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Monday, January 25, 2016

Interstates, Hawks and NYC Snowstorms

Leftover snow in Queens

Alan was home today because of the storm, so of course he needed to go to the big city on other business. He asked me to ride along and I did, even though I am not of fan of that particular apple. (I prefer the ones that grow on trees up here in the other NY.

The trip was uneventful, the city streets cleaned up enough for reasonably normal travel and we even found a pretty decent parking place.

The most notable part of the trip was the roadside Red-tailed Hawks. They are pretty much a feature of every Interstate trip and after a while you develop an eye for the puffy light buff breast with the rusty band across it. Even I can spot them from a great distance.

Anyhow we saw a lot of them, beyond anything I have ever experience. Wish I had started counting in the morning, because we would have racked up quite a tally.

The city was in pretty good shape for being just a couple days after stormageddon, but I still don't like it there, even though we saw a couple of Red-tails right in town.

3 comments:

Cathy said...

It's so neat that you and Alan get to share a road trip like that.
The Big Apple AND bountiful hawks.

Terry and Linda said...

We have tons of Red-Tails this winter. I don't know why. There is always one close by. Seems odd.

Linda

threecollie said...

Cathy, it was nice...we solved the problems of the world en route, which is the main reason I go along. I always hope for good birding in the city, because there is plenty of it, but as soon as we drive into it I just want to head back home. I just don't like it there.

Linda, probably nesting nearby. Tis the season. We have a pair that is hanging closer to the house than ever this year. They used to nest in our sugar bush, but moved to the heifer woods a few years ago. This year I think the nest is even closer as they are in the house yard or the field next to the house almost every day. Saturday one landed in the teeny-tiny twigs at the very tip of the cottonwood tree by the driveway and teetered there in the wind long enough for me to get my glasses on...I was sitting there reading...and have a good laugh at its antics. These twigs would bend under a robin, let alone a great big bird like a hawk.