Had the pleasure of seeing these beauties some time back. They were building a nest and I thought I was in for a treat, but they abandoned the nest the next day. (it was right next to a busy path)
A powerful raptor of northern forests, the Northern Goshawk is the largest North American accipiter. It maneuvers through dense woods, taking prey as small as squirrels and as large as grouse, crows, and snowshoe hare.
Cool Facts
* The Northern Goshawk is well known for its fierce defense of its nest. It commonly attacks people and other animals that approach the nest too closely.
* The Northern Goshawk can be very persistent in pursuing prey. One goshawk was seen pursuing a snowshoe hare for 45 to 60 minutes along a hedgerow until finally the hare ran into a clearing and was seized. A goshawk may also chase poultry into buildings.
* Attila the Hun wore an image of a Northern Goshawk on his helmet.
* The Northern Goshawk is found across northern America and Eurasia. Most of the Eurasian races have much more dark barring on the chest than the American form, but about half of all Siberian goshawks are nearly white.
* The name "goshawk" comes from the Old English words gos, meaning goose, and hafoc meaning hawk. It is pronounced as if the words are still separate, without any "sh" sound.
It was really tough to get flight shots of these guys as they stay in the woods. There was a small opening in which they were flying across and I only had a couple of seconds to pick them up in the viewfinder, track and shoot, before they went back in the woods.
If you have ever seen a Squirrel run from a Coopers or Sharp Shinned Hawk, they run around the tree to get away. A Goshawk flying, can keep up with the Squirrel running around the tree and catch them. These guys are very agile to say the least!
It is very cool to see them maneuver through the branches at full speed.
I knew we were in for a treat when I read the heading. Great shots Jody. You were modest as they are virtually impossible to capture in flight within wooded areas. I have watched and tried to capture two families of Cooper's Hawks (same family only a little smaller) in my local park all spring with nothing more to show than some blurry photos or an in focus tail feather. Beautiful work.
Well Jody, these are the shots I wish I could have gotten during my Goshawk attack of a few years back. You're right, they're fierce, reckless and will attack people in defence of their nests. A great book to read about goshawks is "The Goshawk" by T.H.White where he trains a goshawk for falconry. It's a fascinating battle of wills. Your pictures are superb with my faves being the nesting material in-flight shots.
Great post Jody. The history of the Goshawk is interesting and appreciated.
The photos are outstanding given the nature of these birds. Great effort in getting these!
cbright wrote:
Beautiful images of a beautiful bird, Jody. The eat Crows you say? Why not all the crows, starting with the ones outside our bedroom window?
Hey, hey, hey, they have to eat all the Crows around here first!
Brian Hansen wrote:
I knew we were in for a treat when I read the heading. Great shots Jody. You were modest as they are virtually impossible to capture in flight within wooded areas. I have watched and tried to capture two families of Cooper's Hawks (same family only a little smaller) in my local park all spring with nothing more to show than some blurry photos or an in focus tail feather. Beautiful work.
Brian
Well I did say they were tough to get, Brian! Thanks much!
trailhiker wrote:
Well Jody, these are the shots I wish I could have gotten during my Goshawk attack of a few years back. You're right, they're fierce, reckless and will attack people in defence of their nests. A great book to read about goshawks is "The Goshawk" by T.H.White where he trains a goshawk for falconry. It's a fascinating battle of wills. Your pictures are superb with my faves being the nesting material in-flight shots.
Best Wishes,
Steve
Thanks Steve! I have heard stories of them flying between the bars in a Ranger tower in the woods to attack a Ranger! Very aggressive!
Doug Bentlage wrote:
Great post Jody. The history of the Goshawk is interesting and appreciated.
The photos are outstanding given the nature of these birds. Great effort in getting these!
Doug
Thanks Doug. I hope to have the opportunity again some day for more shots.
