PLEASE DO NOT USE MY IMAGES WITHOUT EXPRESSED WRITTEN PERMISSION.
I haven’t shared any of the birds I’ve been seeing lately so thought I’d share some of the birds I’ve seen in the last month or so .
Golden EagleMama Owl in her nest.Downy Woodpecker-FemalePinyon JayPhainopepla-Female
The Yellow-headed, and Red-winged Blackbirds are back, and I’ve seen several Robins, and some water birds, but I’ll share those soon.
The weather has warmed up so we’re turning the sprinklers back on, and breaking out the outdoor cushions this week-end, and setting up my new birdbath!
This morning as I was pulling up to my house I noticed in the tree across the street a Merlin Hawk perched on a branch. I was so excited I couldn’t get in the driveway, parked ,and out of the car fast enough. I raced into the house, grabbed my long lens then raced back outside all the while hoping he was still there.
He was! I think it’s a juvenile. Well, it looks young to me.
I got several shots of him perched then quick as a wink he took flight. He was so fast I could barely keep up with him panning. There is more motion blur than I would have liked, but his eye is pretty sharp. I definitely need more practice panning. Shooting in Continuous High I only got 4 frames of him in flight before he was gone; this one, and one other have motion blur the other two I only caught his tail in the frames.
It’s the first time in the 25 years I’ve lived here I’ve ever seen a falcon. Several weeks ago I saw a hawk for the first time on my street. This winter food must be in short supply in the country. I can’t imagine anything else bringing them into the suburbs. I hope he comes back and I am around to photograph him.
Update: A reader Tj of TjFivephotography emails, ” It looks more like a Sharp-shinned Hawk or a Cooper’s Hawk b/c this one doesn’t have the markings under the eyes like falcons do.”
He sent a cool link showing photos of both birds. I’m leaning toward this one being a Coopers Hawk. What do you all think?
Circadianreflections Blog 
You must be logged in to post a comment.