Wild village life: The hungry hawk

Written by Jack Sanders
Thursday, 24 March 2011 11:04

You never know when and where you’ll meet a magnificent raptor in action. At least four people in Ridgefield found that out a couple of Saturdays ago right in the heart of the village of Ridgefield — with stores on one side and the library on the other.

It seems that a Red-tailed Hawk had a hunger for a Gray Squirrel and didn’t mind either the vehicular or pedestrian traffic. It is not clear whether the squirrel was killed in the middle of the road by the hawk, or the hawk was just taking advantage of a roadkill.

Five-year-old Connor Juliano dictated the following report to his dad, Michael, who passed it on to BirdNotes and who took the accompanying photographs:

“Connor, Nicolas and Daddy were driving in their car on Prospect Street when Daddy saw something in the road.  He realized it was a Red-tailed Hawk snacking on a squirrel.

“The hawk was eating the squirrel in the middle of the road!  Then the hawk flew with the squirrel in his talons and moved him to the sidewalk.

“Once he was on the sidewalk, he focused on his snack.

“We watched the whole thing.  Plus we even parked our car and walked over to spy on the hawk some more.”

The other eyewitness was veteran Hersam Acorn Newspapers editor Gregg Bartlett, who is not a birdwatcher and was uncertain what kind of bird of prey he was seeing.

“I had a PBS Nature or Animal Planet moment while walking in the village this afternoon,” Gregg wrote that Saturday. “Shortly before 4:30, I startled — it startled me more, actually — a rather large, dark-brown-feathered-with-white-head bird feeding on the remains of what looked like a Gray Squirrel on the sidewalk alongside the library.

“What was most surprising was how well camouflaged the bird was. Its feathers of brown hues blended so well against the stonewall there, I didn’t notice it until I was close enough to spot the white head and yellow beak, maybe less than a yard away from me. It apparently didn’t notice me either or wasn’t fazed.

“I watched it tear into the carcass. So cool!

“It finally abandoned its mostly devoured meal, then jumped up on top of the wall and stared back at me with one dark eye. I decided to give it a wide berth and continued on my way. I had something else on my menu.”

Bird Radio

Chris Bosak of Darien, who’s written a weekly birdwatching column for The Hour newspaper for about 11 years, has a new birdwatching radio show on WSTC/WNLK (AM 1400/1350 each Saturday from 3 to 4 p.m. Pat and Joe Warren of Wild Birds Unlimited in Darien and Bedford Hills are the main sponsor.

The show includes interviews, call-ins from listeners, tips on birdwatching, suggestions for getting children involved in nature, and a weekly spot with Joe Warren.

Coming up

Bird Watching Basics, introduction to ornithology and the tools/skills used in bird study, Saturday, March 26, 9:30 to noon, $12, Greenwich Audubon, 613 Riversville Road, Greenwich,  greenwich.audubon.org, 203-869-5272 x230.

Annual Meeting, Connecticut Ornithological Association, including Dr. Alan Brush on plumage chemistry and color, Dr. Daniel Klem on preventing bird-window collisions, Blair Nicula on storm-blown seabirds, Saturday, April 9, 8/9 to 4 p.m., $15/$20, Chapman Hall, Middlesex Community College, Middletown, ctbirding.org.

Spring Migration Bird Walks, Saturdays, April 2, 9, 16, 23, 30, May 7, 21, 28, from 7 to 8:45 a.m., free, Audubon Greenwich, meet in parking area on 613 Riversville Road, greenwich.audubon.org 203-869-5272.

“First Sundays,” bird walks open to all ages and skills, at Greenwich Point, with Meredith Sampson, first Sunday of the month, through May, 9 a.m. sponsored by Wild Wings, Inc., Bruce Museum and Audubon Greenwich, 203-637-9822.

Copyright 2011 by Jack Sanders. Send sightings or comments to: jackfsanders [at sign] yahoo.com, or to Bird Notes, Box 1019, Ridgefield, CT 06877; or call 203-438-1183, extension BIRD (2473), and leave a message with your report, spelling your first and last names and telling us your town. If you need help identifying a bird, try your local nature center. If you find an injured bird, call wildlife rehabilitator Darlene Wimbrow of Redding, 203-438-0618, Wildlife in Crisis of Weston, 203-544-9913, or Wild Wings of Greenwich, 203-637-9822. The columnist’s website is www. sandersbooks. com.