Pair of Red-tailed Hawks side by side on a rocky ledge – Nikon D500, f11, 1/250, ISO 500, +1.0 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited
Yesterday morning the first birds I spotted and photographed was a pair of adult Red-tailed Hawks side by side on a rocky ledge in early morning light. I took quite a few photos of this pair of hawks and I am sure that I will share more of them sometime in the future.
I believe these are resident pair of Red-tailed Hawks and sedentary (nonmigratory) Red-tailed Hawks retain their pair bond throughout the year. This may be a pair of Red-tailed Hawks that I photographed earlier in the year nesting on a cliff face not far from where I found them yesterday in which case I also photographed their fledglings not long after they had left their nest. These hawks looked rather cozy to me perched together in the cool morning air. I saw a low of 17°F on my way to this location.
American Goldfinch perched on a leafless sumac – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/1000, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light
The other birds I photographed in abundance yesterday morning were finches. There were so many American Goldfinches and Pine Siskins below where the Red-tailed Hawks were perched that I had a hard time deciding which birds to aim my lens at so I focused on them all intermittently and switched up the birds over and over.
There is a freshwater seep in the area which draws the smaller birds in along with shrubs that provide shelter and food. My sit and wait approach in this area continues to pay off year after year with wonderful birds that I love to photograph.
The American Goldfinches are in their nonbreeding plumage and although they are not as bright as they are in their breeding plumage now I enjoy seeing their soft and subtle colors.
Pine Siskin perched on a leafless sumac – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/1250, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light
The zhree calls of the Pine Siskins combined with the flight calls of the goldfinches yesterday kept my ears buzzing and happy as I photographed them. I think there were equal numbers of Pine Siskins and American Goldfinches yesterday flitting around, calling, and perching on the nearby wild roses, sumacs and rabbitbrush and cattails.
It was a great morning to be out in the field with the birds.
Life is good.
Mia
Ooooh, those birds look chilly. A lovely selection of species!
Mia, beautiful photos and commentary. Thank you
What a wonderful, wonderful morning for you. And for us. Thank you.
Beautiful photos, yesterday had a very nice morning to be out in! I have more goldfinches in my yard than I have had for years. I have a few siskins, which is more than normal too.
Beautiful, love the pair!