Kinda odd that I find birding now. I think it was the Bosque that tipped the scales. Or maybe it was Wyoming as a kid. Or maybe being on the Gulf Coast near Corpus and seeing massive waves of migration. Whatever the reason, whatever the cause. I’ll take it. This morning in the middle of yoga I noticed five ravens fighting a red-tailed hawk. It was like a dogfight and the hawk just seemed like he or she was out for a morning stroll.
I think what I like about birding is that it forces me to pay attention to just one thing. When I encountered birders, real birders, at the Bosque, we hardly said a word to each other. Like the anticipation and butterflies before a football game. Yes, I played football and played both offense and defense for those who want to know. Go ahead and judge me but one of the best feelings in the world is putting a hit on someone. Ya, doesn’t fit the yoga/birding man you see before you now but oh I miss those days.
My recent take with birds is diverse. There are many I’ve seen and photographed I did not include here. Most I can’t identify, yet. The Titmouse is a favorite, of the birds here. You might think the hawk would rocket to most impressive but if you watch a Titmouse work, which is difficult in itself because they are so fast, it’s quite remarkable. They must carbo-load all night long. And maybe there is a bird meth I don’t know about.
Happy to report Paco and Juanita are still here, and not only are they building out back, but they are also now building a second nest in the front. And the finches just got approval for a small condo under our portal. Right where my wife can watch them do the deed while she is making her jewelry. Birds remind me I’m what doesn’t belong. Our species is temporary. Theirs is not.
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I wish I was the hawk. I got jumped by a crow the other day. People tuning in late to the interaction might say I had it coming, but I still claim dirty pool. If anyone is interested in my version of events, I have the audio up at my site. It’s a couple of minutes in. Starts off with some coronavirus chat. Nothing too heavy, but I know the topic alone is too heavy for some right now.
I wonder if the avian whoopie will influence the jewelry making?
Thanks for mentioning the quicktime audio only. I haven’t figured that out, but I did realize that I was exporting as WAV vs MP3. I’m an idiot. The file size is massively bigger.
PS – I know you like The Atlantic. Finally, after years of searching, tracked down an article I have thought a lot about over the years. From 1992. Think you’ll like it.
Jihad vs. McWorld – https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1992/03/jihad-vs-mcworld/303882/
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Scott,
Right up my alley, thank you.
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Scott,
WAV is huge. I’m probably not doing it right. Same for my films. Wait, for SURE with my films but they still make it online….
Very nice post, Daniel. I join you in enjoying birding and being a former high school football player, and, yes, there was nothing like a solid hit. But that was long ago. BTW, I could not tell from your post whether the mono image of the hawk was the “red-tailed” hawk you were referring to being mobbed by the ravens, but the pic appears to be of a red-shouldered hawk, given the banding in the wings and tail. Not trying to be snarky!! Keep them wide-ranging posts comin’.
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Alan,
I don’t know if it was the same hawk. I only got to photograph this one but the other was fighting the ravens. However, I tried to identify this one and got so turned around online I gave up. Red-tailed, Swainson’s, etc. I gave up. And yes, a good hit was worth an entire game.