Corralitas Drive: Mockingbird & Red Tailed Hawk Had A Lot To Say To Each Other

Photo: Diane Edwardson, June 27, 2014.  It's not unusual to see Mockingbirds harassing Red Tailed Hawks in the neighborhood.  It is unusual to see the Red Tail scream right back at the Mockingbird.  (Click on photos to enlarge.)

Photo: Diane Edwardson, June 27, 2014.  The Mockingbird has been routinely chasing the same large Red Tail, who does not seem very confident in flying or soaring.  A couple of neighbors who have also shot lots of photos of our resident hawks, agree this one is does not appear to be one of the nesting pair.  It doesn't hunt squirrels.  It may be injured because it seems to be very "flappy" when it flies.  It does not soar normally either.  It is very awkward, but definitely not a freshly fledged hawk. 

Photo: Diane Edwardson, June 27, 2014.  The hawk screamed almost as much as the Mockinbird.  If it was a younger hawk, I would say it was calling to be fed (you know you've lived near nesting hawks for too long when...)

Learn more about Red Tailed Hawks: Cornell Lab of Ornithology