If I Could Talk to the Animals

I'd never make it as a Dolittle.

On the way to work today a hawk swooped down and landed on a large stone gate about 20 feet in front of me. It was the first time I've ever seen a hawk in my neighborhood - and so close - let alone with fresh kill in one of its talons! I kept walking toward it since I had to go that way to get to work, but I kept an eye on it...you know, just in case. Well, the hawk didn't like that. It noticed that I was looking at it. In return, it stared back and we locked eyes for a few seconds.

When I was about 10 feet away, I decided to be neighborly and half-jokingly said, " What's up, birdie?" In a flash the hawk spread its wings, took off in the opposite direction, dropped the squirrel with a dull thud onto the sidewalk, and perched itself in a high tree. When it saw that I was about to walk under that tree, it took off again and flew across the park.

On the return home hours later, I saw the dead squirrel still on the ground where it had been dumped.

So much for fearless birds of prey. Even pigeons and seagulls will come back for their food. Then again, with so much fresh prey around here, I guess there was no point bothering to come back for old meat.

Comments

[AC]

I had a run in with an urban hawk, though I was inside and he was outside. This one downed a pigeon on the side of my yard and then stood on it until the pigeon stopped flapping. Luckily, he didn't leave it there, though.

[Can-Can]

That's too cool. When I used to walk in Franklin Park, they roped off an area because of hawks attacking people.
My husband had a falcon land on his balcony in the apartment he had before we got together. It allowed him to get close enough to take a photo.
You made a hawk drop its prey. You' bad, you' bad.