Redtail hawk in flight!

BassmanRudy · January 13, 2023, 06:54:51 PM

Got super lucky while out at the local desert preserve to spy a redtail hawk chasing something. It then turned over the low juniper/scrub brush and headed my way! I just shot quick without time to really focus but had these 2 come out ok! He/she then sat on a joshua tree for a while barely 15' away allowing me to take hundreds of pics.

Hope y'all enjoy!

Princeton_Man · January 13, 2023, 07:00:16 PM

Cool! Is that with your phone??
Great pics!

BassmanRudy · January 13, 2023, 07:06:47 PM

Jim- no no. I took my DSLR out there. Older Nikon D3200 but that Sigma 150-600mm lens is amazing!

I'm sure the phone could have tried and maybe in burst mode had a few more shots but I def take the good camera when going here.

Since I don't fish much now photography has kinda become an obsession.

Here's a Coopers/sharp shinned hawk out there today as well. So hard to tell the 2 apart but I'd lean towards the sharp shinned here.

big g · January 13, 2023, 07:17:54 PM

My son and daughter both live on Lakes in Georgia northeast of Atlanta. Their homes are in heavily wooded areas and both have a population of Redtail Hawks. I have seen them pluck a squirrel from a tree, and harvest a snake from the lake bank. We use hawk calls from the internet to call them into the surrounding area, while sitting on her back porch. They are territorial. Love those birds of prey.

BassmanRudy · January 13, 2023, 07:25:09 PM

So cool you get them to interact like that!! And yes very territorial birds.

Growing up in NC and working on a farm I really enjoy the "outside life". Watching hawks is my favorite thing to do and I'll stop doing whatever to watch one go by! Ospreys are probably my overall favorite hawk to see but all of them get my attention.

Eric-Maine · January 13, 2023, 08:03:54 PM

Great pictures

Sent from my SM-G781U using Tapatalk

Capt. BassinLou · January 14, 2023, 04:52:30 AM

Great capture. Wtg!

bassmedic46 · January 14, 2023, 04:56:35 AM

Great pictures, Thank you for sharing

Pat Dilling · January 14, 2023, 11:24:58 AM

What amazing pictures!! We love to watch the Eagles, both Bald and Golden, along with the Osprey at our local lakes. I used to carpool back and forth to Sacramento. In the winter we entertained ourselves by counting hawks. They would be on poles, signs, rice field levees, even on the ground and flying. We got real good at spotting them. Our record for the 35 mile one way trip is 110! Sadly some would get splatted by cars on the highway as they would low glide along looking for prey and get into the roadway. I got these pictures of nesting Osprey at the Oroville Afterbay. These were with my phone zoomed in so quality is not that great.

BassmanRudy · January 14, 2023, 11:57:28 AM

Pat- I need to come up there!! 110 in 1 day?!?!?! Insane! I would be in hawk heaven!!

Yes, unfortunately a lot of hawks die along roadsides as when they see prey they seem to lose complete focus on anything else "including" huge vehicles... :-(

Donald Garner · January 15, 2023, 12:04:07 PM

Rudy, tks for sharing those great pictures with us

coldfront · January 16, 2023, 07:20:49 AM

Quote from: BassmanRudy on January 13, 2023, 06:54:51 PM
Got super lucky while out at the local desert preserve to spy a redtail hawk chasing something. It then turned over the low juniper/scrub brush and headed my way! I just shot quick without time to really focus but had these 2 come out ok! He/she then sat on a joshua tree for a while barely 15' away allowing me to take hundreds of pics.

Hope y'all enjoy!

GREAT SHOTS!

love digital cameras. just shoot, shoot, shoot... and sort 'em out later... it's not like the old days where you'd have to develop the film and then leave most/much of it on the floor.. sometimes you got ONE image out of a roll and that was a WIN!..