Tuesday, September 16, 2008


Photograph by Cheryl Cavert of Tulsa, Oklahoma

Jay the Red-tailed Hawk, Dad of Thunder, from the KJRH nest, does a little hunting from a unique vantage point.

Some hawks really do know how to pose for a photo don't they?


Photo by Cheryl Cavert
Cheryl Cavert, a new hawk watcher in Tulsa this breeding season, picked up a camera and has been documenting this family with a persistence not to be denied. It wasn't easy but she persevered and got her shots of Jay perched in this wonderful spot.

Hi Donna,
Just thought you and some of your readers might enjoy these photos of Jay of the Tulsa KJRH RT hawk family. He has tended to perch in more visible areas that other Tulsa urban RT hawks and after leaving the nesting tower perch last month, he has taken up residence about 1/2 to 3/4 miles away along the banks of the Arkansas River. As the road construction that had been going on in the nesting area has finished, I guess Jay missed all the construction sounds and workers so he relocated to another big construction area! The Riverparks area he has been spotted in quite frequently recently is closed to the public due to reconstruction of the walking/bike paths and other facilities.

The other evening about 6 pm on my way home from work (a rainy day) as I was driving down Riverside Drive, I noticed Jay perched in a very visible position. I did not have my camera with me so I quickly pulled over and took a couple of pictures with my cell phone camera. After viewing those, I knew those just would not suffice, so I continued on home for my camera and when I returned he was still there!!!

Jay - catching the tail end of rush hour traffic!! The full picture shows what Jay was perched on - and he was about eye-level with all the vans and trucks and SUV's - I wonder how many of the hundreds if not thousands of commuters even noticed him? I stayed on the other side of the four lanes of traffic as I did not want to send him flying off his perch - he is one of the few Tulsa RT hawks who is not spooked by the click of the camera - in fact it looks like he enjoys finding suitable posing places!!

Recently I was looking up some pigeon information and came across the Cornell Lab of Ornithology Pigeon Watch Program (
www.birds.cornell.edu/pigeonwatch). It has lots of information about pigeons as well as information about collecting data on the pigeons in one's neighborhood/town.

Thanks for all the wonderful photos and stories on your blog. It has given me a different and wonderful perspective as I watch the many animals in my neighborhood! -- Cheryl in Tulsa
Cheryl,
I think you're right, Jay did miss the construction. I'm betting he has figured out that when there is construction, all the disturbance tends to disrupt the rodents and gets them on the move, making them easier to catch.
Jay, being a clever hawk, is waiting patiently for them to break cover and swoop, grab--Jay will have dinner.

Many thanks for sharing your adventure, the photos, and including the link for PigeonWatch. The neighborhood kids in Hell's Kitchen loved participating in that program.

Check it out folks, perhaps there's room for PigeonWatch in your community.


I ended up going out a bit late in the day and began to think I wasn't going to see bird one. When suddenly a gull appeared from the south behind a building but then swooped into a dive and disappeared behind another.

Thinking that was that, I started to walk home and there he was again.

Heading towards the sunset and the Hudson River.
Only to make another circle in the golden light before heading home to the river for the night.
Donegal Browne

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