Wow. Did that hawk actually kill the mallard or just scrounge it? (Not that you'd necessarily know). I didn't think a red-tail could take out a bird that size. Impressive.
That roadkill also contributes to their getting hit by cars.
Yes, they can. My Redtail had no trouble with 8-9lb English brown hares as long as she grabbed the front end... they can take prey much bigger than they are.
What's impressive about taking a mallard is that a mallard's much faster in the air, not to mention slippery and agile and able to dive underwater too. Though I did know a captive redtail who took one once. The great thing about Redtails as falconry birds is their brains - after a few years they really learn to play to their strengths and they get very deadly indeed.
It was a long time ago, before I fucked my life up - although I've done a fair bit of un-fucking-up now, I'm in a first floor apartment with no car and I don't know if I'll ever be able to be an active falconer again. I don't even have any pictures of her left.
Redtails are the most awesome birds. Some people see them as less special than the longwings and so forth because they're relatively common, but they're so clever and brave and versatile and have so much character. My Camilla even had a sense of humour - she used to get a kick out of stealing people's hats when she was flying. I never realised a bird could laugh before...
I consider them kind of special... more special than bald eagles. Could just be due to relative numbers of the two species around here in recent years, though. The past two years, I've been noticing more red-tails around than in the past, oh, let's say 7-10 years.
No wild ones round here (in the UK) - but I do see European buzzards on a semi-regular basis, since I live right on the edge of town, very close to farm land. It's great to see them circling above the big shopping centre :-D
I think there are just so many mallard (like up to 40 or so in a group) that one of them is going to be stupid or lame or something. And, when they're faced with an arial predator, they all cluster around together, keeping an eye on it. Yesterday, we saw one fly over a group of mallards in the river. The ducks quacked worriedly and all the mallards within hearing range rushed right over.
We (cottonmanifesto and I came across the bird in the park. We had no camera. She ran off to 7-11 and bought a disposable and shot that picture which became the cover for UrbPan #4.) didn't see the hawk make the kill, but I have no doubt that it could. The mallard was most likely on the edge of the water when it was killed--not in the air where it probably could outfly the hawk, or in the water where it could dive.
At work we have four rth. One was shot, one is blind in one eye (see icon) and two were probably hit by cars while eating carrion. See also: roadkill opossums, skunks, crows and probably dogs (and our broken-wing turkey vulture).
Lots of education owls were hit by cars, too. Good way to damage an owl's eyes.
I hadn't ever thought about it, but someone once told me that most predators, when threatened, will do a nice display to try to scare off the threat instead of running away. Effective against a coyote, maybe, but not as good against a Cadillac.
I think it's pretty good for an off-brand disposable camera. :) Fortunately, the bird didn't care much that I was there, and I got within about 4 feet of it.
That roadkill also contributes to their getting hit by cars.
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What's impressive about taking a mallard is that a mallard's much faster in the air, not to mention slippery and agile and able to dive underwater too. Though I did know a captive redtail who took one once. The great thing about Redtails as falconry birds is their brains - after a few years they really learn to play to their strengths and they get very deadly indeed.
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I didn't know you had a redtail (or did at one time). Wow. They are damn smart when it comes to food.
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Redtails are the most awesome birds. Some people see them as less special than the longwings and so forth because they're relatively common, but they're so clever and brave and versatile and have so much character. My Camilla even had a sense of humour - she used to get a kick out of stealing people's hats when she was flying. I never realised a bird could laugh before...
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Awesome birds to sight.
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At work we have four rth. One was shot, one is blind in one eye (see icon) and two were probably hit by cars while eating carrion. See also: roadkill opossums, skunks, crows and probably dogs (and our broken-wing turkey vulture).
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I hadn't ever thought about it, but someone once told me that most predators, when threatened, will do a nice display to try to scare off the threat instead of running away. Effective against a coyote, maybe, but not as good against a Cadillac.
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