Saturday, November 28, 2009

Hiding in the Shadows

On one of our walks Hubby and I stood on a little bridge, looking to see if there were any birds in the creek below.
Turning around my eye barely caught sight of this hawk, perched in the shadows in the nearby willow. After downloading I tried to identifuy him. None of the hawks seemed right, none had banding like this on its breast, he was looking at me so I must have been viewing his front. Wrong, I finally realized I wasn't seeing his breast, it is his wing we see in this shot. He's looking over his red tinged shoulder.
He's a red shouldered hawk, brightened up here for better viewing. It was a neat experience to see him so close, about 15 feet away, in the wild.

Find more shadows at Hey Harriet.
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19 comments:

  1. RalphNovember 28, 2009 at 11:04 AM

    This hawk is almost camouflaged in this tree, the shadow making it really hard for the prey to see the predator at first glance. A stunning capture of a beautiful and large bird!

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  2. Carolyn FordNovember 28, 2009 at 11:14 AM

    Wow! What a capture of this hawk! The dappled shadows are wonderful...Wonderful capture!

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  3. DebNovember 28, 2009 at 11:21 AM

    Mmm. Wonderful, yes.

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  4. Hot FudgeNovember 28, 2009 at 11:42 AM

    What a gorgeous bird and I can see how you were fooled into thinking you had discovered a new species. He does seem to be facing the camera at first glance, doesn't he?

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  5. Diane AZNovember 28, 2009 at 11:55 AM

    I like both the "hiding in shadows" and the brightened versions. Looks like he's wearing a beautiful cape.

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  6. A Wild ThingNovember 28, 2009 at 4:15 PM

    I'm always trying to get hawk shots, but they're always one step ahead of me...moving with the speed of light out of my range.

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  7. BarbNovember 28, 2009 at 6:14 PM

    He's finding you very interesting, Martha - great shot! Good Luck to your sons in the Marathon. Have fun with Michael.

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  8. GaelynNovember 28, 2009 at 6:17 PM

    Nice sighting. Easy to be fooled by a bird looking over their red shoulder in the shadows.

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  9. LindyNovember 28, 2009 at 6:49 PM

    Very beautiful raptor!

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  10. Beverley BairdNovember 28, 2009 at 10:13 PM

    What a great shot of the hawk! They are such majestic birds.

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  11. BLOGitseNovember 28, 2009 at 10:29 PM

    What a beauty! good idea to have two pictures. We have huge crows here, never seen a hawk though...
    ps. correct answer on my blog: a green Croc shoe :)

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  12. MerisiNovember 28, 2009 at 11:27 PM

    He's looking at you! ;-)

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  13. Gerald (Ackworth born)November 29, 2009 at 1:56 AM

    I hear some birds (owls particurly) can turn their heads through nearly 300 degrees so they really can look behind them - no idea about hawks though.

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  14. wanderlustNovember 29, 2009 at 2:42 AM

    Beautiful, how lucky for you to spot this!

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  15. AnonymousNovember 29, 2009 at 6:17 AM

    fabulous photo!!

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  16. Chubby ChiequeNovember 29, 2009 at 6:23 AM

    What a lucky lady, you are seeing eye to eye of a wonderful hawk.

    Outstanding!

    Have a wonderful SS

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  17. storytellerNovember 29, 2009 at 9:25 AM

    What sharp eyes you have! Wonderful photos of this hawk hiding in the branches ;-)
    Hugs and blessings,
    Small Reflections

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  18. UnknownNovember 29, 2009 at 4:33 PM

    Love your SS! What a find, so close too! The colors and textures are beautiful in your photo.

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  19. PERBSDecember 1, 2009 at 12:44 PM

    What a neat discovery! Great clos up too!

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