Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Sharp-shinned Hawk revisited... from the winter of 2011.

In March, as some of you may recall, I posted a single image from a series of images captured while photographing a Sharp-shinned Hawk perched in a neighbor's silver maple. He was EXTREMELY interested in the House Sparrows that he could see and hear cheeping in fear while 'hiding' down below him in the brambles of a wild rose bush that is about 10 feet in diameter and over 7 feet tall. The sparrows were either gathered on the ground or perched on the lowest limbs of the rose bush and were inaccessible as far as the raptor was concerned.

I was having breakfast when I spotted him on a cold day in March so I grabbed my camera and dashed outside, hoping to not spook him. He was clearly more interested in the sparrows than any silly photographer and I snapped pictures until I nearly froze because I'd run out without putting on a coat or gloves! While revisiting these images the other day, it occurred to me that some of them tell a story so here you go.

Is this my best side?
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Or is this?
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OK, I can hear the sparrows... but where are they?
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What? Those sparrows are hiding in the rose brambles???
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That's too bad... I think I'll see what's on the other side of the garden.
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Aren't you tired of taking pictures yet?!
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Between the previous perch and this one, he landed within 10 feet of me on the fence... I don't know who was more surprised between the two of us... the hawk or me! He didn't stay long here and by the time he landed here, I'd been out for 20 minutes or more in freezing cold so was finished taking pictures anyway!
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I'll be posting this to World Bird Wednesday later on... if you haven't found your way there yet, do drop by and have a look!

20 comments:

  1. Beautiful photos Victoria - the last is definitely my favorite, so clear and such a lovely composition.

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  2. What a delightful series of photos, and I love the captions! You certainly took great advantage of that very rare opportunity! The photos are outstanding!

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  3. Fantastic photos of the beautiful hawk! I have tried several times, but no luck, they are allways to far...Well done!

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  4. Hi there - thats a really great set of pictures of the hawk - they are normally so hard to get close to, maybe he (she?) was feeling the cold as well!

    Cheers - Stewart M - Australia

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  5. These are such beautiful and expressive photos! Just lovely.

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  6. Wonderful close ups!! Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.

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  7. Excellent pictures Victoria, and a great encounter with a superb bird.

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  8. A lovely series Victoria... a beautiful bird.

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  9. Great series Victoria! These are the kind of experiences we wait for and pray for. To be part of such an intense scene and to be able to document it, doesn't get much better than that. Thanks so much for sharing more of these beautiful, superbly detailed photographs!

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  10. A great series of photos and the caption really fit well.

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  11. All sides are terrific! Superb photos!

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  12. great story telling. And very good shots of the hawk.

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  13. A great post and a very beautiful set of images. Wonderful photo work.

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  14. What a wonderful series! These photos are excellent!

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  15. Wow. You captured some great images here Victoria. It actually looks like he's posing for the camera!

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  16. LOL! He looks good from all angles...and a little annoyed towards the end.

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  17. FABULOUS, Victoria. Don't you love how easy it is to anthropomorphize the animals and birds we see! :)

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  18. Amazing shots! Maybe a once-in-a-lifetime experience. So glad you shared it with us.

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