Yesterday morning I decided to renew my acquaintance with the pair of nesting Red-tailed Hawks I’ve been following for weeks now. The last time I’d visited them the female was incubating eggs in their nest on the side of a cliff in northern Utah.
When I first arrived I was fearful the nest had failed because the adults were nowhere to be found and from my vantage point I couldn’t see any youngsters in the nest. Eventually I left the area but I just had to check on them again so I returned about a half hour later.
Still no hawks.
1/4000, f/6.3, ISO 500, 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 just as I was about to leave the area in despair one of the adults finally showed up. I believe it was the male but I can’t be sure. He flew directly over the cliffside nest to make sure whatever was in there (eggs or hatchlings) was OK and then he started hunting for prey within a hundred yards or so from the nest which I thought was slightly unusual. In my experience nesting red-tails usually leave the area of the nest to hunt, possibly because prey close to the nest has already been depleted.
His technique was to fly from rock to rock on the side of the steep hillside and hunt briefly from each perch before he flew to the next one, which is what he’s doing here.
1/4000, f/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
He fooled me when he launched from the rock because he took off at such a steep angle, almost straight up. I barely kept him in frame and after this shot I lost him in my viewfinder.
1/4000, f/6.3, ISO 500, 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 I was able to reacquire him just before he landed a little further up the steep hill. Because all of his other perches had been rocks I thought he was going to land on the lichen-covered rock in the background but instead he chose to land on this bush in front of it.
1/4000, f/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
He applied the air brakes at just the right time…
1/4000, f/6.3, ISO 500, 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 settled into the bush with a pose that I thought slightly resembled Winged Victory.
1/4000, f/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
As he was approaching the bush I don’t believe he could see a single sturdy twig to land on through all those leaves so I suspect he held this pose as long as he did to give his feet enough time to find a twig or two sturdy enough to support his weight.
I was proud of myself for managing to reacquire him in my viewfinder and get a series of landing shots where he was sharp, especially with the background so close.
Landing shots are tough.
1/4000, f/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
He hunted from this perch for a short time before he took off and found another one further away. I never did see him catch any prey and eventually he flew off to hunt further away where I couldn’t see him so I left the area.
When I returned to the nest a third time, perhaps another half hour later, one of the adults was in the nest feeding very young chicks (bobbleheads if you prefer). When they raised their wobbly heads to be fed was the first time I’d been able to see any evidence of life in the nest.
Seeing chicks in the nest made the very long drive home much easier to endure.
Ron
I just have to say, I’m relieved and happy right along with you that this hawk family appears to be faring well — and bobbleheads are the best! Not sure, is this nest in a location that you’ll be able to get any shots of them once they’re big enough to peer over the top? Lovely post & images, Ron.
Ignore me (if you’d even see this a day later) … I just read your reply to Marty K about waiting ‘til they’re bigger for nest photos.
Ah, such beauty…makes my heart skip a beat….and to hear that there are bobbleheads in the nest….such sweetness….heart skipped another beat. Bless those little bobbleheads! Thanks Ron!
Thank you, Karen.
Wonderful news about the chicks. I have everything crossed that they survive and thrive.
Wonderful britches.
Wonderful balance, and (of course)
Wonderful shots.
Wonderful! 🙂
So glad you returned and captured this sequence.
Proves the adage that a bird in the bush is worth…at least seven photos.
It was in this case at least. Thanks, Lyle.
Wonderful series, I am surprised he chose the bush to land, not sure footing. I am happy they have chicks, may they be successful!
How are the deer flies out there?
April, there’s a few skeeters but I didn’t see a single deer fly. About a week ago there were a few biting gnats in the area (down south) but there weren’t any yesterday.
Spectacular! Whew, thanks so much, Ron. Fun to remember looking up a stairway and seeing the Winged Victory.
Glad you’re out and about for you and for me 🙂
I’ve never seen the real Winged Victory, Mary. You’re lucky.
Indeed, I often say I’m a lucky duck! Please come visit if you come East…someday. Mary
Awesome series Ron! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks, Charlotte.
So glad you got to see evidence of bobbleheads (lol)
Me too, Arwen.
What a glorious series! But you know how I am with redtails and the lichen-covered rocks are a huge bonus 😉
Delighted that you saw the little fuzzball bobbleheads. Like Marty K, I’m a huge sucker for baby birds/critters anyway and baby redtails fill me with joy. I just want to gather them up, breathe in their feathers and hug them, HOWEVER, they’d hate that, not to mention the probability of having to stem the excessive bloodletting and earring opportunities their mother and father would require! (OF COURSE, I’m joking!).
But don’t dawdle too long. They’ll soon be wobbly weebles and then in seemingly the blink of an eye, they’ll be big-kid hawks ready to fledge! Thank you again for your integrity in not disclosing the location of the nest. As you said, they do NOT need the pressure from stupid humans!
Yup, they grow fast, Laura. I remember that Bald Eagles increase their weight by 500% in their first week and I’ll bet very young red-tails aren’t far behind.
Ron, redtails double in size in the first 24 hours after hatch. That usually boggles my mind, but I’m easily boggled, too!
Excellent landing shots that are always difficult to stay with and end up with sharp photos such as these. Great job Ron. I like Marty K’s “bobbleheads”
Never thought of that, but definitely an apt description for little chicks in a nest.
These were great to see, and to know their are little bobbleheads is a wonderful ending!
Thanks, Michelle.
Agreed, Everett. Bobblehead is accurately descriptive.
I’m glad that you included the link to the Winged Victory image ; it’s
been a favorite all of my life–BUT– until seeing it this morning, I ‘d never
clocked that the figure had once had arms ! The wings totally express transcendence- Nike never needed puny human stick-arms–I’m glad
she lost them along the way !
Kris, a scientist working on a study of the real Winged Victory has contacted me for use of one of my images in her study. This photo reminded me that I need to get back to her – something I forgot to do.
Fabulous shots, Ron! Shots 3 and 4 show the “keep your eye on your feet” adaptation that Tilly used in Eagle Power. He is quite the handsome boy and you are quite the photographer to be able to find him again and again.
I’m glad that the adults found food for their babies. Were you able to get any bobblehead photographs? I can imagine that they’d be more difficult to take without disturbing the parents and I know you’d never do that in a million years.
“Were you able to get any bobblehead photographs?”
Well sort of, Marty The adult feeding them cast deep shadows on the chicks and all I could see of them anyway was their raised beaks and the tops of their heads. I could see very little of them and I don’t even know how many chicks are in the nest. All I saw for sure was two but there’s probably more. They’re still very small.
Even bad bobblehead shots are good bobblehead shots in my book! Sounds like they’re in the first few post-hatch days. ADORABLE! Of course, I’m a sucker for baby birds — condors and vultures included!
My intention is to avoid posting nest shots until later. Nesting birds don’t need the almost inevitable extra pressure of lots of people hanging around the nest.
Totally get that! Perhaps on a snowy day in January… 🙂
YES! From despair to victory – for now at least. 🙂 Just when we think we have them figured out they do something different……. 🙂 “Bird Brain” as a negative indeed! 🙂 Of course, it would tend to get boring if they were totally predictable…… 😉 Beautiful shots of a beautiful bird……… 🙂
“it would tend to get boring if they were totally predictable”
Ha, I don’t think there’s any danger of that happening, Judy. Their middle name is “unpredictable”…