Usually what I do when I'm in this sort of state is get out one of my old standby series out -- Lois McMaster Bujold or David Eddings or Glen Cook, for example -- and plow through them. Specifically, I wanted to re-read Cook's Garrett P.I. books, but I can't find the first volume (Sweet Silver Blues) either at home or in book stores, and I don't want to read them out of order. So I'm at a loss for books right now.
All of this is completely irrelevant to Toronto hawks, except to explain why I'm not posting about them and not books. The hawks -- well, one hawk -- came in this afternoon on our way back from groceries. We noticed a couple of flocks of synchronized pigeons circling over the street. We found that a little odd, as Toronto pigeons are not known for exerting themselves, until we noticed why they were flapping around: they were chasing a hawk, who fled the pigeon-infested area and settled down on a TV aerial on a nearby building.Fortunately, this was quite close to home, so I ran in and got the camera. It was rather tricky photographing a hawk that was ten stories higher than me -- with the aerial in the way to boot -- but I did get a couple of not-bad shots. The image links to the shot on Flickr, where you find the best of the shots.
8 comments:
Way cool. Excellent photo, and even better bird.
Marnie told me a bald eagle has been spotted in Port Credit, at a park very near our house!
We're gonna be keeping the camera handy in case he shows up again. I wish we could get out on our roof, we'd get a great shot from there...
Nice work! Looks like a red-tailed hawk.
I don't know enough about hawks to tell... But if we spot him again, I'll try to get some closer shots. Though I'm not sure how I'd do that if he lands in the same spot...
I suppose I should be impressed by the hawk...but my hat's off to the pigeons, for a successful defense!
Well, I don't know how successful the pigeons were in the end. The hawk left for a second run after I photographed him.
Though he'd probably want to hit a different area, one where the pigeons don't gather in groups of fifty.
Looks like a red-tailed hawk.
I know squat about birds, but it does look just like the hawks that became famous in New York City - and those were red-tailed hawks.
I say go, hawks, go. There are plenty of pigeons. It's much tougher to be a carnivore than a scavenger.
I say go, hawks, go. There are plenty of pigeons. It's much tougher to be a carnivore than a scavenger.
Pigeons on the whole are not threatened in Toronto... Though individual pigeons might be. :)
We could use more interesting wildlife downtown. Personally, I'm delighted by finding hawks and coyotes and the likes in my neighbourhood. (Well, the coyote was a couple of neighbourhoods over, but still pretty close.)
Post a Comment