This morning, as I was having breakfast before work on my gazebo, I noticed our resident hawk hunting from atop one of my telephone poles. It turns out to be a pretty good vantage point for birds of prey to watch over the property for small furry creatures flitting about. So I got my camera out, powered it on, turned on all the servos to shoot from a distance of 400 or so feet away and then just sat there observing her behavior while she hunted.
To get these three photos took about 30 minutes. The time between just looking around and taking flight was less than a second. As soon as she jumped I took about 10 shots within a second. In that time she totally panned through the image crop. I tried to follow her all the way to the ground but she was obfuscated by the tower and tall grass.
I was putting my camera away when I noticed she was back on top of the pole with her catch. With a little patients I got the hunt, the kill and the meal (a small rabbit).
When I got home last night I noticed a new swift nest of mud and feathers under the deck by the basement door. They are skilled at putting a nest where creatures like Mongrel can’t get easy access to them. I have a thermometer under there that they have attached their new nest. I suspect they will have new birds up there soon.
The swifts are fun. When I cut the grass they fly all around me catching all the bugs that try to make an escape. They are skillful fliers and very curious about everything around them. They seem to fly close just to get a look at me when they are not catching bugs.
Most of the angels I know or have known have broken wings.
Oh, and I’ve been wondering at times when I know it’s windy that I do not get any wind indiciation on my sensors. I figured out why the other day! A meadowlark has decided that he/she can sit on top of the sensors and, without moving, can get a 360º view of everything around it. Ha.
I hope you have a good day today.
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