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Project Noah Nature School
Buteo jamaicensis
Open field near tree cover.
For the last 3 days I have noticed 2 large birds in an old cottonwood tree near my house. Today I decided to investigate! As I walked through a prairie dog town to get a closer look I could hear food cries from young Red-tailed Hawks. I sat in some tall grass under a tree and watched the clumsy babies for about an hour. They had recently fledged and would awkwardly fly from tree to tree but they liked coming back to the nest. What is very exciting (at least to me) is that I believe that these are the offspring of a male Red-tail that lives near my house year round. I named him "Cessna" as he lives near a small airport and has a permanent wing droop due to an unknown injury. (Get it...single engine Cessna...anyway...) The nest is in the middle of what I believe is his territory. The adults can be regularly seen in these cottonwood trees year round and hunt the prairie dogs below. See pictures of the proud Papa here: http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/105...
Spotted on Jul 1, 2014
Submitted on Jul 2, 2014
4 Comments
Thank you for sharing your Kite story as well! It is amazing the simple connection we make with other species!
A few years ago I observed a Pariah Kite couple bring up their chick...I had a 5X camera then and I maxed out the zoom...:) I felt such a proprietory interest in the chick as it grew up and almost died when it came crashing down from its nest after a storm one day...I stood guard so that the dogs would not savage it...and it revived and flew off..I can imagine a little of the happiness you must be feeling. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you SukanyaDatta! I was hoping I'd catch a gimps of Cessna or his mate coming to the nest but they did not appear while I was there. It does make me feel good to know that he has a next generation to pass along his genes. He is one tough bird! It's amazing to watch him fly and hunt with his "disability." It certainly does not slow him down! He is a fighter!
It is always wonderful to spot Generation Next and since the to predators are fewer in number this is an extra special spotting. Plus you know the family. Hope the Cessnites have a long and productive life. Thanks for sharing the story.