Today's moment of bird
I'm a majestic, flying killing machine. What of it?
We spotted this bird chilling along a residential street in uptown Albany this week. At first it was on lawn, and then flew into a nearby tree on the power of a few wing beats.
The Twitter consensus this afternoon was that it's a red-tailed hawk, maybe a juvenile. (Want a better look? Here are larger pics.)
We see hawks around uptown Albany often, usually soaring high in the sky (though last fall we watched one pluck a squirrel from a lawn). It was really beautiful to see at close range.
Update: We sent the pics to State Museum curator of birds Jeremy Kirchman and he confirmed that it's a red-tailed hawk.
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Comments
Looks like a juvie red-tail, although I'd think it's early for this year's crop to be out and about. Another clue that this is a juvie: he's standing on the lawn! Check out the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's All About Birds site, where you'll also find a red-tailed hawk nest cam. This is the fourth year we've watched Big Red and Ezra raise their hawklets. And boy have I learned more than I ever thought possible about RTHA.
... said Nancy on May 29, 2015 at 4:32 PM | link
Wonderful pics of the supposed red tail hawk. It is splendid in its own right. Thanks for sharing. Quite a long time ago I had a hawk that decided to take a rest on my chain link fence. Though it did not rest long, it was long enough to enjoy the beauty of the bird. How fortunate you were to get to experience this bird up close.
... said Cathy on May 30, 2015 at 5:48 PM | link
Kestrel?
... said Dave K on May 30, 2015 at 5:55 PM | link
best twist on recurring article headline
... said spencer on Jun 1, 2015 at 9:34 AM | link