Orioles back in my yard.
Jun 23, 2019 17:52:33 #
This female came to the nectar feeders off and on for about 10-15 minutes before I got a quick, not very good snap. Too much contrast and too far away for a bird this size. Every time I even thought of slipping out the door to get closer all the birds took off.
Later found why they were so skittish. A young hawk hanging around. It tried once at too shallow an angle and too slow, then tried to chase one dove straight across my pool and did a panic "air brake" and swoop up when he saw he was headed straight for my open door. I could almost hear him thinking "Oh, Shit!" The doves have the escape toward the house down pat. Drop down low and straight across the pool, bob up and hug the flat roof of the family room, do an elevator up the back wall of the 2nd floor, hug the roof line and then straight ahead or hard left into one of the trees along the street. All the way any hawk trying to strike them has to worry about going into the pool or SPLAT! against the roof or wall of the house. Well they can try a stern chase like this one did but doves can accelerate like dragsters and the larger hawk can't recover the speed he lost when he flared out from the missed strike before they are in the tree branches.
80D, Tamron 150-600 G2 @ 600, 1/200 @ f/8.0, ISO 400
Center point AF on body, Spot meter, bright sun, aprx 65'
Later found why they were so skittish. A young hawk hanging around. It tried once at too shallow an angle and too slow, then tried to chase one dove straight across my pool and did a panic "air brake" and swoop up when he saw he was headed straight for my open door. I could almost hear him thinking "Oh, Shit!" The doves have the escape toward the house down pat. Drop down low and straight across the pool, bob up and hug the flat roof of the family room, do an elevator up the back wall of the 2nd floor, hug the roof line and then straight ahead or hard left into one of the trees along the street. All the way any hawk trying to strike them has to worry about going into the pool or SPLAT! against the roof or wall of the house. Well they can try a stern chase like this one did but doves can accelerate like dragsters and the larger hawk can't recover the speed he lost when he flared out from the missed strike before they are in the tree branches.
80D, Tamron 150-600 G2 @ 600, 1/200 @ f/8.0, ISO 400
Center point AF on body, Spot meter, bright sun, aprx 65'
Jun 23, 2019 18:07:14 #
Jun 23, 2019 18:13:24 #
Jun 23, 2019 18:26:36 #
Jun 23, 2019 18:59:59 #
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