Hawk attack...

[wooly]

I took a walk down to the creek to get some shots of some wild flowers today. Hiking along when a momma wood duck and her kids went scurrying across the water.
The babies made it safe to the creek bank and hid underneath.

Momma however put on the "lame duck act" and began splashing around trying to lure me downstream with her.

Out of nowhere from behind me this hawk came ripping past my head and nailed her right in the deepest section of the pool!
I had my short lens on so I had to make a quick change before I could do anything. I could hear all kinds of splashing going on but now I couldn't see over a mound of creek rocks.

When I finally got situated and peaked over the rise, I saw momma duck swim under the creek bank on the other side and this hawk swimming for the other shore!

Momma took a solid hit and there were feathers floating everywhere. She curled up in a hole and didn't come back out while I was there. Not sure if she made it or not.
Mr. Hawk didn't stick around long once he dried out from his high speed plunge!
Very cool to see such an attack so close!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[turkeyfeathers]

Is that a coopers or sharpie ? I can never tell the difference.

And again Wooly, you find and see the neatest stuff ever and always catch it on camera !!

[moog5050]

Seriously, you need to work for National Geographic. Great shots!

[wooly]

Is that a coopers or sharpie ? I can never tell the difference.

And again Wooly, you find and see the neatest stuff ever and always catch it on camera !!

 

Thanks guys!

TF- I'm terrible at bird ID's.

Hopefully someone else can answer that.

I thought it was a red tail, but I think ALL hawks are red tails,lol

[greg54]

Great pictures!

[grampy]

wooly, you have an awesome ability to be in the right place at the right time. And get the most outstanding photos of what you're seeing! Again my hat is off to you sir.

[DarrenB]

Those are some beautiful pictures!

 

[Pygmy]

Hard to imagine a sharpshin taking on an adult woodduck, but then I have seen a redtail attack an adult hen turkey..

 

Definitely not a redtail...I'm going with a coopers..

 

A goshawk would have smeared poor Mrs Woodie.. I hope she survived to get back and take care of her ducklings..

 

SUPER footage as usual, Wooly !!

[stoneam2006]

You need to send them to outdoor news...your pics are way better than any of the ones in there calendar.

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk

[wooly]

Thanks again guys!

I'll have to drop a few of these over on one of the photography sites I visit to see what they think.

Those guys over there eat, sleep, breath, and shiite birds!

I'm talking birds from the past.... modern day birds.., tropical birds.., pet birds.., birds of the future that scientists don't even have names for yet....,lol

 

 

[alloutdoors]

Nice shots wooly, and you had the ID right. It's a juvenile redtail. They don't get the red tail until maturity, the juveniles have a brown banded tail as shown. Cooper's hawks have banding on the tail but it is more distinct and broader bands and they also have much more distinct banding under the wing. The shape of the hawk clearly marks it as a member of the Buteo genus as well, Cooper's hawks, sharpies, and goshawks all belong to the Accipiter genus.

[wooly]

Nice shots wooly, and you had the ID right. It's a juvenile redtail. They don't get the red tail until maturity, the juveniles have a brown banded tail as shown. Cooper's hawks have banding on the tail but it is more distinct and broader bands and they also have much more distinct banding under the wing. The shape of the hawk clearly marks it as a member of the Buteo genus as well, Cooper's hawks, sharpies, and goshawks all belong to the Accipiter genus.

 

Sweet- I'm not smart enough to argue with any of that,lol!

Thanks for the help!

Redtail it is!

[Pygmy]

Good call, Alloutdoors....I really did not think  bird looked that much like an accipiter, but the lack of a red tail threw me off and I knew it wasn't  a broadwing or red shoulder...I have never seen a WET Cooper's, so that was my best guess..

 

At what age do redtails reach maturity ?  I know they are fierce predators  and will sometimes attack game larger than they can handle..As I stated  I saw one hit an adult turkey once and I have also seen them attack adult woodchucks.

[alloutdoors]

They typically begin breeding at 3 years; I'm not positive if the red tail comes in at exactly the same time.

Edited June 2, 2016 by alloutdoors

[Zag]

Hear me out on this wooly. Id say lets bring back the show wild America and change to woolys wild America. Its gotta nice ring to it doesn't it. I think its a lock my friend.

[Curmudgeon]

Great shots and good ID alloutdoors. Hopefully that young bird will get a little smarter as it gets older.

 

Sometimes hawks impact with balled feet, punching instead of impaling, in order to stun. In a situation like this - on the water - it would seem the safer course of action. Impaling the duck might have resulted in the hawk going under with the duck.

[philoshop]

Wooly, I seem to remember you telling me you weren't any good at photographing birds in flight. -)

Beautiful shots!

[wooly]

Wooly, I seem to remember you telling me you weren't any good at photographing birds in flight. -)

Beautiful shots!

 

Technically he was only hopping along in these shots, but I got lucky and the poses are a bit deceiving!

I wont tell no one if you guys don't,lol

[Tughill Tamer]

Beautiful pictures wooly, you definitely have a skill when it comes to photography.

Sent from my VS980 4G using Tapatalk

[Tacti_Steve]

Great pics

www.HuntingTactical.com

Modern Gear for Modern Hunters

[email protected]