Coolest visitor ever!

[thistlechaser]

I was sitting at my desk when I saw motion out of my eye. I looked across the room, out the sliding glass window, and there was a giant hawk or falcon or something! Much bigger than my cat!



Look at the size of those talons!

A bunch of small birds (wrens or chickadees or something) have been breeding on my porch for days now, so I guess they finally attracted the predator.

I hope it comes back so I can get better pictures!

Comments

[resonant.livejournal.com]

Wow!

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

That's what I had said, too!

[fbhjr.livejournal.com]

Very cool!

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

It was!

[hamsterwoman]

That's so cool!!

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

It is! I kept hoping it would come back, but not yet.

[loup_noir]

We have consulted, the bird nerd and I, and we think it's a Crested Caracara, to which we both say, "COOL!"

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

*googles that* Ah ha! The one that was here looked kind of ratty and I thought it was probably an immature one, and that does match the immature color picture on wiki. It also seemed to have a hard time flying off my low porch railing (waist high!) so "Unlike the Falco falcons in the same family, the caracaras are not fast-flying aerial hunters, but are rather sluggish and often scavengers." fits.

Thanks for letting me know!

[isiscolo.livejournal.com]

Wow! Every once in a while I see hawks and eagles here, and it always amazes me how big they are.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Yeah! This one was much bigger than a cat, I think it could have carried something that size off.

I'd love to see them more often! Though I'm lucky and amazed I saw this one, here in the heart of Silicon Valley -- not rural at all!