Cooper’s Hawk On The Prowl

With the increase in bird activity around the feeders I guess it’s no surprise that a predator would show up.  This is a Cooper’s Hawk and it tried most of the day to find a meal and was unsuccessful.

I first saw this Hawk early in the morning.  It was perched high in a Pine Tree behind a large branch.  Initially it scared the White Winged Doves away.  As it just sat there a new White Winged Dove flew below the Hawk and the Hawk immediately dove after it.  It apparently missed because a few minutes later it was perched in another tree.  The local birds didn’t like that at all and these large Crows were squawking at it, then the Blue Jays arrived to provide more vocal reinforcement.  After about 10 minutes of being harassed it flew off once again.  It was probably an hour later when I saw this same Hawk come flying out of the woods and veer towards another large Pine tree.  Whatever it was crawling on that Pine tree fell towards the ground (I’m assuming a Squirrel). It was probably two hours later when I went back out into the backyard and there was this same Hawk (I’m assuming) sitting in a branch right behind my fence stalking my bird feeders.  I probably wouldn’t have even noticed it but the Carolina Chickadees were in such a vocal frenzy that I was drawn to that location.

Cooper's Hawk Scanning For Prey

Cooper's Hawk Looking Up In The Trees

Related posts:

1. Warning To Purple Martins: Red Shouldered Hawk On The Prowl
2. Juvenile Sharp-Shinned Hawk Stalking Prey On My Fence
3. Purple Martin Colony Gets A Scare From A Hawk
4. Red Shouldered Hawk At Brazos Bend State Park
5. Elusive Carolina Wren Reappears