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Posted by Angel & Mariel on 15:59:14 09/25/07
Hi everyone,
This morning after taking Mariel to work I was driving on the 826 South on the way home when the sky started to clear up a bit so I decided to make a stop at the lake and the cow pastures in the area. Melato had reported a Bald Eagle about a month ago at a dead tree in the middle of one of the fields near the lake. So I have been checking the area periodically to look for raptors. This morning I passed by the tree on Commerce Way and was surprised to see a raptor on the tree. I parked and walked across the street to get a closer look. To my surprise the raptor was a adult female Northern Harrier, this is my first Harrier of the season last year we observed two adult males soaring over our home on two separate occasions. The bird was perched low about ten feet off the ground on a dead tree in the middle of the field. I stood at the edge of the fence and observed the bird for about fifteen minutes. I was able to see the facial disc it reminded me of an owl. When it decided to take off toward the lake and that is when I was able to further confirm the Harrier by the white uppertail coverts. It was nice to enjoy a gloomy morning with such a majestic raptor.
After the Harrier left I checked out other areas and found the following:
1 Northern Harrier (female) FOS
1 Osprey
1 Loggerhead Shrike
1 Great Egret
25-30 Cattle Egret
35 Swallows (too far to ID)
22 European Starling
10 Boat-tailed Grackle (male & female)
10 Mourning Dove
2 Double-crested Comorant
1 Anhinga (female)
2 Common Moorhen
Well we are heading out to bird soon.
We will report our findings later tonight.
Nature is Awesome!
Angel & Mariel
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