Survival of the Fittest

                                                                   
                                                                        HAWKS

1. Cooper's hawk is a medium-sized hawk native to the North American continent and found from Southern Canada to Northern Mexico. As in many birds of prey, the male is smaller than the female. 
3. Scientific name: Accipiter cooperii
4. Rank: Species
5. Higher classification: Accipiter

                VS

1. The sharp-shinned hawk is a small hawk described from Hispaniola, with males being the smallest hawks in the United States and Canada, but with the species averaging larger than some Neotropical species, such as tiny hawk.
3. Scientific name: Accipiter striatus
4. Mass: 1.8 – 0.25 lbs (Male)
5. Wingspan: 17 – 23 in. (Male)
6. Length: 9.1 – 12 in. (Male)
7. Rank: Species
8. Lower classifications: Puerto Rican sharp-shinned hawk
9. Higher classification: Accipiter

"Mom, come look quick, look at this" Baby Bird cried out to me on Mother's Day morning--I rushed out to the breakfast nook with no idea of what I would see, she pointed to the railing of the deck about 20-25 feet away was a hawk pulling the feathers from a smaller bird which looked to be  robin--By the time we arrived nothing much remained of the robin, appeared to be just a skeleton and feathers, but the hawk continued to strip off all the feathers and then flew up into the big cottonwood tree above the deck and from there it flew off over the rooftop of the house behind  ours

Though I cringed at the thought of a robin being picked apart by the hawk, it was an interesting sight--I thought that the hawk was a Cooper's Hawk, but after some research on the Internet, Baby Bird was convinced that it was a Short Shined Hawk--apparently they are almost indistinguishable to casual observers as the pictures above shows--I remain convinced that it was a Cooper's Hawk as they are more likely to be found in suburban areas and the Short Shined Hawk usually inhibits forests and woodland areas  Robins are one of my favorite backyard songbirds so interesting or not, I was distressed about the robin, oh I know, survival of the fittest, circle of life, but I would have felt better if it was a grackle instead of a robin--

Rain, Rain, Go Away

                                                            ANOTHER RAINY DAY     

Let the rain kiss you. Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops. Let the rain sing you a lullaby. ~Langston Hughes
   

Coming from a state with an average rainfall of about 23 inches of rain and a county that gets 10 and living now in a state that receives and average of 14-15 inches of rain; the past week has been very unusual--there seems to have been rain every day and the last two days it rained pretty much all day--a search on the Internet states that the last few days we have had 6 inches of rainfall--If I had to guess I would have put it higher, but it does matter where the rainfall is measured and it can vary wildly from place to place here  I always thought I would love to live somewhere that received frequent rainfall and I never really minded a cloudy, rainy day--a perfect time to slow down, sit down and read a book and maybe munch on a big bowl of hot buttery popcorn, watch movie after movie, bake cookies (and of course eat most of them)  After a week of grey skies and pretty steady rainfall, I think that maybe there can be too much of a good thing! Or too much of a good thing all at once  I found myself almost singing "Rain, Rain, Go Away, Come Again Some Other Day"--I guess I should have remembered that you should "Be Careful What You Wish For" because the next day we woke up to:

Instead of complaining about the current weather I think I should heed the words below, because there is absolutely nothing I can do about it:


We often hear of bad weather, but in reality, no weather is bad. It is all delightful, though in different ways. Some weather may be bad for farmers or crops, but for man all kinds are good. Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, snow is exhilarating. As Ruskin says, "There is really no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather." ~John Lubbock, "Recreation," The Use of Life, 1894

Heart Overwhelmed

This post was meant to be about something else, but after reading the previous post by Baby Bird, a change of topic is in order--When I decided to post today I didn't expect to find the following comments from Baby Bird: to say that I am overwhelmed is putting it mildly!

I think the thing to do is to say THANK YOU--it's nice to know that the things you do are noticed and appreciated--I love you all! And Happy Mothers Day to Baby Bird, a GREAT Mom!

Mother's Day

Mother's Day seems like an appropriate time to finally post.  Mama Bird is right.  This bird is just too dang tired most of the time to post, but in honor of my Mom, I am blogging to thank her for all she does for this family. Not only does she cook for us most nights (something for which I am profoundly thankful for), but she also cleans, feeds animals, keeps our plants alive and even pitches in caring for the littles when they need it.  This week is a prime example of this.  One of the littles was peeling a kiwi and managed to peel her finger instead of the kiwi.  The gushing wouldn't stop so off they went to urgent care for some medical advice.  Luckily, it wasn't too serious, but that is beside the point.  She always steps up to help those in need and doesn't look for anything in return.  So Mama Bird, for all those times you have helped us, even with the small stuff, I raise my glass and say a heartfelt THANK YOU.  We love you with all our hearts.  You are the best mom anyone could ask for.  Not only are you my mom, but you're my best friend.  Love you oodles and oodles.