Population Control Officer At Work
It snowed again today. There was some snow on the ground when I woke up and it continued to snow all day. I looked out the kitchen window while getting water for the coffee machine and saw the commotion in the garden. All the small birds scattered, dashing for cover, while a hawk flapped his wings like crazy in the Himalayan Musk rose bush. He probably chased some tasty birds in there and got caught between thorny branches. This was not the first time I saw a hawk dive after a bird into a bush. This one seemed to be a Cooper’s Hawk (Accipiter cooperii). I was surprised to see a hawk hunt this early in the morning, yes, it was around 7 am, let alone while it’s snowing. The visibility is not good for them.
Anyway, he freed himself from the rose branches and chased after some birds around the house. The birds resumed their breakfast at the feeders after a few minutes but something was nagging me. If the hawk was still looking for his breakfast, the birds wouldn’t come back to the feeders this fast. So I checked the front of the house by the over grown rhododendron, and…
Note: The last two images are stills (vidcaps) from a video. All images were shot through a double glass window early on a snowy morning.
Petals and Wings 
look at those feathers the details, beautiful:-)
He’s pretty handsome, fierce but handsome.
Wow, what great timing that you could see this. Wouldn’t want to mess with this one.
I’m of two minds in witnessing this thing; fascinated by it and sad at the same time. At least I didn’t hear any squeaking sound from his prey through the window this time. I refrain from interfering when I see the hawks around, letting nature play her role instead. While I think it’s the right thing to do, it still hurts when another little life is forfeited.