[TomMills23]

I've taken a ton of photos of Cooper's Hawks over the last several years (they hunt the song-birds in my yard daily), but this one is among my favorite. Not because its a great photo, but in large part because of the habitat and the situation of the encounter. The shot was taken at one of my favorite So. California Birding locations: Big Morongo Canyon Preserve, near Palm Springs, CA. I'd been standing, quiet and still on a boardwalk/trail that passed through a marshy area. The immature Cooper's Hawk was hunting and had just swooped in low through the woods, landing on this snag about 2' off the ground. It spent a minute or two scanning for prey and then took off, flying effortlessly through the woods:

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[Ralph]

I've taken a ton of photos of Cooper's Hawks over the last several years (they hunt the song-birds in my yard daily), but this one is among my favorite. Not because its a great photo, but in large part because of the habitat and the situation of the encounter. The shot was taken at one of my favorite So. California Birding locations: Big Morongo Canyon Preserve, near Palm Springs, CA. I'd been standing, quiet and still on a boardwalk/trail that passed through a marshy area. The immature Cooper's Hawk was hunting and had just swooped in low through the woods, landing on this snag about 2' off the ground. It spent a minute or two scanning for prey and then took off, flying effortlessly through the woods:View attachment 28581

Beautiful shot Tom. Had one in my yard the other day looking for songbirds at the feeder.

 

[TomMills23]

Beautiful shot Tom. Had one in my yard the other day looking for songbirds at the feeder.

Thanks Ralph. “my” Cooper’s visit me daily looking for tasty treats in our yard. The young ones aren’t very successful here though.

 

[RichF]

nice picture and interesting story