I had an awesome morning up at Ridgefield. One might even call it fantastic. I think it helped that I had extremely low expectations. First off, I thought it was going to rain and it turned out to be a beautiful!
Soon after arriving I came across a trio of coyotes. One seemed more wary of me and took off quickly, while the other two seemed less concerned. I think they were curious about Jake and Ralph, and seemed to catch a whiff of them at one point.
Good stuff. It was a good day for hawks at the refuge, starting with this guy:
I think it's a Harlan's Red-tailed Hawk but not positive.. Any thoughts? Next up I stopped to check out a couple funny little Marsh Wrens:
While I was stopped there I saw a hawk fly overhead and land in a tree...
It appears to be a Sharp-shinned Hawk, which I've never seen at the refuge. Pretty cool. He took off soon after landing...
I was scanning Rest Lake when I realized a harrier was perched right in front of me...
Meanwhile a Peregrine Falcon was hunting over the lake while a coyote watched...
Things were so good I decided to take a second trip around the refuge. I ended up finding a White-throated Sparrow hanging out with a bunch of Golden-crowneds... Wish I had gotten better photos but he disappeared too quickly...
Looks like a tan morph too- I think that's a first for me! Part of the reason he disappeared so quickly was this vehicle passing by:
Not sure what the deal is, but I'm guessing it was a hunter on his way out? Lastly, I noticed this hawk towards the end of the route:
Looks like a Rough-legged Hawk, yes? Also present was a Bald Eagle to really round out the raptor variety. What a great morning!!!
Soon after arriving I came across a trio of coyotes. One seemed more wary of me and took off quickly, while the other two seemed less concerned. I think they were curious about Jake and Ralph, and seemed to catch a whiff of them at one point.
Good stuff. It was a good day for hawks at the refuge, starting with this guy:
I think it's a Harlan's Red-tailed Hawk but not positive.. Any thoughts? Next up I stopped to check out a couple funny little Marsh Wrens:
While I was stopped there I saw a hawk fly overhead and land in a tree...
It appears to be a Sharp-shinned Hawk, which I've never seen at the refuge. Pretty cool. He took off soon after landing...
I was scanning Rest Lake when I realized a harrier was perched right in front of me...
Meanwhile a Peregrine Falcon was hunting over the lake while a coyote watched...
Things were so good I decided to take a second trip around the refuge. I ended up finding a White-throated Sparrow hanging out with a bunch of Golden-crowneds... Wish I had gotten better photos but he disappeared too quickly...
Looks like a tan morph too- I think that's a first for me! Part of the reason he disappeared so quickly was this vehicle passing by:
Not sure what the deal is, but I'm guessing it was a hunter on his way out? Lastly, I noticed this hawk towards the end of the route:
Looks like a Rough-legged Hawk, yes? Also present was a Bald Eagle to really round out the raptor variety. What a great morning!!!
I'll say it was a great morning-- looks like a fabulous place. Love the fog, coyotes and all those hawks!
ReplyDeleteThe Harlan's morph can be dark... but so can a western "calurus" red-tail. It's all very confusing. Undertail looks right for Harlan's, though...
Your refuge has much to offer. How lucky you are to have it. I love the coyotes.
ReplyDeleteCool coyotes and it looks like a great raptor day for you, Jen! Wonderful birds and photos.
ReplyDeleteLooks like a great morning! Nice shot of the coyote taking a pee!
ReplyDeleteraptors galore! ANd some great shots of them too..
ReplyDeleteReally awesome coyotes too.