Baby Hawks

I got a call yesterday from a woman who said she had a hawk nest in her backyard and that it looked like the babies were going to fly at any moment. Always skeptical of phone calls promising a great photo opportunity (I've been burned too many times), I decided to check it out since it was only a few blocks from my house. I was not disappointed. Walking up to the house to investigate before unloading my gear, I was greeted by three downy heads poking out of a nest right by the house. It was pretty nice because I could tell that the hawks were somewhat used to being around humans and didn't seem too bothered by people walking by and talking.



The mother hawk soon brought a morsel to share.



There's nothing quite like the taste of mole to pique some interest.



Making sure the little one is doing the job correctly.











A family resemblance.






Setting out for another hunting expedition.





The more dominant of the young ones imitating mom.



Getting right up the edge of the nest and making a show, but having second thoughts.


It was very interesting to see after only a short time that the birds followed a very predictable schedule. The babies would call, a few minutes later the mother would show up with a mole or squirrel or snake, everyone would eat, mother would leave, much rough housing and playing was involved, some wing flapping and shedding of the downy feathers, babies would settle in and sleep for 30-45 minutes (I'm assuming since I couldn't actually see them, but they made no movement or sound) and the whole process would repeat itself.

My goal is to get some photos of the little ones leaving the nest for the first time. We'll see if I can time it right. I'll post more if I can manage to catch them again before they leave.