Cooper the Stalker

The Cooper’s hawk is not my favorite — especially when he shows up, as he periodically does, at our bird feeder. Though usually he’s unsuccessful, it seems exceptionally uncivil to turn our efforts to help his fellow birds maintain a food supply in winter into an opportunity to kill and eat them. Nevertheless, I have to admire his handsomeness and athleticism. This series captures one of his visits, when he landed on the feeder and then noticed what must’ve been a mouse on the ground near the woodpile. He left empty-taloned, but his thought processes were easy to read.