March 27, 2016 - Texas - Other Raptors

Here are some other raptors I photographed at the workshop I attended in February. This is a Harris’s Hawk. It’s a medium-sized raptor, 20 to 21 inches long. It is mostly dark colored but has beautiful chestnut wing patches which are a little hard to see in this photo.

HawkHarrisflightLagunaSecaRanchEdinburg20160217

Shortly after we entered the blinds, this male Northern Harrier flew by. Northern Harriers are hard to photograph because they are usually flying low over open, marshy areas. They can see you approaching and they just fly away in the opposite direction. Because we were hidden, it didn’t realize we were there and it flew right over us.

HarrierNorthernmaleflightLagunaSecaRanchEdinburg20160219

Because this bird is gray, we know it’s an adult male; females and juveniles are brown. Harriers are 18 to 21 inches long and their distinctive white rump patch is a good field mark to look for.

HarrierNorthernmaleflightLagunaSecaRanchEdinburg20160219

Several Turkey Vultures were flying around the area but none of them landed. People are often disdainful of vultures but they do provide a valuable service by cleaning up roadkill and other dead animals.

VultureTurkeyflightLagunaSecaRanchEdinburg20160217

While I was driving back to the ranch for an afternoon session, I spotted this magnificent White-tailed Hawk soaring overhead. I stopped the car and grabbed my camera so I could photograph it. I didn’t realize it at the time, but this was the first White-tailed Hawk I had ever seen. Add one to the life list!

HawkWhitetailedflightLagunaSecaRanchEdinburg20160218

I later mentioned to Gene Gwin, the ranch owner, that I had photographed this bird. Gene told me the White-tailed Hawk is the top-of-the-line predator on his ranch. It hunts small mammals, lizards, and snakes but sometimes feeds on carrion. When a White-tail comes in for a landing, all the other birds scatter.

HawkWhitetailedflightLagunaSecaRanchEdinburg20160218