Cooper's Hawk visiting our koi pond

Juvenile Cooper’s (or Sharp-Skinned) Hawk visiting our koi pond a couple of hours ago in northern CO. One of two siblings that hatched recently from nest high in ash tree in our back yard. They often bathe in the pond and sometimes stand side-by-side, perched on top of arbor near pond or on edge of window well. Enjoying them while we can before they head out. :wink:

9 Likes

That’s a pretty bird, hopefully he didn’t get any fish!

2 Likes

What a beauty! :eagle:

2 Likes

That bird did not see to be eying the fish, but maybe when he gets bigger…

2 Likes

There’s two of the them, identical twins! And they seem to be leaving the koi alone, probably because our 3 koi are HUGE (teenagers) and although these hawks are enormous (should see them with their wings spread), they’re very awkward fliers right now. From pond perimeter up to top of nearby arbor, over to top of privacy fence, back to yard, etc. Now … we DID have a raccoon who went for a late night swim the other night! :raccoon:

3 Likes

Nice Hawk ! If we had any water here in California I could build a pond for this guy and the rest of the gang.

3 Likes

Sacrifice. Take less showers.

1 Like

Or maybe I can become a corrupt politician and have the city run a reclaimed water line to my house that I can tap into. We could get reclaimed water for free if I purchased a big plastic tank to fit in the back of my truck, purchased a pump and maybe 200 feet of hose. Then I could drive the 5 miles to fill the tank, 5 miles back and hook all up. Maybe I’ll just get the :raccoon: :raccoon: a bigger water bowl.

2 Likes

Oh, now you’re just being silly. Take less showers. :blush:

2 Likes

By the way, these “baby” hawks are not only huge, but they’ve become pretty good hunters. Their momma (somewhere nearby) has apparently taught them well. My wife went out to the pond this morning and startled one of them, who proceeded to awkwardly fly away, dropping a headless bunny on the way. Then just an hour ago, I heard some cheeping outside my mancave window. Opened the blinds and he was perched on the wooden edge of the window-well about 10" away from me. Oh, and he’d kindly left me two bunny legs as a gift. :open_mouth:

1 Like

Get the twins some Frogs to snack on :open_mouth:

1 Like

You mean like @peepeep above? Maybe he’ll hop over here and volunteer. :frog:

1 Like

Try these:

A me-free alternative! :+1:

1 Like

As a kid, I had a blue rabbit’s foot as a keychain. At the time, I did not know that this was supposed to represent good luck. Congratulations on getting two of them!

1 Like

Thanks, but … the youngsters (hawks that is), returned and finished them off! :stuck_out_tongue_closed_eyes: