A Closer Look: Immature Cooper's Hawk

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Immature Cooper's Hawk: Perched low in the thickets at the conservation area

©2023 Vonda Zwick

Shutter Speed : 1/1000 sec | Aperture : f/7.1 | ISO : 1000 | Focal Length : 600mm
Camera : Canon EOS 5D Mark IV | Lens : 150-600mm F5-6.3 DG OS HSM | Contemporary 015

On almost any other day, I would have walked right past this immature Cooper's Hawk without ever knowing it was there. Today, I had seen something black running through the grasses near this thicket before it disappeared in the trees. It was in the same area I had seen the potential mink a year and a half ago. I don't know if this was a mink or a black cat because it moved too fast and was too obscured by the grass stems. However, I was looking carefully through the thicket at ground level to see if I might catch a glimpse of it again. I did not, but I found this individual perched at nearly ground level instead. It was a miracle I managed to achieve any semblance of focus given the web of tangled branches I had to shoot through.

Species in this Photo: Cooper's Hawk

Location

Ruth Macintyre Conservation Area

Shot Date

Feb. 24, 2023, 11:54 a.m.