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Friday, December 08, 2006

Scared But Ready

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A young hawk sits in a kennel carrier waiting to be released into a pasture near Joseph. Just hours before some well intentioned motorists had caught up the bird and delivered it to the ODFW office believing that it had been injured. In fact, it was a juvenile fresh from the nest and had yet to master the art of flying. The bird was also stuffed full of food which can make flight challenging even for more experienced raptors. Like many birds, red-tailed hawk parents tend to keep presenting food to their young, even several days after they have bailed from the nest.

So after a traumatic capture, and then a physical inspection, it was released back where it was found. I never saw it fly away however I didn't stick around very long. The owners of the property went to check on it later, and it had vanished. The field is full of belding ground squirrel burrows, so it probably is doing well.

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2 comments:

Barbara said...

Hi Michael, I love your photos, at least those I can see. Some won't download at all (e.g., the cougar kill photos) and some only partially download on my computer. I don't know if this is a problem with my reception or the blog, but I hope I'll be able to see all of your photos soon. I found you through ORphotos and am also a fan of William Bragg. Best wishes for your success with your photography. --Barbara Ray

OregonWild said...

Barbara

Thanks for the heads up on the image display issue. It might be a blogger thing - there have been occasions when I have multiple images load incompletely, or very, very slowly. When this occurs it is also impossible for me to post.

Usually it clears up in a hour or two.

Let me know if it doesn't

Thanks

MD

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Details About Me

Portland, Oregon, United States
Husband, Father, Student Of Natural History, Photographer