Looking out the kitchen window this morning, I was fortunate to observe the failed attack of a northern goshawk on two fox squirrels. Zooming in at high speed, the raptor just missed his targets as they scurried to the other side of the tree and escaped into higher branches. Taunting their enemy from above, the squirrels waited until the goshawk flew off before coming down.
Permanent mountain residents, northern goshawks occasionally turn up along the Front Range urban corridor during the colder months and, in recent years, have become more common (I should say less rare) on our Littleton farm. Much larger than the Cooper's hawks that regularly hunt songbirds on our property, goshawks are also identified by a prominent white brow stripe that flares behind each eye.
Fierce, powerful and persistent in their search for prey, northern goshawks don't usually miss their target. This morning, the squirrels were lucky (though skilled in their own right); no doubt, another squirrel or cottontail was not so fortunate.
See also: Death by Goshawk
Permanent mountain residents, northern goshawks occasionally turn up along the Front Range urban corridor during the colder months and, in recent years, have become more common (I should say less rare) on our Littleton farm. Much larger than the Cooper's hawks that regularly hunt songbirds on our property, goshawks are also identified by a prominent white brow stripe that flares behind each eye.
Fierce, powerful and persistent in their search for prey, northern goshawks don't usually miss their target. This morning, the squirrels were lucky (though skilled in their own right); no doubt, another squirrel or cottontail was not so fortunate.
See also: Death by Goshawk
