Hawk update

The presumed male shrieking from the top of a loblolly pine on May 5

The red-shouldered hawks that built a nest beside our driveway in April are still here. With the deciduous foliage now completely mature, it is very difficult to see the nest, but we occasionally see the adults coming and going. On June 1, I saw the presumed female leaving, and I could hear soft chirping coming from the nest. I moved around and eventually found a small window in the foliage through which I could see the nest. As I suspected, there was a chick! It was very wobbly and seemed to be having some trouble holding its head up, so I suspect it was quite young.

The hawk chick on June 1

Today, the male swooped down and spent about five minutes sitting on our concrete bird bath with its wings partially spread as though mantling prey. After it left, I went over to refill the bath and found a depression in the mulch under the bath. It was lined with rabbit fur but appeared to have been disturbed. Perhaps the adult hawk has been harvesting cottontail rabbit kits for its chick. I can only hope so, because an army of young cottontails is the last thing I need in the garden.

The presumed male above the empty rabbit nest today. He has partially spread his wings, similar to the way that hawks “mantle” to hide their prey.

Examination of the hawk nest through binoculars this afternoon showed that the chick is still alive and much larger than it was two weeks ago. It still has a few tufts of down, but it is mostly feathered at this point. I’d guess it won’t be too long until it is fully fledged.