Cooper’s Hawk vs American Crows – Southwest Harbor

Hi all — Watched a yard encounter this afternoon that was pretty dramatic. Total time spanned maybe 5 minutes. Noticed a Cooper’s Hawk grounded in the yard today ~3 p.m., and grabbed my binoculars. It was flanked by up to 4 Am. Crows, and I noticed that the COHA had a bird in it’s talons. Didn’t take long to see it was a N. Flicker.Flicker was alive, which made the dynamics between COHA and AMCR more unpredictable. The quarry was struggling. The COHA created a protective hood over its prey with outspread wings, and the crows, with feathers erected, darted in from all angles and tried to get the COHA off balance. Unclear that the Crows were attempting to score some red meat, but that appeared to be the case. The game ensued for several minutes, with the COHA twisting to retain a defensive posture, occasionally lunging with opened beak, and the crows attempting to dart in and out and get the Cooper’s off balance.The end of the struggle happened when the Cooper’s lost balance briefly, and miraculously, the NOFL leapt into flight and made a beeline out of the yard. Amazing after being held for so long. Cooper’s departed the scene immediately thereafter; heard the crows mobbing calls off in the woods.

Made me think about flickers I banded at Manomet in the 70s, and how tough their plumage is. My memory is that they have really thick and firm feather shafts. Tough to “foot” these birds to death when you have to defend your lunch against crows coming at you from every side. Ain’t nature great?

Cheers,
CK
Southwest Harbor

Comments

  1. Viktoria White says

    Hi , On April 21, 2012 we spotted a large Cooper Hawk in a back yard of King Hill Rd. Naples. He stayed in the tree for a very long time, then wobbled (with his large feet ) around the yard. He eventually flew off showing his beautiful wings. I’ve heard him but not seen since. The camera is ready.
    Cheers,
    Vikki
    Naples

  2. Viktoria White says

    Hi, on April 21, 2012 at 1Pm we spotted a large Cooper Hawk in the back yard tree of 276 King Hill Rd. Naples Me. He perched for a long time, then walked like a penguin around the lawn with his very large feet and eventually flew off. We’ve never seen 1 before so I reseached extensively on the Web. I’ve heard him but haven’t seen him since.
    Cheers, Vikki