Tag Archives: Red-Tailed Hawk

Winding Down with the Holidays

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It’s been a long week or two, or so it seems, with this end of the year business. I have been obsessed with baking enough Cinnamon Oatmeal Raisin Breads to give to people who make me happy all year long, and after all the baking was done and most of the breads delivered, it’s kind of a letdown to not have any more to bake, although now that I am making progress eating my own loaf and receiving appreciative reviews, I look forward to doing it all over again next year.

Here’s the rest of what the end of December has been looking like, when I have managed to get out and walk. There are still a few days left in the year, but so far the weather forecast is not too promising. We are drenched in rain and fog today and anticipate a sprinkling of snow and a lot of wind tomorrow.

Going back to 12-16 at the Chicago Portage, when the snow was still on the ground…

A pair of Northern Cardinals can always light up the gloom.

An American Goldfinch and a Dark-eyed Junco, two birds I expect to see, and a Fox Sparrow which is a less-frequent visitor.

The camera spotted an American Robin flying away over the snow.

On 12-17 in Riverside, two Mallards were fighting over what I will never know.

I found another American Robin in flight by the edge of the water, and then European Starlings bathing.

Here’s another view of a Dark-eyed Junco that pretty much gives away its identity this time of year: the splash of white in the tail.

And I saw a Muskrat on the river near the swinging bridge, which makes me think I may have mistaken it for a beaver the week before.

I joined Steve and Joann for the Christmas Bird Count on 12/21 in Columbus Park. There weren’t a lot of birds to photograph by the time I got there, but right before we left, four crows drew our attention to a Red-tailed Hawk. I managed the photos below and the one at the top of the post just as we got close enough to confirm the hawk’s identity.

The next morning in Riverside I encountered a rather large flock of House Finches buried in the bushy growth by the river bank. They soon took off after I managed to zoom in on a couple.

Downy Woodpeckers have been pretty consistent.

The two Mallards below were peaceful enough.

I am always drawn to Common Milkweed seedpods in winter.

And yesterday at the Portage, the snow was gone, but ice was returning.

I was pleased to see a Brown Creeper, even though I couldn’t get a very good picture of it,

I thought this little scene sums it up: an American Robin looking on as I was looking at two Downy Woodpeckers.

I am evaluating my options for a stuck-inside day. I’m thinking of cooking if my indoor crowd will let me monopolize the kitchen. They seemed to be rather active earlier, in between downpours, but it just got very dark in here and we’ve had a burst of thunder and lightning. I will reluctantly turn on the lights after receiving my latest electric bill this morning. I hope your holidays are going well, and I wish you a calm and loving start to the New Year.

What’s Up at the Chicago Portage?

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We are presently experiencing a brief warmup with highs around 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Along with that we have been promised rain, but that remains to be seen as we always seem to be on the outer edge of the forecasted systems and we remain quite dry. Monday the temperatures will drop again for a few days. The photos in this post are from the past week and a half.

Two days before Official Spring on the 20th, birds were getting ready. I saw a Cooper’s Hawk.

I found a Red-bellied Woodpecker and a Downy Woodpecker in the same spot.

Poor light didn’t do much for these photos but it was good to see a couple Fox Sparrows.

I found one American Goldfinch.

And it was a definite sign of spring when a Great Blue Heron flew by.

The Cooper’s Hawk returned.

And then I saw a Red-shouldered Hawk after that.

Then, on the first day of Spring, snow was the main attraction.

I found a White-breasted Nuthatch.

American Robins have been consistent.

And I exchanged looks with a White-tailed Deer.

I barely managed to capture a Golden-crowned Kinglet.

Five days later, the snow was long gone, although we were still under cloud cover. I noticed Cooper’s Hawk action early. After watching for a while, there were two Cooper’s Hawks, and they seemed to be checking out a nest. I have not seen them return to it since, but I am keeping an eye on it.

More views of a Cooper’s Hawk.

There were also three American Crows harassing a Red-tailed Hawk in another area. I didn’t figure out who they were going after until I zoomed in on my photos.

Here’s the Red-tailed Hawk. I found the third and fourth photos in the panel below to be particularly interesting as the hawk flew behind some golden buds in a tree that made its underwings look like they were lit up.

Beyond that, three Mallards took to sitting on top of one of the muskrat huts. I haven’t seen a muskrat at all lately, but I can’t imagine it would tolerate this behavior. The hut looks pretty beaten up by all the weather.

That’s it for the moment. I’ll try to report back soon, as migration continues slowly but surely changes the avian landscape.

Winter Whatever

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I have not been to the Chicago Portage regularly lately due to weather or my right knee’s opinion, sometimes both. We had a spell of freezing rain Thursday morning that made it impossible to go down my front steps, so I snuck out the back to go grocery shopping. I would have gone for a walk yesterday, but we were again warned of incipient freezing rain or snow and even though nothing occurred until later in the afternoon, it was cloudy and dreary and I stayed in.

So I really looked forward to going for a walk this morning, just to get out and see what I could. There were some sunny moments and it wasn’t too windy. There were also very few people at the Chicago Portage this morning. That said, I always check back at the bridge near Harlem to look for a muskrat. I have not seen a muskrat in months. And then, this morning, there he or she was, sitting on the ice, chewing on something. That left me no other course of action but to start off with the muskrat in this post. I realize someone else now has been nicknamed “Muskrat”, but I defend real muskrats only.

Going back in chronological order, here are a few photos from January 28.

A European Starling checking out the statue

American Tree Sparrows are probably always on site, but I don’t see them in large flocks or too often.

After seeing a Red-tailed Hawk frequently this year, I mistook a Red-shouldered Hawk for it. The Red-shouldered was back for a couple days.

House Finches have been hanging out in small trees.

I noticed a nice-looking fungus close to the trail.

And briefly, there was a Cooper’s Hawk right off the inside trail as well.

On January 30, a dead deer was lying just off the entrance to the parking lot.

Looking for the muskrat, I saw an American Robin instead on a muskrat pile that did not become a muskrat nest.

I walked over by the train tracks to see if anything was happening in the Des Plaines River besides ice.

It really didn’t look like I would see much that day.

American Tree Sparrow
Two Canada Geese and a Rock Pigeon

Then, quite distant, I saw the Red-shouldered Hawk again.

Then, standing on the bridge near Harlem with Bob, we saw a large number of Canada Geese fly over. What looks like a Frontier Airlines jet appeared to intersect the flock.

On February 1, the ice was starting to melt.

There weren’t many birds to see. There was a deer.

Clouds.

A Downy Woodpecker.

Sunshine on February 4 seemed to help a bit. This American Robin seemed glad to see me.

There were a few Canada Geese in the Des Plaines River.

Northern Cardinal

A Black-capped Chickadee was close by.

I managed to photograph a White-throated Sparrow or two.

And one Dark-eyed Junco posed.

I dd not get back to the Chicago Portage after that until this morning. It was cloudy, cold and quiet, but bearable, and when the sun came out from behind the clouds, it was fine. There were traces of some snow we had late yesterday afternoon.

Canada Geese on the Des Plaines River under the railroad bridge

I dare you to find the House Finches and American Goldfinches in the twiggy mess below,

I revisited the fungus with snow on it.

The clouds were thick.

And then I noticed a raptor. This time it turned out to be a Red-tailed Hawk.

And then, back at the bridge near Harlem, I saw the muskrat.

There are a few signs of spring. Some trees have started to bud. I have heard Northern Cardinals singing. Red-winged Blackbirds were by the feeders in Lyons on Friday morning. All I know is I can hardly wait to be distracted by longer days, more sunshine, more birds, and yes, even more muskrats. A return to the rhythms and songs of renewal seems more important now than ever.

Winter Solstice at the Chicago Portage

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The weather was bitter, bright and cold yesterday morning. Walking and looking for birds has been iffy lately, but I wanted to go for the walk at least, so I went to the Chicago Portage for the shortest day of the year. In spite of the bitter cold, there was no perceptible wind and the sun was warm, so it was actually quite pleasant. And perking up the scenery was some evidence of the previous day’s snowfall.

Muskrat Estates had a little snow cover and the water had turned to ice.

A Song Sparrow ventured out into the open for a moment.

A couple Northern Cardinals offered somewhat obscured views.

Another view of the snow and ice on the water.

A young Red-tailed Hawk came in and sat with its back toward me. I watched its back too long.

The Red-tail outsmarted me by refusing to move until my lens was drawn to some distant Canada Geese.

A small portion of the geese in flight

I doubled back along the paved trail, seeing nothing until I came around toward the parking lot and found a couple female Northern Cardinals foraging on the ground.

A Red-bellied Woodpecker, the same individual at the top of the post, was in the treetops.

By the statue, a European Starling appeared.

Then I noticed American Tree Sparrows foraging in the plantings that were installed by the foot of the statue this past year.

Dark-eyed Juncos also were there.

It’s hard to believe that the days will start getting incrementally longer now, but we are already looking forward to it. In the meantime, there seem to be enough ways to get through the cold weather. This morning the Unity Temple Choir sang with the Chalice Singers, the children’s choir, and we will sing Tuesday night for a candlelit service.

I have been enjoying my new oven. The first thing I did was bake four loaves of Cinnamon Oatmeal Raisin Bread on Tuesday night. On Thursday after grocery shopping, I made some roasted veggies.

Roasted veggies!

While standing on the back porch waiting for the new oven delivery, I watched a Red-bellied Woodpecker on the peanut feeder.

I hope to be back with more photos of winter birds and maybe a recording or two. I wish you warm, loving and peaceful holidays.

Briefly at the Chicago Portage

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Visits to the Chicago Portage will likely be brief these days as the weather has turned colder, often gloomier, and the birds are not always easy to find. But there are other things to watch for as well.

“Welcome to Muskrat Estates.” I wish I could post a sign stating this on the bridge near Harlem because the muskrats have now built another sizable nest. I took these photos last Friday, November 22. A few Mallards could still be seen enjoying Muskrat Estates.

A bit later I found a few more Mallards feeding where there was still duckweed. The duckweed is receding i the colder weather.

At the top of the hill, such as it is, in the goldenrod, I found an American Tree Sparrow blending in nicely.

House Finches were nearby.

I spotted a Dark-eyed Junco.

A distant view of the Portage from above.

Then a moment later, I noticed a Red-tailed Hawk sitting in a faraway tree.

A Downy Woodpecker caught my attention.

The Red-tailed Hawk flew in to a closer perch.

And then the hawk was on the move again.

I spotted a Downy Woodpecker on the ground.

And a female Northern Cardinal didn’t seem to mind my attention as she perched long enough for me to take her picture.

An American Goldfinch was taking a water break on the paved trail.

I found another American Tree Sparrow.

The Red-tailed Hawk was on the move again.

And then I heard Sandhill Cranes overhead. I barely managed to capture a few of them behind the trees in the cloudy sky, but it was nice to hear and see them.

I am spending a quiet Thanksgiving Day at home with the birds. I’ve been having fun in the kitchen lately trying new recipes and improving upon old ones. Our temperatures are about to plunge for the weekend, so I may as well keep cooking: this is definitely soup and bread weather. There’s also something peaceful and restorative in preparing food.

Thatcher Woods, Quickly

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It was very chilly and windy Saturday morning, which made it difficult to even imagine seeing birds, but we did manage 25 species. I didn’t see them all.

Shortly after we convened, the Great Blue Heron that hangs out in the water by the Hal Tyrrell Trailside Museum of Natural History flew in and landed in a likely spot.

After standing around trying to identify distant birds perched hundreds of yards away, we did manage to see very few warblers in the sunny tree tops. At one point, two Blackpoll Warblers came out to engage for the camera.

Then I managed to barely catch one leaving.

Blackpoll taking off

With some frequency, a Red-tailed Hawk would fly over.

We were having a hard time finding passerines until we got out to the grassy area, but even then they were difficult to see as they were far away. So I have no usable photos of the Eastern Bluebirds, numerous American Robins, two Eastern Phoebes, and a few Northern Flickers. The Bluebirds and Phoebes might have been related to those nesting in boxes and the shelter this spring, respectively.

I forget exactly where we were when we noticed some activity in a bushy area. The bird was hard to see, moving around in the middle of a mess of branches. But then it started to move closer to us where we could see some of it. I first caught sight of a “spectacle” eye-ring and speculated that it was a Yellow-throated Vireo. The bird must have heard me, because it came out just then to prove otherwise. It was a Blue-headed Vireo. This was the Bird of the Day.

Later, for added excitement, two Red-tailed Hawks flew over, interacting with each other.

The last Red-tailed Hawk photos I took were when the hawks were flying right over us saying hello.

With luck we will get good views of more species this coming Saturday in Columbus Park, and then we have a couple walks the beginning of next week, and then I am on duty every Saturday morning through the last walk at Columbus Park on October 12.

Meanwhile, Linda Rios and I are preparing for our auction-event flute and piano recital on October 13. It will be a very birdy music month.

Starting Over

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The new camera arrived, and I managed to set it up for basic operation so I could take it with me to local places and get used to how it feels. Before I got in the car Saturday morning, I decided I better take a couple photos just to make sure everything was working properly. I noticed a Red-tailed Hawk across the street perched on my neighbor’s shortwave radio antenna.

I missed the hawk’s takeoff. I went to the Chicago Portage where I did not find many birds at all. Nothing new there.

One of a few Dark-eyed Juncos
A White-tailed Deer
Canada Geese flying over
An American Tree Sparrow

I went back to the Portage on Sunday and there was even less to look at.

When I first arrived, a Blue Jay was making a lot of noise, and I saw him at some distance from the bridge by Harlem Avenue. I couldn’t resist his electric blueness in the sunlight.

A female American Goldfinch

The Black-capped Chickadees show up sooner or later.

More Canada Geese

Most of the water at the Chicago Portage is still frozen, even though we have been above freezing for nearly two weeks. The water level is deeper, and the deep freeze apparently made ice too thick to melt quickly.

The last bird I photographed on Sunday was a distant Downy Woodpecker.

But it was still a sunny day, so I took out the 75-300mm lens and stood on my back porch to take a few photos through the screened-in windows. They weren’t sharp, but they weren’t all bad either. The American Goldfinch at the top of the post was one of them.

It’s been nice to see more House Finches in the yard lately. I heard one sing on Sunday too. The two below had a little argument.

And I had a Downy Woodpecker in the yard.

As for the camera, the shutter click is much quieter. There are a million new features that I have to check out. But I soon realized I could not download the photos from this camera into my ancient standalone version of Lightroom because it did not recognize them. I knew this day would come eventually. I suspected I was going to be using the Canon photo processing software anyway, so I installed it onto my newer laptop, which I purchased a couple years ago and have kept up to date so I can function in this century. I am now finally forced to make the transition. Ah, technology.

It feels like I have to rewire my brain. I can remember when I was first learning word processing software years ago, how I used to wake up from dreams of copying and pasting… It’s probably not going to be that bad, but just getting the hang of the new processor and how it operates and where the heck things are that I want to do is a challenge for my aging brain cells.

I am glad I have a couple months to get ready for spring warbler migration when I really need things to work smoothly. Right now there aren’t a lot of birds to worry about. But I have a lot of photos from last year, so I hope to be back soon with some of them.

More Sunshine?

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Apparently I lied in my last post, because as far as I can tell from these pictures, January 10 was sunny as well. At least it was sunny early when I was at the Chicago Portage, and although I did not see very many birds, the visit was still fairly interesting.

Here’s how everything looked when I walked in. It was very quiet.

And then, not too far along the trail, I spotted a Red-tailed Hawk sitting in a tree on the other side of the stream. Its presence could have explained at least some of the quiet.

On closer inspection, I noticed it had prey – and that turned out to be a Gray Squirrel.

I think the hawk was flushed from its perch by the man I think of as Mr. Peanut (I think our friend George once referred to him as Peanut Pete, but I don’t know his real name) who was walking the inside trail behind it, because when I encountered “Mr. Peanut” walking in the opposite direction he asked me if I saw “that big hawk”. But I’m sure the hawk hadn’t been too happy with me paying such close attention to it either.

Below is one more photo from the previous series – perhaps you can see the squirrel in the hawk’s talons a little easier.

After that, everything else was less exciting. However, the moss and lichen caught my interest in the sunshine.

A female Downy Woodpecker was busy in the deeply furrowed bark of a cottonwood.

I was trying to follow some movement on the ground for a while before I finally saw the face of a Fox Sparrow. Then the sparrow flew up and perched – and sat and stared at me, as they seem to like to do – but it was too backlit for a great photo.

The Northern Cardinals have not been terribly shy lately. I qualify that, though, by noting these photos were taken at some distance.

It appears it was cold enough that morning for the shallower water to be frozen over, eliminating the possibility of waterfowl. However, looking back on the weather for that day, we got up to 51 degrees at some point and the next day, although totally cloudy, was even a bit warmer. All that is over now, however. We are due for some cold weather in addition to snow.

Waking up to light snow this morning, I’m taking a day off from birding, but there were a few birds in the yard that I managed to capture after I swept off the walks, and I’ll keep the camera loaded for any future opportunities. It’s not snowing heavily yet but it looks like that could change. I like the snow. It’s pretty. It feels warmer because of the humidity. And it’s a little brighter than the constant cloud cover.

I’ll be back later with a few images I coaxed out from the gloom.

Red-tail Rescue

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I’ve been working on another post but it will have to wait. (“We pause to interrupt our general programing with a special announcement.”) This morning’s excitement at The Chicago Portage is too precious not to share immediately. I am still in awe of the entire experience.

It was a fairly crappy morning to be out, with a hint of drizzle oozing out of the cloud cover. I didn’t expect to get decent photographs of anything but I took the camera with me anyway. It was several minutes before I heard even one bird sound.

But the moment I approached the first bridge closest to Harlem Avenue – the same bridge where we saw the Wilson’s Snipe last week – my attention was immediately drawn to a Red-tailed Hawk sitting on a log over the water.

The bird was very still. I figured it was hunting, so I did not proceed in its direction. I took a few more photos and decided to walk the middle trail.

There were hardly any birds to be seen. At first I thought that was because of the Red-tail, but it probably had as much if not more to do with the weather. I did manage to scare up the usual flock of Dark-eyed Juncos, American Tree Sparrows, Northern Cardinals and hangers-on, but it wasn’t possible to focus on any of them, and I was still curious about the Red-tail. I continued to walk around the circular path that eventually leads back to the bridge.

I encountered a young woman also walking the same direction and told her about the hawk. When we both approached, it had its back toward us.

I now began to suspect there was something wrong with it. It just didn’t make sense that it would still be sitting there, and the more I observed its behavior, I was convinced it was not well. Generally, a puffed-up appearance indicates an attempt to keep warm. Although it was cold this morning it wasn’t windy. For what it’s worth, the bird also appeared to be a juvenile.

Just about then, Bob showed up, and we were soon both sharing our observations. I decided to call for help. I took a picture with my cell phone and sent a message to the Chicago Bird Collision Monitors hotline. I figured even if they did not have someone to rescue the bird, they would know of other people in the area who could do that sort of thing. While we texted back and forth and Bob and I talked, standing in the drizzly cold watching the bird, I took more photographs.

Perhaps as a response to our attention, the bird decided to move off its perch and try somewhat solid, if wet, ground. It was wobbly on its feet though.

After taking a sip of the water and sitting in it for a few moments, the hawk might have understood me when I started to admonish it for sitting in cold water, for it started to move to another perch.

One nice view of its red tail…

Here’s how the bird last looked before I had to leave for a service appointment with the car dealer.

I went back to the Portage after the service appointment, and just as I parked and got out of my car, I noticed a vehicle and its driver who was half out of the car. It turned out to be Nora from Chicago Bird Collision Monitors. Perfect timing! She said she was just about to call me to see if I could come and show her where the bird was. We walked in, and the hawk had moved a bit farther away from the water, which made it easier to capture.

I took a video with my cell phone of Nora walking slowly through the vegetation with her big net and then placing it over the bird fairly easily. But I don’t want to post it without her permission, so if I hear back from her soon I will ask. I hope to find out what was wrong with the hawk. When I talked with Annette over the phone earlier, she enumerated several possibilities: head trauma, avian flu, West Nile virus, rodenticide from eating poisoned prey.

In any event, when Nora put the hawk into a travel box I got to help her by closing the door. It was also delightful sharing stories with her about birds, and she is a pianist, too. She said she specializes in capturing hawks. I feel so lucky to have witnessed her technique! She then took the hawk to Willowbrook Wildlife Center Clinic. I hope to hear about the diagnosis and the bird’s prospects.

I will be back with “regular programming” soon.

Fall Walks at Thatcher Woods

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I am back from the land of afternoon naps with a short segment.

We’ve had two Saturday morning walks at Thatcher Woods in River Forest, and we will have our final fall migration walk there on October 8. It’s been pretty quiet the last few weeks, but I did manage some photographs of a few birds, so here they are.

Basically, the Red-tailed Hawk was the only bird I captured doing anything on September 10.

Then on our last visit on September 24, the first of season bird of the walk – and for several of us, first of the year – was this Yellow-bellied Sapsucker who was perched somewhat distantly in a tree. This was likely the best long look I will get this year so I took too many photographs. I have since seen a few more of this species but have not been able to photograph them. For me, the placement of white on the wing quickly distinguishes this bird from other woodpeckers.

I must have had a few long moments to photograph the Red-tailed Hawk.

Also notable on the 24th, but impossible to capture well with the camera, were 34 Northern Flickers foraging on the lawn. We didn’t dare bother them by getting any closer.

A murder of about 20 crows flew overhead, which was beautiful to see. I could only capture a few, but to me there is nothing like a crow in flight.

Here are a few more of the sapsucker.

On our last visit we saw some Yellow-rumped Warblers by the parking lot, and after the walk I stayed a moment to get a few photographs.

Here are a few more of the Red-tailed Hawk.

Our last walk at Columbus Park is tomorrow morning. I have much more to report, it’s just been a busy week and I’ve been too tired to sustain many thoughts. I will try harder to be “back” at least while there’s still some activity before winter sets in. Then the birds will be fewer but somewhat easier to see, perhaps. Best to expect the unexpected.