As the winter storm hits Toronto today, many of us are, without a doubt, contemplating how we will weather the onslaught of heavy snow whether it be digging out the drifts, getting to work or arriving home in time for dinner.
Well, this poor unfortunate Sharp-shinned hawk was not faring very well in my backyard yesterday as it looked for some unsuspecting prey. Birds seem to know when nasty weather is brewing, and this individual has been visiting my property frequently over the past couple of days, likely hoping for an easy catch to sustain him while the blizzard unfolds.
When it flew in, with the present snowstorm just beginning to ramp up, one of our bird feeders looked like this, weighed down with snow and no birds in sight.
Had the hawk only arrived two hours prior to the onset of the snowstorm, it would have found these guys hanging around the same feeder.
But its timing was off, and so the hawk just sat in our apple tree and searched the boughs of our cedar trees from afar.
The birds having quickly made themselves scarce, our suet feeder sat empty except for the collecting snow.
Two hours before the hawk’s arrival, the same suet feeder was serving up breakfast to a nuthatch.
The hawk was attentive to its surroundings, so I kept hidden behind my camera as I monitored it through my kitchen window.
In this video that Bob filmed, you get a chance to observe the hawk on its perch.
Suddenly, the hawk lifted its tail revealing the tell-tale pencil-thin legs of the sharp-shinned variety of hawk. I thought it was about to depart.
Instead, the hawk relieved itself, which, I think, pretty much summed up its thoughts about hoping to find something to eat in my snowy backyard.
Moments later, the hawk actually did prepare for liftoff.
In a blur of wings and feet, the hawk took to the air.
The hawk’s talons can be seen neatly tucked up under the spread tail feathers. I am sure they will soon make contact with some small prey, but hopefully not in my backyard. I am too fond of the cardinals, juncos, nuthatches and woodpeckers that frequent my feeders.
The wide extension of the hawk’s wings propelled it quickly out of the apple tree, and then it disappeared over top of the neighbours’ houses.
With more than 12 inches of snow already accumulated on my patio table, we sit and wait for the storm to end. Maybe then, the hawk will have an easier time of finding something to eat.
In the meantime, a flock of sparrows, together with the juncos, nuthatches and cardinals, have gathered once again at my feeding stations while the snow swirls around them.
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