Backyard and Beyond

Starting out from Brooklyn, an amateur naturalist explores our world.

As John Burroughs said, “The place to observe nature is where you are.”

Kestrel v. Red-tail

And we’re off again!
This time it’s a Red-tailed Hawk on the fire-escape.

This fire-escape is in the morning sun and out of the predominantly western winds. Can easily see a dozen Mourning Doves up here, a scattering of European Starlings, and a few House Sparrows. It’s also a great place to perch for a raptor, meaning a scattering of all the other birds. Two days before this, a mature Coopers was up here.

As with the Coopers, this Red-tail was not moved. The Kestrel gave up, and the Red-tails set to was some feather-grooming.

“I think the tragedy is that we have a Congress with a Senate that has a minority of misguided senators who will use the filibuster to keep the majority of people from even voting.” ~ Martin Luther King, born January 15, 1929.

mthew

3 responses to “Kestrel v. Red-tail”

  1. nature969

    Great photos and great quote by Martin Luther King!

    Reply
  2. Ellen

    It is such a shame that this quote is still true.
    We are still fighting.
    I love Kestrels more than Cooper’s Hawk. But that hawk is like “whatever, can’t bother me!”

    Reply
  3. Charles McAlexander

    It was a male American Kestrel that got me involved in birding. It was claiming territory and saw me as a threat when I looked out the 3rd floor barn door of my 25th Street shop. It took this tercel two weeks to stop buzzing me, but I was already hooked by then.

    Reply

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