Last evening, just before dusk, the frantic calls of black-billed magpies drew me to the kitchen door. Looking out, I saw that a large, female Cooper's hawk had snared one of them and was completing its kill on the driveway, her wings spread to shroud the victim.
Agitated but helpless, at least twenty magpies shrieked from the nearby trees and garage roof, unwilling to attack the raptor. Indeed, Cooper's hawks (especially females), like their larger cousin the northern goshawk, are among the only raptors bold enough to feast on magpies which, themselves, are large, aggressive and gregarious birds.
As the noisy protest continued, the hawk dragged her victim into a grove of piñon pines and proceeded to pluck the black and white feathers from its carcass. By the time that chore was completed, the magpies had dispersed and the Cooper's hawk enjoyed her evening meal in peace.
