I heard the Crows squawking the other day and went outside to see what all the ruckus was about. There, high in the tree in our front yard was this Red-Tailed Hawk perched, apparently looking for lunch. We’ve had one chick hatch in our yard the past two summers, so I wondered if this was the latest one.
He doesn’t look quite mature yet… maybe he’s a juvenile?
I have to add a little more to this story… last weekend I saw some movement way high up in one of the trees in our back yard. I looked up and there was a Red-Tailed Hawk with a branch in its beak. He spread his wings and brought the branch to the nest above. What a treat! It looks like we’ll have nesting hawks in our yard again.
And then we started wondering… is it the original parent or one of his offspring that keeps using the same nest each year? So much fun to watch!
I love that the Great Blue Herons hang around here in the winter. They must be able to find enough food in the salt marshes and the coves and bay that do not freeze over in the winter.
This Great Blue was fishing in a little pond by the side of Nauset Marsh along the Salt Marsh Trail in Eastham. Looks like he is ready to catch lunch!
The Mourning Doves love our bird bath here on Cape Cod. Even when it is frigid outside, they will take the plunge and sit there for a while. Maybe it’s like a little hot tub for them!
Love the blue around their eyes….
Do you have a lot of Mourning Doves at your home this winter?
We have seen a lot of Dark-Eyed Juncos in our yard here on Cape Cod this winter. They love to feed on the ground; I have never seen one at one of the feeders. They scavenge from what is dropped from the bird feeders or find their own food.
Dark-Eyed Juncos are grey with a darker hood and a white belly. They have a pink bill and dark eyes and white edged on their tails when they fly. They scurry around so fast it is often difficult to take a photograph. This little guy was hunting around on my deck for some food and happened to look up at me as if to say, “Look what I found!”
After the rains last weekend, I could finally take a walk to Boat Meadow Beach on Cape Cod Bay and walk a little bit, between the ice chunks, on the beach.
As I looked out on the water, I saw these Seagulls all on top of the ice on Cape Cod Bay. They must have been looking for a place to rest so they picked this big iceberg! It just struck me as a photo that should have polar bears, not seagulls!
Cape Cod daily articles on the wonderful Cape Cod places to hike, experience and photograph. A Cape Cod Outdoor Adventure Series.
