Two hawks, one dead squirrel. High drama at the office.

Sure, the office is in a beautiful setting. Almost peaceful with its trees and wildflowers. Within the canopy,  however, different life-and-death dramas play out every day. Here, a red-tailed hawk, harangued by bluejays and mockingbirds, seeks a moment’s respite in a tree with a squirrel he’d caught for lunch.

The rest did not last long. The smaller birds screamed and even bashed him a time or two and he took off for another hiding spot. Alas, that last flight cost him. As he landed, his squirrel slipped from his talons and crashed through the branches.

A a second hawk, who followed the action and withstood an assault by other small birds, cashed in on the lost lunch.

Hawk No. 1 with his squirrel lunch, which he carried from tree to tree under attack by bluejays and mockingbirds.

Hawk No. 2, the interloper, withstanding attacks from a pair of mockingbirds who screeched and hit the hawk. The hawk, unusually, was undeterred. Red-tailed hawks tend to be scaredy cats. 

The interloper, keeping his eyes on the prize, just waiting for a free lunch.

And the loser, wheeling off sans lunch. 

Teach a snake to fish …

Everyone’s gotta eat. It was incredible to watch this diamond back water snake snag a fish, wrestle it in the water while it flailed wildly. The snake, his jaws still clamped around the fish like a dog with a bone, swam it up on a gravel bar and proceeded to swallow it, as the fish continued to flip and writhe — all in vain. Taken 19 May 2017. 

 

Struttin’ his stuff …

… or, the many moods of Blueberry. Blueberry the indigo bunting loves to strut and sing for the ladies. Here he his putting on his song and dance in the driveway on a gray morning. Taken 19 May 2017.

Tete a tete

A few tense moments during blue gill spawning season in Coleman Creek as a small diamondback water snake goes head to head with a male fish protecting his nest. The snake eventually moved away. Each of those round depressions filled with gravel is a nest. Taken 10 May 2017.

Hiding in plain sight

Red cricket or grasshopper hiding in the moving shadows of a windy Arkansas Sunday afternoon.

Showdown at the Hummingbird Saloon

Standoff at the Hummingbird Saloon this morning.
(Don’t worry, the little guy came back later and got his drink.)

Morning meditation

Bluebird seems to staring out over the south valley from the branch of a bare hickory tree.

 

 

Making the snow fly

Little finch makes the snowflakes fly as she feeds on the sumac.

Fair weather feathered friend

The weather here in the Mid-South has been so gloomy. Fog and more fog and rain on top of rain. Not that we don’t need the rain, but at some point, you just want to believe the sun will show its face again. Yesterday was that day.  The sun shone for a few hours, enough time to bring out the birds, get the rock knockers calling to their mates and to do some long overdue car washing.

Mr. Cardinal out enjoying yesterday’s brief few hours of sunshine. 

 

Muted colors

A purple finch and his mate contrast with the fog-muted fall colors of the Ouachita Mountain ridge behind them. Taken this morning.