Cooper's Hawk Hunting Strategy - February 2004

On Monday of this week, the snow depth in the front yard was still 2-3 inches. We've had snowcover since Jan 4. By Thu the temps were around 50. On Fri, it was 40-50 and it rained, wiping out the remaining snow. It got windy and colder overnight, and about a half an inch of snow fell early this morning.

The Northern Flicker was on the suet this morning. He's been an off-and-on visitor the past several weeks. The Red-bellied Woodpecker also visits at regular intervals.

I haven't seen the Hairy Woodpecker since early Jan or maybe in Dec. A male-female pair of N. Cardinals, maybe the same, usual pair, continue to visit often. But it's the Cooper's Hawk that's provided some excitement in the backyard over the past week.