Boink! The Hawk is Here...

Today was the third straight day I've seen the Sharp-shinned Hawk in the backyard.  Today was a bit different ~ here is the story.

It's a Sunday and I'm reading while comfortable in my chair.  Ginger is making pizza dough and the TV is making noise but I can't tell you what noise it was.  Then came a LOUD CRACK and I thought the window that looks into the backyard must surely be shattered.  I jumped up, my book falling to the floor, saying "What the hell was that?" 

The window was intact.  There were feathers stuck in the screen.  I rushed to the window and looked out to see a whowho birdie (mourning dove if you haven't been reading the blog) laying on the cold concrete.  Dead?  No, it was moving a bit.  The bird rolled onto it's belly but was obviously dazed. 

Not at all dazed was the Sharp-shinned Hawk sitting about 10 feet away from the whowho birdie!

The dove rose to it's feet and was twitching it's head like it was trying to get focused.  It wasn't completely recovered.  The hawk just sat on the birdbath. 

It was obvious to me that when the hawk had came to the yard this caused the birds that were feeding under the bird feeder to flee.  This poor whowho birdie in it's flight for life had forgotten to watch were it was going and ran into the window knocking itself senseless.

What surprised me was the hawk didn't pounce on the easy meal. 

The whowho birdie finally seemed to regain it's senses.  I decided I would try and get a picture of the hawk and whowho birdie in the same frame.  As I reached for my camera the whowho birdie decided to make an exit.  The hawk immediately took off with the whowho birdie in it's sights.  The whowho birdie made it about 20 feet when the hawk intercepted it and down to the ground they went.  It seemed to me the whowho birdie was dead by the time they reached terra firma.

I stepped outside with the hopes of getting a picture but as soon as I stepped out the hawk took flight with the prey firmly gripped in it's talons.

Whew!