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Here and There…Now and Then |
Juvenile Red-tailed Hawk
A juvenile red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis), flying over the parking lot outside my office today. He gave a single scream which alerted me to his presence and I got quite a few half-decent pictures (with my less than decent long lens). Gotta get me a good telephoto.
Hawk in Steel Tree
This tree is a steel and concrete sculpture called Graft by Roxy Paine. It’s between the Natural History Museum and the National Gallery of Art. We especially enjoyed the hawk that was perched in it. What would be really funny would be a woodpecker.
Osprey (Pandion haliaetus)
Cathy and I took a walk on the beach this morning, heading east. We stopped for a while to enjoy the tail end of the church service on the beach and then continued as far as the pier. On our way back, as we neared out cottage, we saw a bird circling over the water and occasionally diving for fish. As we got closer we were able to identify it as an osprey (Pandion haliaetus) and I was able to get a few pretty nice pictures, considering I only had a 100mm lens. I had thought about the possibility of renting a longer lens for this trip but decided against it. Birds are fine to photograph but really, this trip is not about wildlife photography, so I decided to put it off for another trip.
Cooper’s Hawk (Accipiter cooperii)
I had a doctor’s appointment this morning and didn’t get to work until about 11:30. As I turned into the parking lot, I glanced to my right and sitting on a fallen tree limb was this hawk. I pulled into the space facing the bird but my camera was in the trunk and I knew if I opened my door, the bird would fly off. There is a small opening in the middle of the back seat that lets me get into the trunk, however, and I very quietly lowered my seat, reached through and got my camera. I took the first photo through the windscreen, which turned out reasonably well. I then lowered my window and leaned out and was able to get a few photos before he (or she) flew off into the woods. I believe it’s a Cooper’s hawk (Accipiter cooperii) rather than a sharp-shinned (Accipiter striatus), based on its size. Interestingly, both species are reverse size dimorphic, that is, the females are larger than the males.
Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus)
I had an appointment with my ophthalmologist this afternoon so left work a little early to go to that. When I was done, I would have gone straight home but I had two errands to run first. I went to the Kentlands shopping center, first to the Giant and then to Lowe’s. As I was coming out of Giant I glanced up into the small sycamore tree by the parking lot and saw this hawk. I nonchalantly walked by and got my camera out of my trunk. I got one photo of the hawk as it flew off but it landed again only a few trees over. I don’t think this is as good a photo as yesterday’s hawk picture, but it’s not bad. I think this one is a sharp-shinned hawk (Accipiter striatus), the smaller cousin to yesterday’s Cooper’s.
Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)
I went into the office today. We had planned to start coming back to the office originally last fall and then at the new year, but each time it got pushed back. Starting March 1, however, it actually happened. I came in on March 1 and again today. In the early afternoon I went outside for a short break, walking through the empty lot next to my office. I saw this red-tailed hawk (em>Buteo jamaicensis) and was quick enough to get a pretty nice photograph. I’ve been thinking for some time about getting a longer lens for this sort of thing, but so far, the longest I have is 100mm.
Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)
We went to the farm park for a short visit today. I got a few photos of bluebirds, both male and female (Sialia sialis), a red-winged blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus), and a sparrow or other small bird that I can’t identify. I decided to go with this shot of a red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis), though. Taking photos of birds on the wing is challenging at the best of times. With my long—150–600mm—lens, it’s even more challenging. The lens is quite heavy and getting it aimed at the bird, much less focused is pretty hit or miss. Mostly miss. This one turned out pretty well and I got a few more just about the same, so I’m please with that.