The second year in a row that we saw Swainson’s hawks in our neighbourhood.
It will be many years until our next encounter…
This is their story (and mine) through my lens.
My future hawk-watching self can once again confidently say that this was very likely late August.
We can confirm at least 2 juveniles in 2004 with photographic evidence. Oh, and Mama is perched up on the pole in one of the photos, can you see her?
From my future self: I remember taking the photos of the 2 babies on the fence. We had been out for a walk in the green space in our neighbourhood when we happened upon the pair. I was practicing taking photos again with a Nikon EM SLR film camera using a 70-210mm lens. Naturally, I had to inch closer to the babies to get the shot. Even back then, Mama was squawking and swooping at me while my better half was warning me of Mama’s intent to get me away from the kids.
Project Hawk is not a scientific journal. However, I am fully aware that once the birds have left the nest, they aren’t “babies” anymore – they would more accurately be called fledglings & juveniles. I use baby/babies/young ones/littles/juveniles interchangeably throughout Project Hawk when referring to the offspring of Mama & Papa Swainson’s hawks