I’ve become the kind of person who sits in the backyard with binoculars pressed to my face, watching hawks. Like a hawk.
About 100 feet up in one of our trees, a hawk couple built a massive nest a few years ago, and they’ve been coming back ever since. Or at least I assume it’s the same pair. Many hawks are monogamous and mate for life, returning to the same nest year after year. So I’m assuming, I love a love story.
I am completely obsessed with these giant carnivores.
One hawk leaves the nest and comes back with twigs or what I can only assume is lunch. The other stays put, keeping watch over the babies. I caught one of the first flights of one young hawk, requiring extraordinary timing and, walking away from the computer (picture above!).
Last year, I walked into the backyard and came face-to-face with one of them on the ground. This bird looked three feet tall, its head swiveling around to glare at me while it hovered over lunch. I don’t know what lunch was, and I did not ask. I simply backed away slowly and respectfully, the way one does when one realizes she is no longer at the top of the food chain.
We’ve been getting into birds lately. Last Mother’s Day, my husband gave me a bird feeder with a camera. It’s fun to see who’s visiting the yard, but I had to turn off the alerts because my phone was being held hostage by nonstop bird portraits. Chickadee. Cardinal. Bluebird. Repeat.
To assist in the new birding hobby, we’ve decided to go all in on native plants. Our plan is to remove much of the back lawn and replace it with little meadows and pathways. Native plants attract local birds, butterflies, and pollinators, and they also have deep, sturdy root systems that help break up compacted soil, reduce erosion, and let rainwater soak into the ground instead of running off. Plus, we love the look of a more natural garden — a little wild, a little beautiful, and much less “suburban putting green.”
The one thing I do not want to attract is deer.
Last year, our vegetable garden and a heartbreaking number of plants were absolutely decimated. So this year, we got serious and built a six-foot-tall garden enclosure. We finished it last weekend and planted the vegetables on Sunday, feeling smug and accomplished.
Then my husband went out to check on the plants and found several chewed down to the nubs.
Bunnies!
So, back to square one. But at least we don’t have to worry about bears.
Go Birds,
Regina
Be careful around hawks and their babies. I was attacked by a hawk a few years ago as I walked under the tree where Mommy Hawk was feeding her babies. It happened to a couple of my neighbors in the same spot.
Be careful around hawks and their babies. I was attacked by a hawk a few years ago as I walked under the tree where Mommy Hawk was feeding her babies. It happened to a couple of my neighbors in the same spot.
View lessThank you! Good to know!
Thank you! Good to know!
View lessCould not love you more my sweet friend. Love the natural gardens, I get monarchs every year.
Could not love you more my sweet friend. Love the natural gardens, I get monarchs every year.
View less