Readers may remember the mating Red-tailed Hawks I photographed back in April of this year. This is one of my favorite photos of that encounter but somehow I never posted it.
So this morning I’m tying up a loose end.
1/2500, f/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
The male had landed on the female’s back facing the wrong way so here he’s in the process of turning around so they can make all the plumbing work. It was an awkward situation for both birds but the female in particular was very patient with his fumbling ways as she stayed in an accommodating posture while he got his act together. He was far from quick about it.
In many of my shots of them mating the female’s head was in a deep shadow cast by her left wing but here I have light on her face and her head isn’t blocked by any of the foreground vegetation. That vegetation is a little annoying but these are wild birds doing their thing in natural habitat and I’m just lucky we can see them both as well as we can.
These may be the same birds I’ve been following this spring and early summer as they rehabbed an older nest and hatched chicks. They look similar physically but I photographed them mating about 10 miles away from where the nest is so I can’t be sure. I’m unaware of any red-tail nest in the area where the mating occurred.
I hope to check up on that nest soon. Last time I was there the chicks were tiny bobbleheads that I could barely see in the nest. I’m more than a little concerned about them because we recently had some wild weather with serious wind that lasted for several days and I know of at least one nest that was destroyed (yes Neil Rossmiller, I’m talking about ‘your’ nest).
All three chicks in that nest perished.
Ron
I hope the nest is well!
Fingers crossed.
She is quite patient, as he apparently didn’t “stick” the landing. Hopefully, their chicks are OK. I wonder if it is too late in the season for the other Red-tails to lay a replacement clutch.
Marty, here’s all I could find from Cornell on that – “One brood/season, but will renest when eggs fail to hatch, or nest destroyed”.
But the chicks that died were quite well developed so it may be too late.
The heading of yesterday’s post could apply to today’s as well.😉
Seriously, the color of the hawks and rocks make for a perfect composition.
Thank you, Lyle.
Simply glorious.
I hope that you do find their nest and that the brood survives and thrives.
And yes, my heart aches for the nest which was lost.
Thanks, EC. I know my friend Neil Rossmiller was devastated.
This is a wonderful capture, Ron! Red-tails are eminently photogenic, even in the most awkward of positions. Glad this time we can see both of them in less-awkward positions! Their faces are beautifully highlighted here.
I hope you do find that nest (their nest?) with chicks still intact, sorry to hear about winds wreaking havoc and losing the other three.
I keep thinking about those youngsters, Chris. Between days of wind and widespread hail their lives couldn’t have been much fun lately.
Gorgeous photo and interesting story. I well remember the previous outstanding photos of this pair. Let’s hope the high winds nor any other danger did not wipe out those chicks.
We’ve also had hail, Everett. Day before yesterday I counted 11 waves of hail that came through in less than an hour. None of it was very big but it still damaged some of my vegetable garden. Hopefully it’ll recover.
Neat photo! Monochromatic colors all around… 🙂 Hope you find good news when you venture out there.
Thank you, Kathy.
Ahhh… boys and their fumbling ways but at least he got the job done 😁
Yes, we have also had some nasty winds. Unfortunately while winging the wind knocked an eaglet from its nest☹️ He needs to figure out what those wings are for.
Take Care
“Ahhh… boys and their fumbling ways”
That made me smile, Diana. In recognition…
I’ll be lingering over this photo for a while! I NEED that beauty this morning, and while just about any beauty will do, ahhhh redtails! They delight my soul. THANK YOU! These two are such gorgeous beauties, however, I also maintain that there’s not an ugly redtail (raptor/bird/critter) on the planet 😉
I sincerely hope you find the nest with healthy kiddos! The Cornell redtail kiddos are just about to fledge. It’s an exciting time!
“I also maintain that there’s not an ugly redtail (raptor/bird/critter) on the planet”
Laura, personally I think there’s a fair number of ugly critters but there’s nothing wrong with ugly, seems to me. Hell, I’m not what you’d call a looker but I’m still pretty fond of myself… 🙂
So sad to hear the chicks died. 🙁
Beautiful photo – I remember the encounter with the clumsy male….. 😉 Sad that a nest is lost always BUT – can’t all survive………hopefully other nests do….
Dealing with a ballsy coyote this morning – unfortunately, by the time I got the “interested” dog back it was not where I could do any effective intimidation. 🙁
Ha, in my experience the phrase “ballsy coyote” is redundant… 🙂
Around here they’ve generally been shot enough they take off and disappear! Not this one!