A Robin for Breakfast

I took off on my bicycle this morning and caught an exciting spectacle before I even rounded the corner.  I saw two birds come streaking by very fast, crash into each other, and then cartwheel through the air in a burst of feathers.  A hawk, I think a Cooper's Hawk, but possibly a Sharp-Shinned, caught a little robin for breakfast.  The hawk took the robin and stood atop it on a roof near by for several minutes.  I wonder if the hawk was finishing the bird off, so to speak, as there was no move to start eating it.  The hawk just stood there a while and then flew off taking breakfast with.
I can't believe that I timed my departure just perfectly to catch the whole thing.  In my years of bird watching I've never seen a hawk snap up another bird from mid-air.  I did see one caught in my lilac bush and have seen many raptors dive to catch fish, but this mid-air snap was new to my eyes.  It was tremndously exciting for me I must say!  (Probably not for the Robin, but such is the natural world.)
Another bit of excitement about the whole thing was that my camera was working again so I managed to snap a few photos of the hunter and prey.  They aren't great photos, but the fact that my camera is fixed makes them just perfect for me. 
I include this particularly bad photo because you can more clearly see the robin that the hawk is sitting on than the photos I took from the other side of the house.  Unfortunately, I inadvertently focused on the trees, not the birds.  Pretty bad I know, but hey, the camera works!  Hip, hip, hooray!
I was fearing having to purchase a new camera as my warranty is well expired and it would cost over $200 to fix.  But, figuring I had nothing to lose I pulled the lens out by force and now it goes in and out all on its own again.  Woohoo.  A camera fixed for free and some real birding excitement....what more could I ask for in a Thursday morning!?

I have a whole bunch of vacation photos to share from our travels last week still to post.  Now that the camera is up and running again I will soon probably show you more of our trip than you'd ever care to see!

Comments

  1. That is amazing. I love to see things in the natural world, but don't want to hike or camp...lol. So, I have accidental happenings, like yours.

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  2. When I was a Manager at Jo-Ann Fabrics I would see Red Tail Hawks taking pigeons in the parking lot nearly everyday. Most times it was like they came straight down and slammed the pigeon into the side walk but sometimes they would just snatch them in mid-air right in front of the store windows. I love birds of prey.

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  3. Oh and once a Sharp shinned hawk took a squirrel in our front yard - the squirrel never saw it coming; I'm sure it was a WTH moment for him/her.

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  4. That must have been quite the site. I know how hard it can be to get a good shot of birds in flight. Interesting post and nice pics!

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  5. That would be a first for me too. Lucky you!

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  6. I agree poor robin - but what an amazing sight to see.

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  7. It was QUITE an exciting start to my day!

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  8. So interesting. And I'm really looking forward to seeing your vacation photos - love the pic of Matt with the new popcorn maker! x

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  9. I finally might get some of those trip photos posted today. I was telling Matt that I really want to just so I can relive the whole awesome thing! Thanks for stopping by! I hope you are having a delightful day.

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