep. Almost nodding off while photographing could have some consequences, like dropping your camera, I suppose….not good. Thank you for great photos, Ron
That’s my favorite too, Alice. Thank you.
There is a good reason why so many cultures use sleep deprivation as a form of torture. It is. I am very glad that you got a better night’s sleep and love the young Red-tail. As Laura will.
EC, I often thought about that “torture connection” on those nights when the cricket kept me awake. Thank you.
How do you get that close to your birds? Do you use a blind or what?
Nope, no blind. I nearly always shoot from my pickup as I was doing with these hawks. Birds are usually less fearful of vehicles then they are of people on foot. Vehicles are called “mobile blinds” for good reason. And these are juveniles which are often more approachable than adults.
And keep in mind that I was shooting at an effective 1120mm.
Wonderful capture, I think the lichen is a beautiful color to the photos and the cloud came in at a perfect angle. Glad you found hawks willing to have a “few” photos taken. As for the cricket, geeze I thought my son had sensitive hearing he complains about the most mynute (sp) sounds. I will send you a photo of what he has done to my house! Sleep deprivation is not pleasant, nice to know you were able to sleep better.
April, this “singing” was loud and it almost drove me batty. And then not having much sleep certainly didn’t help my attitude.
Now you’ve got me curious about that photo…
Wow, those are quite the photos. I wonder how he’d react to a cricket singing in his room at night…
These are among my favorite kind of shots. Great light, color, action, behavior.
Thanks very much, Martha.
Wow! The contrasting blue and orange and perfect poses are just gorgeous! A delight to behold. I so enjoy your blog and have recommended it to several friends.. thanks for your hard work!
Much appreciated, Susan. I hope your friends enjoy their visit if they follow your recommendation.
He reminds me of my thinking about getting in the pool. LOLOLOL I was doing that last night and overbalanced. In I went and up I came, gasping from the cold. Of course it was lovely after I was in. But sheesh, that first shock! . 😀
These juveniles “overbalance” sometimes too, Arwen. In fact they do it often. But they have wings to keep them from… falling in.
Wings. I need them.
Super series Ron!
Charlotte
Thanks, Charlotte.
What gorgeous shots, That is one beautiful hawk. Keep’em coming.
The tale of the battle of Ron vs Jiminy, gripping drama in all ways.
Thanks very much, Dave. I added the postscript to this post as an afterthought but it’s a big deal to me so I decided to run with it.
You always post such engaging shots of RTH’s. These are no exception. Your many photos highlight the color variation this species exhibits which I find endlessly fascinating.
I love all kinds of wildlife, including crickets, as long as they stay out of the house.
“Out of the house” is key, Lyle. When I balance a good night’s sleep against almost anything else the former always wins. Thank you.
Love the look on the face of this hawk, focused, intense, serious, a survivor, one who will live to sire!
Great shots.
I hope he does make it to that point, Dick. Many or even most of them don’t.
Gorgeous shots, Ron! The setting is perfect with the rocks framing the bird on the right. The lichen is the icing on the cake for me. Definitely looking forward to seeing more of this fella and his sibling. 🙂
Glad you got some sleep — I’m still trying to catch up.
Thank you, Marty. I actually have shots of one of the parents and then a different juvenile some distance away from the siblings but I took so many photos I have a lot of reviewing in front of me before I’ll decide which images to post. It should be a fun process though…
I envy you this task — what fun to be able to relive these encounters. 🙂
Oh, poor Jiminy. We have had a very loud Cricket around as well, but lucky for us he/she sings outside. Beautiful pics of the Hawk.
Thanks, Jean. “Jiminy” – that reference made me feel guilty, for about .03 second…
I’m so glad for you that you had such a rewarding day with these beautiful critters—-I’ll bet it almost made up for many days of frustration and sleep-deprivation! I think every one
of your posted images today is worthy of a place on anyone’s wall…….
Thanks very much, Kris. Yes, until yesterday I don’t remember a good day with raptors for many months. It’s scary what seems to going on with them around here.
Terrific set of photos! As were yesterdays by the way. ❤️ I don’t think I’ll ever tire of looking at or watching these birds. I agree the cloud behind the hawk adds a different feel to the photo. He has the intense look that borders on menacing that RedTails have compared to RoughLegged. Like the lichens on that rock also…the color really is a nice added touch. Your last photo here is my favorite…the pose and look are outstanding.
I agree, Kathy – the more rounded head and less prominent beak of Rough-legged Hawks give them a less menacing appearance.
I also agree that there’s something very special about that last shot.
Beautiful shots of the hawk, Ron…… 🙂 The young ones sure have a learning curve and are fun to watch! The 3rd shot is kind of a WHAT!? with the intensity of the hawks stare. Are these in the area of the lovely rufus female or just similar rocks? I, for one, won’t tire of photos of them….. 😉 Cricket right up there with a mouse in the house that’s making a racket…… 🙁 Glad you finally got it!
Thanks, Judy. I’ve occasionally had crickets in a previous house but that was decades ago. I’m a very light sleeper and I’d forgotten how maddening a cricket in the house can be. When you don’t sleep much for nights on end it can literally ruin your quality of life.
Always joked that if anyone wanted to get info out of me all they had to do was deprive me of sleep and I’d tell them anything they wanted to know and probably MORE than they wanted to know! 😉
While I was photographing these hawks my eyes were burning from lack of sleep and I was almost nodding off. Very unusual for me when I’m seeing the antics of juvenile hawks right in front of me.