I was driving near my house early one morning when I saw this sight. It was a hawk eating breakfast on the road.
I had interrupted a Red-tailed Hawk while it was feasting on a rabbit or hare. The local Black-billed Magpies appeared out of nowhere to get the leftovers.
As you can see, if you zoom in, the magpie pictured below was moving at a speed of 0 MPH. 😉
The hawk wisely decided to move its breakfast off the road.
More magpies swooped in.
This magpie was hoping for just one teeny tiny bite.
The hawk eating breakfast guarded its prey from the intruders. This behavior, where they protect their prey with outstretched wings, is called “mantling.”
I eventually drove away, hoping the hawk was able to enjoy the rest of its breakfast without too much harassment by the magpies and other resident freeloaders.
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Oh, this is fabulous. I haven’t witnessed this behavior so that is a really cool thing to see. I’ve watched them acting quite dodgy after a kill, but never this. Thank you!
Thanks, Bonnie Rae! I'm glad I could share the mantling photos.
Very cool!
Thanks, it was a lucky sighting, Mike!
I love unexpected encounters :)
Me too! Also love when the heads up display on my car tells me how fast a bird is moving because I would have never been able to figure that out. :D
That's some fancy car 😲
👍
It was a wonderful encounter for you.
Yes, it was, Egidio! It's why I like to get out close to sunrise. Lots of surprises!
Thank you for sharing this interesting observation.
Thanks! 🙂