Hawks: behavior or just "is"?

Yesterday, it was overcast and these three were flying close together. I captured this trio with my 600mm. Today, the sky is only partly cloudy and the same three hawks were more spread out and much lower. This was with my 70-200mm. (And both are cropped to varying amounts.)

Is there anything to hawks flying lower when it's clear (hunting)? It's not like I've done any objective or scientific method with this, but it seems that when it's cloudy, they've been up higher...

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Well, not sure if this is really going to answer your question, but:

From your shot, the hawks are not really flying - as in, flapping their wings to get from point A to Point B - they're soaring. They're using rising currents of warmer air (also known as thermals) to hold or gain altitude, and because these rising currents of air manifest as columns (in fact as I understand it they are kind of like bubbles or mushroom cloud-shaped), the raptors fly in tight circles to stay within them. And of course, their purpose in staying aloft is to hunt small prey from above, as you point out.

So, my guess would be that it all depends on the condition of the thermals on the day, which is a factor of the relative difference in temperatures between the air and the surfaces of the ground. Some days they would have abundant choice of good strong thermals, giving them more altitude, and some days the thermals are not very strong and dissipate quickly after forming. From my prior history flying model sailplanes, I have found that the clearer, hotter and drier days are actually better for thermal activity, which seems opposite to what you are describing, but maybe I've misinterpreted your description.

Thank you!

That totally makes sense. Where I'm standing is in an open grassy area. In the warm weather, there will be a strong thermal rising from it. In the cloudy conditions and with the brewing storms, rising winds would have been higher.

I should have thought about thermals. I didn't do soaring, but I did do model aircraft for a long time. This is me...

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dasmith232 wrote in post #19072482
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..... I did do model aircraft for a long time. This is me...

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Cool!

I see that you're not too far from Aurora. . Have you ever flown at Cherry Creek Park?


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Nope. I haven't flown anywhere for several years now. But I flew quite a few times as a guest at JEFCO AEROMod'lers, and in a couple IMAC contests at Crosswinds. But my home field was near Colorado Springs with the Pikes Peak RC club, near Meadowlake Airport. Most of what I did was with IMAC contests.

Do you know this area?

dasmith232 wrote in post #19072588
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Nope. I haven't flown anywhere for several years now. But I flew quite a few times as a guest at JEFCO AEROMod'lers, and in a couple IMAC contests at Crosswinds. But my home field was near Colorado Springs with the Pikes Peak RC club, near Meadowlake Airport. Most of what I did was with IMAC contests.

Do you know this area?
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I know the area just north of you rather well.

For the last three years, I have spent anywhere from 5 to 8 weeks per year living in Aurora or Centennial. . I try to spend a week there in June or early July, two weeks in either September or October, and then the whole month of November, for the Deer rut.

When there I frequent Cherry Creek, the Rocky Mountain Arsenal, Estes Park, Waterton Canyon, Rocky Mountain Park, and Mount Evans. . I haven't spent time at the Pikes Peak area, but I should plan to do so if there are good wildlife opportunities.

You guys have an amazing array of world-class wildlife and nature opportunities all around you!


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dasmith232 wrote in post #19072482
Thank you!

That totally makes sense. Where I'm standing is in an open grassy area. In the warm weather, there will be a strong thermal rising from it. In the cloudy conditions and with the brewing storms, rising winds would have been higher.

I should have thought about thermals. I didn't do soaring, but I did do model aircraft for a long time. This is me...

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./showthread.php?p=190​72482&i=i43394773
forum: Birds

Wow, beautiful planes!