“And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.” Anais Nin
One of the pair of Cooper’s hawks flying around the apartment complex earlier this year. — Photo by Pat Bean
First the Lovers, Then the Juveniles
Earlier this year, I blogged about seeing a pair of Cooper’s hawks that appeared to be courting. For the past week, the results of that courtship have been entrancing residents. The hawks built a nest in a tall tree visible from my bedroom balcony and raised two young in it
And a quick sketch of one of the less-colorful juveniles now flying around my apartment complex. — Pat Bean sketch
Those two juveniles have now fledged, and are so much less wary of we humans than their parents that I’ve been seeing them daily for over a week. A few days ago, I actually saw one of the birds dehead a songbird in the air.
The luckless songbird’s body fell near where Pepper and I were walking. The hawk watched as we passed by. I hoped that it retrieve its meal, as it would have been a shame for the songbird’s death not to have served a purpose.
As one who is an avid nature watcher, I’ve learned to accept the circle of life, which puts hawks at the top of the bird food chain. While many small birds can produce up to three large broods of chicks annually, hawks rarely raise more than one or two each year.
House wrens, for example, can go from egg to fledging in less than a month. Cooper’s Hawks’ eggs take over twice that time, and larger birds of prey, like the bald eagle, require more than four months to develop from an egg to a fledgling. And the parent will continue to feed it long after that.
I’m thankful that I still view birds, and all the rest of nature, with the wonder of a child, but also with the awe of learning the details of how everything fits into the environment.
Bean’s Pat: Discovering Myself http://tinyurl.com/mfhqdro Yes, yes and yes!
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What a wonderful quote to open your post with! I love seeing hawks, although the ones I see are red-tail hawks. They are awesome birds. And I’d rather see a songbird killed by a hawk than by a cat 🙂
Thanks WriteWay. I agree, re bird killers over cat killers
I once saw a Cooper’s Hawk (or maybe a sharpshinned hawk) kill a mockingbird on my front porch, right in front of the screen door where I sat on the other side. It pinned the mockingbird to the porch floor while it struggled its life away and the hawk, I swear, looked in the screen door right into my eyes. I didn’t move, couldn’t take my eyes off the drama that played out right in front of me. In a very short time the hawk flew off with its booty and I was left wondering if I’d really seen what I’d just seen. I felt privileged to have seen such a thing and at the same time felt sorry for the mockiingbird, though with a talon right through it’s heart, I doubt it felt a thing. It was awesome.
Watching birds is fascinating Sam. Have a good day.
I had never read the quote by Nin, prior to seeing it on your post and thought it was lovely. Very touching, really, and a very nice opening to your story!
Thanks Elisa. It is a great quote, with so many, many meanings.
Thanks for this interesting lesson on hawks, Pat. There are few things more amazing than the circle of life.
It seems like a fair exchange. You teach me about the universe, and I tell you about birds, which are one of my major passions.
Deal!
Love that photo!!!
Thanks