Cooper’s hawk—CH— during non- migration times do not take to the sky. Definition— sky is about 20 feet over the tallest tree that is in the area, the tallest tree that could be in the area. The CH knows at what height could be the tallest tree. Just amagine an elevation of 100 feet and add 20 more feet. A CH might circle about the tallest trees, but will put down right into the area in which it is circling. In other words, a CH is a sneaky bird and will nearly always travel in a straight line. This raptor is all business-like, and will kill just for the thrill of killing, not necessarily to eat. I say a CH certainly prefers to be in the air but not in the sky— only during migration. So know the CH migration schedule and add a fudge-factor of 2 weeks. This concept will occur as the CH is on its home base, meaning where it nests and where it migrates.
What is the takeaway of this post? My detractors will certainly try and prove me wrong. And I may be wrong as I do not know the behavior of CH in areas such as The Carolinas. If there is a large enough sample of information and I am thought to be 90 percent accurate, then actually I am 100 percent wrong!
Now, I know what some of you are thinking. When you reach that prominent point on that ridge line or mountain top, let us say 900 feet elevation, and you come upon a CH, how did that hawk get there. That hawk did not leave its perch and take to the sky, by climbing and-or soaring, from its perch— let us say, 1 mile from the mountain top. Then the hawk would reach an altitude of 900 feet and level off and proceed to your position. Here is how that CH arrived on that mountain top— it followed the tree tops! Or it snuck through the trees. If the terrain was barren, the hawk followed the contour of the side of the mountain. All the time sticking about 100 feet or less to the terrain or to the terrain of the top’s of the trees.
There will be a group of birders who will try and determine if my concerns are accurate, or how accurate are my contentions. So, if I am correct in my observations, and I am in my many years of hawking all year long, but my observation might not be your observations, then birders will have an easy out when it comes to accipiter evaluation. However, this is an improper thought! You should never say- think; that accipiter in the sky is not a CH because CH do not have an affinity for the sky during non-migration times. You must always put into words what you are observing. You must always define what you are observing. As an aside— you should never reason— that accipiter in the sky in Thackersville, Oklahoma is not a Northern Goshawk because the range maps show that that hawk should not be here. Please understand, a range map does not identify a bird. Please understand, range maps are inaccurate when it comes to Nortern Goshawks. Specifically, resident NG can be observed in many areas of Southern California, S.E. Arizona, and many areas of eastern Texas!
For many years in my field notes and my writing, I would use the term— elevation of bird, EOB. Now I know that that is not the proper word. The word should have been, altitude of bird. Altitude refers to an object that is not attached to the earth. Elevation refers to a terrain feature, above sea level.
This little post will certainly lead into one of my pet peeves— Don’t cop out on me; Don’t cop out on yourself. When you use a range map to define what you are observing, you are copping out on me. And this will lead into another subject— birders are too habitat conscious.
One more thought, to back-track. That CH in that ridge line. Can’t the hawk just jump off the mountain top, start flapping and drifting and level off to soar and travel a distance of about one-half mile away from the base off the mountain? I say no. The hawk will descend from the ridge line by following the the contour of the terrain which is also the terrain of the tree tops.
So what does this post really mean? Well, you could say this post has very little meaning, and I will agree. This post should impact upon what you perceive in the air-sky. The best to all of you— not just your top part or bottom part, but all of you.
No comments:
Post a Comment