Author Topic: Found a bird in the pond (Read 3269 times)

Sunbeam56 · « **on:** May 25, 2008, 07:38:12 AM »

Well, in the quarantine tank.
The quarantine tank had about fourteen inches of water in it, and no way out. She apparently got thoroughly soaked, and then couldn't get out. She was shivering.
Took her home and put her under a heating lamp. At first we thought she might not make it, because she was not resisting my handling her, and she lay down on her side (not a natural position).
But when she dried out, she was defensive.
We didn't push the issue because I'm sure she's tougher than I am.
She took off towards the neighbor's barn - no doubt looking for sparrows.
She's a Cooper's hawk.

Joyce · « **Reply #1 on:** May 25, 2008, 07:55:44 AM »

Thank You Savannah!

tranquility · « **Reply #2 on:** May 25, 2008, 08:58:04 AM »

Its a good thing you found her Savannah...she is a beautiful bird....
Lawanna

LeeAnne151 · « **Reply #3 on:** May 25, 2008, 09:52:01 AM »

KatFish · « **Reply #4 on:** May 25, 2008, 10:40:13 AM »

Wow! Beautiful! Was she going after your fish?

Mikey · « **Reply #5 on:** May 25, 2008, 11:23:39 AM »

Cute little gal. We had a Coopers Hawk in the area for the last couple of years. Very agile and swift when chasing down a meal. I have not seen it this year..

Jonna · « **Reply #6 on:** May 25, 2008, 11:44:13 AM »

What an incredible picture! I'm so glad you saved her, she is beautiful.

Kat · « **Reply #7 on:** May 25, 2008, 04:24:38 PM »

Terrific that you were able to save her

Kittyzee · « **Reply #8 on:** May 25, 2008, 06:20:17 PM »

Wow, I'm jealous,,,,what a priviledge!

Indiana Karen · « **Reply #9 on:** May 25, 2008, 06:51:04 PM »

Such a sweet face, but I know what damage they can do at a birdfeeder. We watched one catch a cardinal at our feeder a few years ago and devour it. Bad day for the cardinal, but fascinating to watch. It would have been so cool to hold it in your hands!

Karen

Ky Kim · « **Reply #10 on:** May 25, 2008, 06:51:34 PM »

She sure is pretty! Glad you rescued her.

Kim

Sandye · « **Reply #11 on:** May 25, 2008, 07:39:57 PM »

What a great picture!! It's not often you get a chance to get a close-up like that.

I'm glad you rescued her Sunbeam.

karen J · « **Reply #12 on:** May 25, 2008, 09:21:40 PM »

Too cool. You done good.

What a little cutie! Even more amazing that she/he didn't drown before you got to it. Timing is everything.

He/she shall become a great and fearsome predator.

Roark · « **Reply #13 on:** May 26, 2008, 08:11:52 AM »

This was such a COOL bird.

Savannah had just left my house after dinner, and returned very shortly with this little fuzzball in a cat-cage. (She marches-in, plops it on the kitchen table... dribbles across the floor... pretty funny actually. heheheh).

I'd never seen one of these guys up-close. To me, birds have always been these cute-and-fuzzy-feather-dusters which you stick harmlessly up on your shoulders and let 'em goof with your hair. Not this one.

While she was laying on her side under the heatlamp (and had been there for about 5 minutes), I became captivated by her talons. Nasty looking things. So I gingerly reached-in and touched one... which resulted in this bird snapping instantly into a defense/attack posture. One minute she's laboring on her side, soaked to the skin and not responsive... and the next she's up, cocked, and ready to go off. This bird was just barely alive, shivering like a leaf in the wind, and she *still* wanted to kick my butt. She wasn't at all afraid of me, either. This "up-and-fight" move was definitely a reflex, and she did it through sheer force of will. Scared the heck outta me.

I didn't stick anything near her after that.

I got the point.

In the AM, she had fluffed-up her feathers as shown in the photograph. Very clearly a survivor. But even though she was in a never-before-experienced cage situation, she was completely in control. When I came near, she'd become very still. Not a shred of fear or worry in this animal. She was *hunting*. Only her eyes moved... and they never left her target (ie, me. hehehe). When I'd drop back a ways, she'd resume a methodical scanning, looking for an opportunity, a bit of food, or something to kill. It was like watching a machine.

I don't think the dinosaurs went extinct. I think they learned to fly.

Roark

miguynmkoi · « **Reply #14 on:** May 26, 2008, 10:34:41 AM »

Sunbeam you did good! Beautiful bird!

Sunbeam56 · « **Reply #15 on:** May 26, 2008, 05:02:15 PM »

So - guess who I saw today.

I went in town to water the new mini myrtles, and do that puttering thing, and there was a Cooper's hawk on a post by the pond.

No way to definately say it was the same lady hawk... but about the same size. Coopers' are not that common around here. And the distance between my house and the office (the in town pond) are within the territory of a mature bird... so I THINK it was her!

bunny56lbc · « **Reply #16 on:** May 26, 2008, 06:29:19 PM »

I'm glad you found her before anything worse happened to her .

bonnie

louis · « **Reply #17 on:** May 26, 2008, 06:33:09 PM »

Kudos to you for saving this wonderful creature. This put a big smile on my face.

louis

Mrs_Bouquet · « **Reply #18 on:** May 26, 2008, 06:39:00 PM »

I do not wish to ruffle any feathers so to speak, but the hawk and falcoln population are systematically destroying our native songbird population at an alarming rate.

I attach figures of daily "Kills" by Cooper hawks, presented in an in depth report i received last week on the decline of the Native songbirds.

Should anyone wish to read the full report please send me your e-mail address and I will pass it on.

<Cooper's Hawk - Pop. 1,200,000 - Aver. Size 14.8 oz - Daily Kills
720,000 Birds

Size 14.8 oz X daily intake 28% = 4.1 oz X 87% bird diet = 3.6 bird
oz

3.6 bird oz X pop. of 1,200,000 = 4,320,000 bird oz - div. 6 oz prey
= 720,000

Sunbeam56 · « **Reply #19 on:** May 26, 2008, 06:54:59 PM »

Cooper's hawks have to eat 12% of their body weight daily. That's like me eating 120 hamburgers. If they don't eat, they die.

I don't think the raptors are doing nearly as much damage as habitat reduction.

Our backyard at the office is almost perfect for a raptor like this. High trees, dappled shade, and LOTS of little birdies. We have sparrows, Inca doves, ring neck doves... you name it.
All of nature is a balance. And the hawk is part of what maintains that balance.

Indiana Karen · « **Reply #20 on:** May 26, 2008, 07:45:00 PM »

I will agree with Mrs. B. on this one.
I can remember not that many years ago how it was a treat to see a hawk sitting along the roadside. Now when you drive along the interstate they are setting on the fence posts every couple miles. They sit on the power lines along our country roads. They soar over our house all day long. Just recently hubby had one swoop down in front of him on our driveway, it was carrying a squirrel

Beautiful birds, but I think they are becoming a nuisance.

Karen

Blondieskatz · « **Reply #21 on:** May 27, 2008, 08:40:10 AM »

She's a beauty, glad you were able to save her!

Liane · « **Reply #22 on:** May 27, 2008, 03:16:02 PM »

This girl is a beautiful little hawk and she is very lucky that you saved her. The raptors are an amazing group of birds.

As for the report that raptors are destroying the songbird population, I find that very hard to believe. Domestic cats do far, far more damage to the songbird population than hawks. And it's not just the ones that have gone feral either. It's the pets that are allowed out to roam. Domestic cats are ruthless hunters (for the record, I love cats, but my cats have always had to wear large bells if allowed outside).

Native species will increase or decrease their population based on available food sources. I'd be more than happy to have a Cooper's come in and remove some of the House Sparrows around here. House Sparrows compete w/ native species for food and housing, and are very successful at pushing out the native species.

I remember as a child back in the early 70s when sighting a hawk was considered a treat, a rarity because of the devastating effects of DDT. It thrills me no end these days to see them rebounding and adjusting to increasing pressure on their habitat. This spring we had a pair of Red-Shouldered Hawks mate and nest in our neighborhood. We have also had Great Horned owls actively hunting in our neighborhood.

Hawks, owls and vultures all have an important role in our ecosystem. As do the songbirds. Sadly, the songbirds have not adjusted as well to the changes in their habitats. So, while their numbers are decreasing from habitat loss and invasive species such as the House Sparrow, they are still falling prey to the raptor species.

So, don't blame the hawks for being what they are. Blame ourselves for what we have done to the ecosystem.

Liane
Getting down off her soapbox now.

Ky Kim · « **Reply #23 on:** May 27, 2008, 05:33:48 PM »

I agree, I believe HUMANS are more to blame than hawks. Its so easy to point the finger and blame something other than humans!

Kim

Derrick · « **Reply #24 on:** May 28, 2008, 04:17:53 AM »

That's a beauty all right!

We have a lot of predatory birds around here, but the most common is the bald eagle. A real beauty to watch, and I can't imagine anyone saying not to save a bald eagle if they found an injured one. Predators have their place. I agree that man has done far far more damage to certain populations that nature can ever do.

Joyce · « **Reply #25 on:** May 28, 2008, 05:05:44 AM »

One of the good things coming out of all the vineyards and wineries around here
(vineyards are mostly bad for the ecosystem because of all the pesticides and fungicides sprayed and fogged onto the grapes on a daily basis,
many of which are known carcinogens such as CAPTAN, but they get away with because wine grapes are not picked off the vine and eaten,
wine grapes are 'processed' into wine. Hence the high rates of cancer in this area, and also because of the same stuff sprayed all over for mosquitos.

This is something to remember next time you drink a glass of wine, what goes into it!)

But anyway, back to the topic, somewhat...
The vineyards create habitats for rabbits, mice, rats, you name it, local rodents galore.
We now have many more birds of prey than we used to when instead of vineyards, it was potato fields.
You can see the hawks perched on the vineyard posts...watching...hunting.
They also soar above the vineyards.
We are having a comeback of bald eagles too.

(but they tend to scavenge and steal from the ospreys)
Not to mention, Ospreys are all over the place. (eating my koi, but once again, my koi are in a manmade habitat)

I do not believe that cats decimate bird populations. I have 5 cats, all which go outdoors through a cat door.
Then we have at least 3 other stray/wandering cats in this neighborhood that I know of, probably a LOT more than that.
We have a bird tree which is named because I hang about a dozen feeders in it and it is constantly swarmed with birds.
I mean, so swarmed, that the perennials under it don't grow too well with all the ground pecking, bird poop, and seed husks.
Sure, they catch some birds, but anyone can look at my bird tree and all around my gardens, and see that there is no shortage of native birds.
And if you could hear all the different bird songs going on right now sitting here at my computer with the windows open, you'd be amazed!

My cats would rather eat rodents, and that's OK with me as long as they don't bring 'em inside to play with.

Yes, blame the humans, and what humans have done to the ecosystem.

Roark · « **Reply #26 on:** May 28, 2008, 05:55:26 AM »

I wonder if a Coopers Hawk tastes like chicken...

Roark

Derrick · « **Reply #27 on:** May 28, 2008, 06:05:39 AM »

Our cats show no interest in birds. There are a few strays around though that get the occasional one. One of our cats however is very adept at catching bats (and trying to bring them into the house!)

LeeAnne151 · « **Reply #28 on:** May 28, 2008, 10:01:44 AM »

I'm sure that some falcons/hawks do kill some songbirds but I don't believe they are a problem. We are seeing more now because we almost wiped them out in the 50's and 60's with DDT.

House/English sparrows kill adult and young bluebirds, chickadees and other native songbirds. They are a huge problem, they aren't native to the US. Starlings also kill baby birds to steal their nests. It is legal and desirable to kill starlings and house sparrows in the USA year 'round and many bird lovers do so. Especially bluebird "people" who maintain bluebird nest box "trails".

My cats go outside and they bring me their dead mice, rats and moles and occasional birds but the birds are twice a year and have almost always been starlings. Cat haters love to blame cats but based on having indoor outdoor cats for forty years I've been gifted with many, many more mice than bird corpses. The Audubon Society says most of the birds brought in are hurt by cats but likely that is because if a raccoon or fox or hawk or owl or whatever hurt a bird, no human would be around to bring it in. Manny the neighbor cat just gifted our neighbor with three moles from our yard yea

and a crow!

I've read over and over and over that here in Portland urban hawks like Peregrine falcons eat pigeons. Which again aren't native to the US. The Peregrines nest on the bridges and skyscrapers instead of cliffs.

The hawks sitting on the light/fence posts along the highway are hunting rodents in the grass, not songbirds. I travel for business and I've seen them swoop down to the ground to capture their prey countless times, I've also seen them fly up with the rat or squirrel in their talons many times. You can see the long tail hanging down. We saw six hawks on Sunday going 12 miles from our house to lunch at the local mall on the freeway. Many of the freeways here are lined with grass.

I don't know about the rest of the US but here in Oregon our native squirrels have been pushed out by the Eastern Fox Squirrel. Our local fish and wildlife would welcome hawks to eat more of them. And nutria and bullfrogs and.....

miguynmkoi · « **Reply #29 on:** May 28, 2008, 01:21:59 PM »

I love seeing hawks flying around. The more the better. In fact I just saw a brown hawk flying low across my yard with a small crow in its feet last week.

Obviously I don't like crows and we have more than enough in the eucalyptus trees around our neighborhoods which were formally orange groves :'( In early spring the crows are constantly crying up a storm and chasing hawks away from their nests.

I see hawks over the strawberry fields on street light posts probably looking for rodents. There's something majestic about the way they stretch their wings in flight and soar over their territory.