Top Photo: Eastern bluebird eggs. There is only one active nest on our six nest box bluebird trail. ————————— The Cow Pasture, Explore the Wild, Into the Mist and Parking Deck East nest boxes are currently unoccupied. When opening the inspection door o the Parking Deck West nest box there were five bluebird nestlings huddled into the bottom of the pine straw nest, eyes yet to open. I took my obligatory picture and let them be. The final next boxRead more
Posts tagged: #Cooper’s Hawk
And Then There Were None
Top Photo: Lone barred owlet peeks out from damaged nest. Barred owls are cavity nesters. They nest in holes in trees, nest boxes built for them, or a broken off trunk open at the top, exposed to the weather and other dangers, like predation. On April 29, I posted on this blog about a barred owl’s nest here on campus. At the time there were two owlets in the nest. On May 6, one of the owls fell out ofRead more
Nest Box Update 2.28.23
Top Photo: Eastern bluebird eggs (from previous season). Not much has changed since last week’s nest box inspection. The same two nest boxes have been active, though one in a negative manner. There is definitely interest in both boxes. The Cow Pasture nest box holds a near complete bluebird nest. The bluebirds have been busy. Too early for eggs? The Explore the Wild and Into the Mist nest boxes are untouched. The nest box on the east side of theRead more
Early Spring Things to See
Top Photo: Balancing act by yellow-bellied slider. The unusually warm February has brought out early baskers, bloomers and animal hormones. If you haven’t seen turtles basking in the wetlands you haven’t been looking very hard. Every available perch is occupied, with no room to spare. Normally heavy sleepers, I even saw a snapping turtle the other day. Red buckeye, one of the earliest shrubs to open up, is doing so now. There are a dozen of them planted along theRead more
The Cooper’s Hawk
Top Photo: Cooper’s hawk in courtship display flight over museum. While spying on hooded mergansers in our wetland here at the Museum of Life + Science, I noticed one of the ducks tilt its head to the side and glance skyward. Reasoning the merganser was eyeing something potentially hazardous to itself, I too craned upward, thinking it perhaps an eagle or other worthy raptor. There, way up high against a severe clear sky was a Cooper’s hawk. It’s stiff postureRead more
A Hawk Tale
Top Photo: Unidentified large brown bird. You’re walking along the path. The low mid-morning sun is bright and shining directly into your face. A large bird flies by and catches your eye. It lands high up in a tree some fifty or so yards away. Branches restrict your view and the bird is facing away from you. When you first spotted the bird you thought it was a hawk. But which hawk? red-shouldered (the most common hawk in the area)?Read more
Bonus Features
Top Photo: A green heron contemplates its next move. While making the rounds on my weekly bluebird trail nest box inspections I often come across other creatures besides the bluebirds, chickadees, and wrens that use the nest boxes on the trail. Red-shouldered hawks nest in the woods next to the train tunnel as they have been off-and-on for years. The one pictured is a product of this year’s effort. I have to pass by the parking deck on the southRead more
Hawks Identified
The answers to the hawk identifications from last week’s post “A Four Hawk Week” are as follows. Top Photo: Cooper’s hawk. The rest of the hawks are: Hawk 1 – Sharp-shinned hawk (immature) What you can see is the rounded wings, longish squared-off tail and small head. What you can’t see is the rapid flap, flap, flap and glide as the bird flies along. Quick movements usually means small bird. This is a small hawk. Some of the smallest malesRead more
A Four Hawk Week
Top Photo: A hawk passes over. This past week I saw four hawk species pass overhead here at the museum. In case you would like to have a try at identifying the hawks yourself, I’ll wait several days before filling in the captions with the correct species names. The hawks pictured are not to scale.Read more