Do hawks run in packs?

[dennishoddy]

We have jogging trails in our biggest city park. Every year, people get "attacked", and call 911. Lol!

 

[Shadowrider]

When I was talking about juvenile Red Tails? I saw one that had breast marking like this one. He was moving pretty good and I couldn't get a real good look. What really threw me is that they are bigger than I was thinking.

 

[dennishoddy]

That does appear to be a young red tail hawk.

 

[Shadowrider]

Well according to wiki it's a juvenile Missisippi Kite.

Edit: And it was in SW Oklahoma too.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Juvikite.jpg

 

[dennishoddy]

I'm always up to being corrected. Its very similar to the juvi redtail looking at the pics.

 

[Shadowrider]

Hmmm. Interesting.

Red Tail juvenile:

And then there are the normal regional color/pattern differences to consider too. But the head/beak in their other pic does look a kite to me.

 

[oden_sparks]

Yeah, that pic from wiki was definitely an immature Mississippi Kite.the eyes are a dead giveaway. Red eyes. Red-tailed hawks have yellow. Easy mistake. Those of you seeing coopers hawks should check and see if they're actually sharp-shinned hawks.They look almost identical a group of hawks is known as a boil, stream, spiraling, knot, or tower. A group of kite's are known as a brood, kettle, string, roost, or stooping.

 

[orangeRcode]

If they are a grey color, they are probably Coopers Hawks. Smaller than a Redtail.

I've seen them hunt in pairs pretty often. The prey will be moving through the cover, while one hawk flutters real low trying to flush it out. The other will stay about 15' overhead waiting to dive on the prey if an opening comes about.

Its really common to have coopers hawks use a farmer working a field as an aid. I'll be disking up a stubble field that has grown up in weeds. There will be one hawk or two over head, another at the end of the field, and one flying short hops parallel to the tractor.

Amazing how they have adapted to our presence.

I've witnessed this. While in high school and college I spent many hours on a tractor and got to see this first hand. Really amazing.

 

[criticalbass]

I was talking to the Vet the last time I took my dogs in for their shots. He said that he had been told by two of his customers that some kind of birds had taken off with their small dogs.

Owls are the worst, but big redtails can do it too. I guess if the dog is a sub-mini like some tiny yorkies and small chihuahuas, they might be prey for some of the smaller hawks. In Florida on the canals, it's the gators that get the poodles, but the biggest hazard to housepets in rural Oklahoma is the coyotes. Friend of mine has lost three young bird dogs west of Altus to coyotes.

At certain times of the year it is not uncommon to see large numbers of hawks together. I am unsure if it has to do with breeding, migration, or some other bird behavior.

I met a master falconer who told me some surprising things about hawks. They'll eat carrion, and in the woods the diet of redtails is 80% skunk. Owls like skunks too. More power to them. They'll also eat just released, injured and carefully nursed back to health Peregrine falcons. <sniff>

 

[criticalbass]

That's a Mississippi Kite. They love urban parks and neighborhoods with lots of trees. During nesting season, they become pretty aggressive, dive bombing joggers and people in their yards.

View attachment 31816

Yep. I used to live in Snyder, and we changed police officers on a monthly basis because the pay was so low.

To call those jobs "entry level" was to upgrade the reality. Given that, the quality of some of our new hires was somewhat lacking.

Comes a call from a citizen: "Birds are attacking us!" New officer: "I'll save you mam!" Whereupon he blasts a kite that was just protecting its nest. Used a .410. Then proudly calls Fish and Wildlife and asks how he can eliminate the rest of the problem.

The ensuing melee between the SPD and our local game warden was the occasion of much conflict. I think the officer eventually paid a healthy fine and found a better job someplace else. Local bird lovers got into the mix and some inappropriate threats were made. I made the tactical error of trying to mediate the conflict. Stoopid!!