On the Road is a weekday feature spotlighting reader photo submissions.
From the exotic to the familiar, whether you’re traveling or in your own backyard, we would love to see the world through your eyes.
Good Morning All,
This weekday feature is for Juicers who are are on the road, traveling, or just want to share a little bit of their world via stories and pictures. So many of us rise each morning, eager for something beautiful, inspiring, amazing, subtle, of note, and our community delivers – a view into their world, whether they’re far away or close to home – pictures with a story, with context, with meaning, sometimes just beauty. By concentrating travel updates and tips here, it’s easier for all of us to keep up or find them later.
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Have a wonderful day, and enjoy the pictures!
Today, pictures from valued commenter Albatrossity.
I am fortunate to live in a part of the country where, in the winter, I don’t have to travel to see many different kinds of hawks; they travel to see me. So here are a few of the birds that I have photographed during the last year; some are migrants, some are year-round residents, but all of them are, IMHO, gorgeous.
First-year Krider’s Red-tailed Hawk
Taken on 2017-11-14
Near Manhattan KS
Red-tailed Hawks come in a variety of flavors, and all of them winter in my area. This is a young (note the yellow eyes, which will turn dark as the bird ages) bird of the pale Krider’s subspecies. In the summer birds like this return to the Dakotas and the prairie provinces of Canada to breed, but they spend the winter in the Great Plains
Light-morph Harlan’s Red-tailed Hawk
Taken on 2018-02-13
near Manhattan KS
If you know a little bit about Red-tailed Hawks, you know that the Harlan’s subspecies is typlically very dark (see one of the other pics below). But they also come in an interesting intermediate-morph, which has a checkerboard pattern on the underwings, and this lighter morph, which is pretty uncommon. This particular individual is as pale as a red-tailed hawk can be, and it is a juvenile light-morph Harlan’s Hawk. These return in summer to Canada and Alaska to breed.
Dark-morph Harlan’s Red-tailed Hawk
Taken on 2017-11-09
near Manhattan KS
A very dark, cool black first-year Harlan’s Hawk.
Adult Red-shouldered Hawk
Taken on 2018-02-08
near Manhattan KS
In recent years this smaller hawk of the eastern forests and swamps has moved out into the Great Plains, and is now pretty common here. A nice addition to the local avifauna
Rough-legged Hawk
Taken on 2018-02-16
Quivira National Wildlife Refuge, near Stafford KS
A common winter visitor across North America, these guys return to Canada for the breeding season as well.
Adult Bald Eagle
Taken on 2018-03-03
near Manhattan KS
After the banning of DDT, this species has rebounded spectacularly. There are over 100 active Bald Eagle nests in Kansas, and that is a huge increase from zero just a couple decades ago. This is a year-round resident bird near a nest, but we also have lots of eagles visiting us in the winter.
Male American Kestrel with a prairie vole for breakfast
Taken on 2018-03-31
near Manhattan KS
Year-round residents as well as winter migrants, this bird is the smallest and most colorful of the falcons of North America
Thank you so much Albatrossity, do send us more when you can.
Travel safely everybody, and do share some stories in the comments, even if you’re joining the conversation late. Many folks confide that they go back and read old threads, one reason these are available on the Quick Links menu.
One again, to submit pictures: Use the Form or Send an Email
rikyrah
These pictures are beautiful. Totally respect those who can so clearly capture the beauty of animals like this.???
raven
Great pics!
Anne Laurie
Lovely photos!
Red-shouldered hawks seem to be common year-round here in the Boston ‘beltway’ — I’m told the thermals over the criss-crossing blacktops, in combination with the abundant small wildlife stocking the immediate verges, make for easy hunting along an asphalt smorgasbord.
This time of year, it’s not uncommon to see those hawks mobbed by flights of smaller birds in territorial nesting mode. Don’t see those ‘mobs’ outside of the February/May window… presumably the little birds are more invested in their individual new families than in discouraging the hawk(s) from setting up housekeeping too close!
otmar
Due to my kid’s injury I’ll have to cancel two trips. So you jackals will be deprived of new pictures from Salzburg and Amsterdam.
I’ll try to make it up, either by tapping my archive or some other recent pics of Vienna.
Quinerly
?
Planetpundit
Wonderful photos with expression and character. Thx so much for sharing them.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@otmar: I spent 2 weeks in Salzburg, summer between my first and second year of college.
?BillinGlendaleCA
Pictures of birds is hard, especially flying.
Baud
@rikyrah: Ditto.
JPL
Wonderful pictures!
Lapassionara
Thanks. These are great.
marv
I loved these pictures. My wife’s hobby is photographing birds and we live in an area rich in wildlife but don’t see as many hawks as other places we’ve lived. I miss seeing them.
satby
These are great Albatrossity! Going birding with you would be amazing.
satby
@otmar: hope your kiddo is doing better! I thought she was just in for observation, is she home now?
Waratah
@otmar: Sorry to hear about your daughter. Thank you for today’s photos I love being able to see close up detail of your photos. I hope you can replan the trips you will miss. The American Kestral is so pretty.
Amir Khalid
@otmar:
Tell your kid from everyone here, Gute Besserung.
MomSense
I love these photos of hawks. My favorite lunch spot (it’s a park) has a bald eagle’s nest and I love watching them especially the few times I’ve seen the adults teach the juveniles to fly.
When I was in Florida there was a red shouldered hawk that landed on a tree limb right next to my dad’s head (he’s tall). My dad was so busy photographing an alligator that he didn’t see the hawk. I really wished I had a good camera because my iphone just didn’t capture that hawk well at all.
@otmar:
Hope she recovers quickly. Concussions are no fun.
Adam K
Most beautiful! And demonstrates a huge amount of skill. Very impressive. (But I felt sorry for the vole.)
Lee
Great photos!
Amir Khalid
As always from Albatrossity, this is professional-class wildlife photography.
p.a.
Great stuff. Thanks!
otmar
Thanks for the good wishes. It turned out that she also fractured her temporal bone. Thus I’m still at the hospital, but will be relieved by my wife tonight.
Mary G
@otmar: I hope she’s recovering well.
Always perks me up when I see Albatrossity has sent photos. These are as spectacular as always.
The mention of DDT makes me think of Scott Pruitt, though. I love pelicans and when I was young they were a rare and vanishing sight. Now, particularly at Dana Point Harbor, you can see whole flocks of them.
CCL
Beautiful.
eclare
All photos are amazing…wow, the claws on that eagle!
Elizabelle
Gorgeous photos of gorgeous birds.
Tenar Arha
@Albatrossity Just gorgeous. Thank you.