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<\/p>\nNorthern Harriers often dive into thick vegetation after prey. Getting out of there can be tricky.<\/p>\n
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1\/2500, f\/8, ISO 400, Canon 7D Mark II,<\/em> Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in<\/strong><\/p>\n Yesterday morning at Farmington I saw this harrier dive on prey in the thick brush and then watched through my lens as it was consumed. I couldn’t tell for sure what it was but I’m pretty confident it was a vole. Then the bird cleaned its beak and walked a foot or\u00a0two to a slightly more open area in preparation for takeoff. But takeoff was going to be a challenge given all the vegetation\u00a0and those very long wings.<\/p>\n The more vertical the takeoff could be the better so the hawk squatted down to push straight up with its legs and raised its wings high over its body in preparation for the first down stroke meant to lift its body as vertically as possible. There were so many obstructing\u00a0stems that some of the flight feathers in its right wing were momentarily caught in the vegetation and bent\u00a0fairly dramatically as\u00a0it\u00a0was raised.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/2500, f\/8, ISO 400, Canon 7D Mark II,<\/em> Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in<\/strong><\/p>\n As the wings began their first down stroke the hawk pushed straight up with its legs and as a result\u00a0this\u00a0photo caught the hawk on its tippy-toes.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/2500, f\/8, ISO 400, Canon 7D Mark II,<\/em> Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in<\/strong><\/p>\n As vertically as this bird tried to take off it still had some forward momentum which placed vegetation directly in its path and those stems had to be dealt with. So the hawk used its feet in lightning-quick movements to grasp and push off of some of the stems which accomplished two things: it pushed some of the stems out of the way and it allowed the bird to gain additional elevation.<\/p>\n This is my favorite image of the series.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/2500, f\/8, ISO 400, Canon 7D Mark II,<\/em> Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in<\/strong><\/p>\n As it began to clear the vegetation the hawk was still looking down at possible obstructions in its path – at this point they’d typically be looking forward. That head position prevented me from getting eye contact or a catch light in many of these and several other photos of the takeoff.<\/p>\n As raptors\u00a0negotiate obstructions in their flight path at takeoff I often wonder how much of it\u00a0might be\u00a0planned and how much is due simply\u00a0to\u00a0incredibly fast reflexes. That’s a question I’ve posed before on my blog with a\u00a0Red-tailed Hawk taking off\u00a0from deep within\u00a0a tree cluttered with obstructing branches. Before that\u00a0bird took off it appeared?<\/em> to be planning its escape route.<\/p>\n I wish I knew the answer but it’s interesting to speculate about. Personally I think they do plan ahead but to what degree I just don’t know. I suspect it varies from species to species and even among individuals of the same species\u00a0– just like humans.<\/p>\n Ron<\/p>\n \n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Northern Harriers often dive into thick vegetation after prey. Getting out of there can be tricky.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/northern-harrier-6296-ron-dudley.jpg\")
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