hawk kill viewing

[DarrenCT]

so im riding along this morning and i see this hawk dive down and snag this squirrel. i look back and i notice that the hawk has taken the squirrel about 20 yards down the street and decided to eat the thing.

so i turn around and get near the hawk to "check it out". i was right beside the thing and i basically could have touched the hawk if i would have reached far enuff.

i took a picture on my cellphone but its not that good.

this is the sorta stuff u cant see riding on the trainers

http://img162.imageshack.us/img162/5743/hawkop5.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[capybaras]

that is a cool picture with the hawk looking right at you

[DarrenCT]

i have a good eye for seeing hawks and other animals. maybe i should look at the road more??

here are a couple more pictures from this summer

greenwich, ct
http://img527.imageshack.us/img527/7995/hawkb800x600bf1.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

hawk on the post
http://img183.imageshack.us/img183/4484/p1000507rw0.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

with good optical zoom
http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/143/p1000555pk6.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[Michael Maddox]

Wild, but I saw the same sort of thing yesterday morning in Tallahassee. A hawk came screaming in over me and tagged a mouse under a dogwood tree, then just stood on it and stared at me, intermittently tearing at bits of it. I stopped and gawked for several minutes before the fellow took flight again.

Pretty wild. Almost as cool as the time we were riding around Lake Ella in Albany, Georgia and my buddy was kamikazied by a goose.

[FMS_rider]

Amazing shot --thanks for posting it.

I have been watching hawks for many years while riding and in my back yard, but have never seen one grab anything --although I have passed right next to them while they are eating and they either haven't budged or have only flown a few feet. One night we drove up to our house and there was a Cooper's hawk eating a small bird at the edge of our driveway --we sat there ~6 feet away for something like 15 minutes with the car lights on him and he continued to eat.

[jimcav]

including bald eagles when i ride around the naval magazine at indian island.
once i stopped to help a newt cross the road, and no sooner than i got back on my bike i hear a woosh, and look back to see a falcon or hawk flying off with the little guy.

but i am a friend to the newt and always stop to help them across any road.

squirrels are a bit scary--i've had some decide to reverse direction and just miss me.

jim

[Erik.Lazdins]

so im riding along this morning and i see this hawk dive down and snag this squirrel. i look back and i notice that the hawk has taken the squirrel about 20 yards down the street and decided to eat the thing.

so i turn around and get near the hawk to "check it out". i was right beside the thing and i basically could have touched the hawk if i would have reached far enuff.

i took a picture on my cellphone but its not that good.

this is the sorta stuff u cant see riding on the trainers

http://img162.imageshack.us/img162/5743/hawkop5.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Cool pic - the hawk was digging your bike!

Saw a red tail hawk swoop down and peg a mouse took off with it - really neat. Last night saw an owl on a post less than 10 feet from where I was - my headlight made him/her fly off

[jthurow]

Thanks for the pics. I love watching birds of prey. When I lived in Rock Island, IL, I used to see lots of eagles this time of year. Dozens around the marina. Every now and again you'd see one skim the river and nab a fish with their talons. very cool. I miss that...

jimi

[whitecda]

But I saw 3 white tail deer bucks chasing after a doe this morning. I don't think they were thinking about breakfast however.

[rwsaunders]

One less squirrel for William to fret about.

[Blue Jays]

While driving my car (along one of my favorite bicycle routes, for bicycle content...) I watched a hawk corkscrewing down a tree in pursuit of a squirrel. The squirrel was running around, the hawk would fly back to get a different vantage point, and the duel would continue. It was nature in action, yet I still felt tremendous tension. I could see the squirrel was in a complete panic and hoping to escape with his/her life and the hawk was trying to find a meal.

To make a long story short, the squirrel had the better luck. The hawk eventually gave-up the chase after about ten heart-pounding minutes. I got back in my car and felt like I had just run up ten flights of stairs! It was something to see...

[vjp]

I always enjoy watching birds of prey on my rides.

I was taking a portrait of a Hereditary Chief of a small fishing village on the west coast of Vancouver Island and we decided to shoot on the dock with the float plane we had flown in on (Flying Beaver for anyone who cares). I was just looking at the Polaroid with the Chief when a large eagle swooped down from a tree and grabbed a full grown duck that was floating about 3 feet from us and was back up in the tree tearing it apart in a couple of beats. My jaw was hanging open and the Chief looked at me and said "WOW, I've never seen THAT before!".

[H.Frank Beshear]

Thanks for the pics. I love watching birds of prey. When I lived in Rock Island, IL, I used to see lots of eagles this time of year. Dozens around the marina. Every now and again you'd see one skim the river and nab a fish with their talons. very cool. I miss that...

jimi

jimi there were close to 50 in the trees near the Arsenal bridge last time I went across, and more floating above the water below the dam. Very cool to watch. I've lived in the QC's for almost 40 years and it's amazing how the Bald Eagles have made such a comeback. Frank

[Blue Jays]

vjp, I was sitting on a dock in 2005 and watched a largemouth bass leap from the water and pull a (previously) flying sparrow beneath in one smooth motion. Three of us just stood there amazed to have seen that happen...

[stevep]

cool pic.
he wouldnt share the food though, huh?
fresh squirrel... high in protein

[jthurow]

jimi there were close to 50 in the trees near the Arsenal bridge last time I went across, and more floating above the water below the dam. Very cool to watch. I've lived in the QC's for almost 40 years and it's amazing how the Bald Eagles have made such a comeback. Frank Aw, yeah... that's what I'm talking about. I spent a lot of time watching birds waitin' for that bridge to spin around...

jimi

[sspielman]

It is surprising how often you can see bird of prey activity while riding...I have a theory that riding by on a bike is GOOD for the birds' success....I think that the bird is often watching or waiting for his potential prey..when we go riding along, it causes all manner of small animals to stir away from the disruption....and into the sight of the hawk....

[northbend]

oh,,,I thought from the the title of the thread we were talkin' bout the playoff game. Finally had to turn the TV off.....

[Viper]

This thread should be a sticky, it has it all; hawks, dead squirrels and since it's from DarrenCT...it has beer. All it needs is Scarlett Johanssen or Jennifer Connelly and it's truly complete.

Dead squirrels and cool hawks, gotta love it. Awesome. :)

[onekgguy]

Speaking of birds of prey...my wife and I took a bit of a road trip this past weekend and got out of the car to watch some eagles along the Mississippi river. Here's a link (http://youtube.com/watch?v=EmjY9B1MMXc) to the video...the eagles appear at 3:15 into the video. The other eagles appear at 4:22.

Kevin g

[capybaras]

I was taking a portrait of a Hereditary Chief of a small fishing village on the west coast of Vancouver Island and we decided to shoot on the dock with the float plane we had flown in on (Flying Beaver for anyone who cares). I was just looking at the Polaroid with the Chief when a large eagle swooped down from a tree and grabbed a full grown duck that was floating about 3 feet from us and was back up in the tree tearing it apart in a couple of beats. My jaw was hanging open and the Chief looked at me and said "WOW, I've never seen THAT before!".

That is a crazy story!

[capybaras]

Speaking of birds of prey...my wife and I took a bit of a road trip this past weekend and got out of the car to watch some eagles along the Mississippi river. Here's a link (http://youtube.com/watch?v=EmjY9B1MMXc) to the video...the eagles appear at 3:15 into the video. The other eagles appear at 4:22.

Kevin g

They sure are big.

[FMS_rider]

They sure are big. There is a spot on the Wisconsin river (Prairie du Sac) near my home where Bald Eagles spend the winter. There is a dam which keeps the water open. When my kids were little I used to take them out there with a spotting scope --they are not only huuuge, but beautiful when you study them up close. We often saw them catch fish --they come in low and snatch them with a rearward flick of their legs.

In recent years I have started seeing them while riding in the summer and we even had one sitting in a tree in our back yard (we live on a pond) --they are clearly making a major comback here. They are simply awesome --but hawks and falcons are fascinating as well (Red Tails, Coopers, and Kestrels are the most common where I live).

My favorite raptor, however, is the Osprey --they are midway between Red Tails and eagles in size, with swept back wings. They circle our pond at amazing speed, stop on a dime, hover, and dive for fish. We also have many Great Horned owls --we often hear them hooting in evergreens next to our house but they hunt at night. I would love to have some night vision gear to watch that spectacle.

Sorry for the digression --I like birds almost as much as bikes.
Lew

[JohnS]

My wife and I took an Alaskan cruise last spring. The eagles in Ketchikan are like the pigeons down here...everywhere. I never thought that I would get bored looking at bald eagles...
Around here, I see Redtail and Cooper's Hawks all the time, with an occasional osprey or eagle thrown in.

[DarrenCT]

My wife and I took an Alaskan cruise last spring. The eagles in Ketchikan are like the pigeons down here...everywhere. I never thought that I would get bored looking at bald eagles...
Around here, I see Redtail and Cooper's Hawks all the time, with an occasional osprey or eagle thrown in.

ahhh i've always wanted to visit alaska. i wonder what the biking would be like in the summer...

any good pix of the eagles?

[Viper]

I think you should feed the hawk some bacon.

[buffettologie]

Cool picture. I actually always thought hawks were much bigger than that.

[JohnS]

ahhh i've always wanted to visit alaska. i wonder what the biking would be like in the summer...

any good pix of the eagles?None except the one in rescue. I was within 3ft of that one. It was the same old story...they look bigger 9and closer) in real life than they do when you look at the pictures.

[Elefantino]

Think it's funny, huh?

We have your names.

We know where you ride.

We have a network.

We protect each other.

You are soooooooooo toast.

[FMS_rider]

so im riding along this morning and i see this hawk dive down and snag this squirrel. i look back and i notice that the hawk has taken the squirrel about 20 yards down the street and decided to eat the thing.

so i turn around and get near the hawk to "check it out". i was right beside the thing and i basically could have touched the hawk if i would have reached far enuff.

i took a picture on my cellphone but its not that good.

this is the sorta stuff u cant see riding on the trainers

http://img162.imageshack.us/img162/5743/hawkop5.jpg (http://imageshack.us)DarrenCT: I had to resurrect your thread because I finally got to witness what you managed to photograph. I was riding along and saw a red tail hawk coming almost right at me in a low-angle dive --it looked positively huge. It threw out its wings, splayed and dropped its tail to put on the brakes, and extended its talons to grab a little critter in the snow (vole or mouse --could't tell which). It was an amazing display --too bad I didn't have a camera because it stayed right there next to me for several minutes --I think it was squeezing the critter to make sure it had stopped breathing before flying off.

Lew

[AgilisMerlin]

that a boy'

eat the head firstmo'

"They eat small and medium-size birds, especially robins, sparrows, starlings, pigeons, and the occasional rat, all species which thrive in urban environments. They kill prey using their talons, pluck the feathers, then usually eat the head first, followed by entrails and muscle. Hawk stomachs digest bones but they must cough up feathers in small pellets."

[William]

Hawks are the best!!!! :cool: :cool:

http://appvoices.org/images/voice_uploads/redtailed.jpg

http://romanian.wunderground.com/data/wximagenew/g/ghornet/8.jpg

http://mariewin.server304.com/marieblog/uploaded_images/SquirrelBruce-745801.jpg

http://www.worth1000.com/entries/4500/4986_w.jpg




William

[ericspin]

Hawks are the best!!!! :cool: :cool:


Agreed. I love birds of prey. I live on a river and really enjoy watching the Osprey fish, seems like they never miss.

[BURCH]

Need to recruit that hawk for my house. I have about 9 bushytails living my oak tree in the front yard. They drive my wife nuts.

I had a hawk swoop in over my shoulder and smack a tweety bird that was spooked my me on the single track last summer (I was in a a field crossing). Never figured that a hawk would go after a flying target.

[bigbill]

I live a couple of miles from Jimcav in Western Washington. There is a bald eagle nest behind my house and I can tell you that they don't eat everything. Walking back there I can find tails, heads, and other assorted parts. It is cool to watch them glide along waiting to swoop down. A few weeks ago before the time change I was riding home from work in the dark and had a huge white owl fly over my head. I could see it clearly in my headlight and it was beautiful.

[KeithS]

I am in Florida with my wife and kids for spring break, wer'e on Marco Island. Shipped my bike and have been riding every day. Yesterday on my ride - very rural and unspoiled, I saw a dead possum on the side of the road, right next to an empty Busch beer can. The only thing I could assume is the possum couldn't see the oncoming car through his beer goggles and took an unecessary chance and paid the ultimate price. Rode about 10 miles through the edges of the Everglades. Saw lot's of Osprey hunting, watched one catching fish, along Hwy 92 between Goodland and Hwy 41 there is an Osprey nest platform every mile. So very cool...

[FMS_rider]

Hawks are the best!!!! :cool: :cool:


http://mariewin.server304.com/marieblog/uploaded_images/SquirrelBruce-745801.jpg


WilliamAs much as I like squirrels, I found this shot with the 2 tails very amusing.

My wife and I used to have a debate going on whether or not hawks eat squirrels because our backyard is crawling with them and hawks (Redtails and Coopers) are constantly circling and often sitting in the same trees with the squirrels. I even saw one squirrel go up and down a tree several times when there was a Redtail sitting on a limb on the other side ~3ft from the trunk.

My wife says the debate is now over, but I think that either hawks don't eat Wisconsin squirrels, or Wisconsin hawks don't eat squirrels.
Lew

[thinpin]

Need to recruit that hawk for my house. I have about 9 bushytails living my oak tree in the front yard. They drive my wife nuts.

I had a hawk swoop in over my shoulder and smack a tweety bird that was spooked my me on the single track last summer (I was in a a field crossing). Never figured that a hawk would go after a flying target.
Used to sit on top of Arapilles (rock climbing spot here in Victoria) and watch the dog-fights between some small birds and a falcon. It would go on for several minutes, diving, soaring, tight turns - really awesome (in the true sense of that word).
Nearly caused me to drop the missus when she slipped one day
"OOPS :D Sorry dear"

[chrisroph]

saw a mature bald eagle floating the thermals of portland yesterday from my office window

[roman meal]

I saw some turkey vultures flying around the sandbox, and they went away when I brought my four-year old son inside. Geez. That would make it on to Fox news, the public denials..

[William]

saw a mature bald eagle floating the thermals of portland yesterday from my office window


Is there still a nest of Peregrine Falcons living on one of the buildings in downtown PDX? They had a camera on them that they would show on one of the local news channels every other day.



William

[Kevan]

three mourning doves picking up seed from under the bird feeder. With any luck a peregrine will drop from the sky and the birds will all scatter. It's happened a couple times.

[William]

Ahh, here we go....

http://www.audubonportland.org/livingwithwildlife/peregrines/FremontFalcons

Nesting on the Freemont Bridge.





William

[chrisroph]

I saw some turkey vultures flying around the sandbox, and they went away when I brought my four-year old son inside. Geez. That would make it on to Fox news, the public denials..

3 weeks ago riding in calif, the turkey vultures were hovering over one of my compadres when he was on a bad day, kid you not