Red Shoulder hawk - Nest found

Hello all, i found my first red shouldered hawk along with his nest!!! This is all within 1 mile of my house, maybe even 1/2 mile, i will try to find out the distance today.

All three images

IMAGE LINK: http://www.flickr.com/​photos/ehambrick/85342​81866/

IMAGE LINK: http://www.flickr.com/​photos/ehambrick/85331​10901/

IMAGE LINK: http://www.flickr.com/​photos/ehambrick/85331​16693/

Really good photos, and even better story

So is this indeed a red shouldered hawk? I thought it would be a red tailed hawk since they are so popular around here but i was surprised to see that it could be the red shouldered hawk.

Yes, red-shouldered hawk, nice find! Just be careful around the nest. Red-shouldered hawks are very territorial and protective. Remember to keep a respectful distance so that you don't interfere with their nesting, which could attract predators, cause the parents to abandon the nest, etc. Probably not a bird you want to attract to your yard, as cool as they are, they are very LOUD (I'm sure you heard plenty of that!)

lovely shots

gymell wrote in post #15683692
Remember to keep a respectful distance so that you don't interfere with their nesting, which could attract predators, cause the parents to abandon the nest, etc.

+1
Great set btw.

OP, that's a great day of birding. How often does one find a hawk's nest?

Thanks for all the nice comments! I am certainly not trying to attract attention to the hawk, i am wondering how often i can visit him without startling him or scaring him off. I have tried visiting his territory 3 times since i discovered him on 3 consecutive days, not spending too much time in the area, just about 10-15 minutes max. I have spotted the hawk 2 out of 3 times, he is spotting me quicker and quicker and getting away to better spots to hide.

I am not getting close to the tree with the nest, i haven't come within 50-75 feet or really that far off the path to get closer. However, there is a tree stand about 100 feet away which could be perfect for me to use and observe the nest. If the angle is right, what are your thoughts on using this to watch the hawk? Do they like to live by hunters?

Also do you ever call out to the hawks? I have only heard them vocal on the first day i spotted them (maybe the 2nd day), maybe it was because they were mating, or a certain time of the day?

He has picked a nice place to live. He lives in a forested area near a large stream and many small creaks. There is also a sort of access road, which trucks drive through to access sewage pipes and such, so there are many many puddles. I have found him perched over a long stretch of this road where there are currently about 20-30 puddles along the path. If i had to guess, and i know nothing about this, he is hanging out, perched over the trees and watching all these puddles along the road and along the forest. I have seen him a few times flying very very low through the forest, but not necessarily this area but that is where i have found him twice. Today he was in a cool area, not too far from where i found him mating, it is where the road splits to the left and the right and makes a kind of puddle circle, and a few trees in the middle, and that is where he was, perched about 50 feet up. As soon as he saw me coming from the straight away, he flew up about 20 feet and looked eyes with me.. i knew there was no way i was going to get close. Sure enough as i approached, he bolted. I wonder if i should have waited him out as soon as i saw him. I don't think it would have mattered.. i know he saw me and he wasn't in the mood.

The clearest shot of him is from when i first saw him at the other end of the straight away i mentioned just above. I walked maybe 20-30 feet and he flies back behind me, To lead me back where i came, and i just wanted to get a shot to just see if i could manual focus through the limbs and get him, which i kind of did. Looks like it could be an interesting few weeks/months

Well done, thanks for the interesting report. Always a challenge to decide between how close for a shot and perhaps disturbing the subject.

TLTR: After not visiting the hawk's area for 5 days, i walked back there with the dog and i spotted the hawk about 100 feet away, 50+ feet high and flying away. Later that same day at night, the hawk visited my backyard and the dog barked at him! 10 minutes later he visited again, and the dog barked at him as he flew away!!!!

Long Version:

Just an update, i decided to give them a break and did not go back in the hawk's area for about 5 days, and by chance i haven't fed the backyard bird's with seeds because i ran out.

So today i decided to go visit the area and test out my camera bag and decided to bring the dog for good luck. The first time i saw the hawk mating with another was with the dog when we were running through the woods, so i thought i would bring him a long. It had rained a few days ago so we could easily see deer tracks and the dog was having a field day smelling everything. So we walk towards the bend where the hawk's nest is and i immediately hear the hawk, and i spot him about 100 feet away, flying away. I also may have spotted 2-3 more hawk's on the far side of the forest, where homes are, about 700 feet away. Anyways down the long path where i first saw the hawks, i saw a mallard pair, how cool! they were hanging out in the little puddles that i assume the hawk's love to watch for small rodents. Anyways this got the dog riled up once he saw the deer, and we approached the deer slowly until they got uncomfortable and started to walk away from us in which i just paused and look disinterested. They slowly walked away and it made a fun moment, and another bird to add to the checklist of backyard birds (this is all within 500 feet of my home). So i walk home satisfied that i saw 1-4 hawks. I didn't want to hang out too much.

SOOOO tonight, i'm cleaning a bird bath and i'm out back with the dog and all of a sudden i see a hawk flying from a tree in our backyard, about 30 feet away and 20 feet high! It was about 7:30pm at night so it was very dark and almost no light, it was amazing i was able to see him. The dog also spotted him at the same time and charged towards him as he flew across the yard and the dog barked a few times! I couldn't believe that i saw a hawk in our backyard! I assume maybe because i have been feeding the birds that he could be keying in on it and maybe hunting the birds.

So i could back inside and tell my roommate and he was like oh Wow that is really cool! So i just go back outside and stare out into the woods to think about the day and the same hawk flies back into my view, at the edge of the backyard property about 40 feet away, 20 feet high. I'm not sure if he spotted me, i was wearing a brown hoodie and khakie pants and it was now 7:45pm because i stood dead still once he flew into view, but the white samoyed dog was right beside me (the dog did not see him land on the perch, only i did) so i'm sure he could see the dog.

The haw sat there, 40 feet from me at the edge of our property after being chased by the dog technically and he stayed there for about 1 minute. As soon as he flew away across the yard, back to where i first spotted him and beyond back to his neck of the woods, the dog spotted him in mid flight and barked at him while running after him.

I just couldn't believe it, what a day. That is 3 hawk sightings in one day after not thinking about it for 5! Funny how things work out