I still don’t know what the nesting material was.
1/2000, f/6.3, ISO 1000, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
In early June of 2016 I watched as this Ferruginous Hawk foraged on the ground for nesting material in Montana’s Centennial Valley. In this species males deliver most materials to the nest so I’m going to refer to this bird as the male of the nesting pair..
I saw him pick something up but he was in fairly tall grass so I couldn’t tell what it was. When he took off with it he came straight at me. As you can tell from my camera settings I was shooting in low light so I was lucky to get him as sharp as I did while he was in flight.
1/2000, f/6.3, ISO 1000, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
Soon after this shot was taken he veered off to my right so I lost light (what little there was of it) on his face and in his eye.
Nearly six years later I’m still curious about what the nesting material was. It could be a piece of cow pie and we’re seeing the underside of it. Another guess is that it’s a hunk of moss. Ferruginous Hawks are commonly known to use cow dung in their nests but to me this looks a little more like moss. The Centennial Valley is cool, wet country in early June so moss seems fairly likely. Grass sod, which they’re known to use to line their nests, is yet another possibility.
Ferruginous Hawk nesting habitat typically includes few trees so old sagebrush stems tend to be their primary nesting material but they’ll use what’s available. Prior to the decimation of the western bison herds one of their common nesting materials was old, bleached bison bones which were no problem for the largest and most powerful buteo in North America.
Whatever this guy had in his beak it may not be unusual for Ferruginous Hawks but it looks at least a little out of the ordinary to me.
Ron
At first glance, I too, was thinking wasp nest.
I said, “Oh my!” out loud as I scrolled into that first shot. What a stunning creature. (I really need to find a thesaurus — or just say “Insert superlative of choice here.”)
I vote for the ol’ cowpat/pie, as it looks a lot like some of the canine versions I used to pick up at the shelter (and hopefully will again, once they let the volunteers come back).
Thank you, Marty. Knowing you I’ll bet you miss your shelter work.
Could it be an old paper wasp nest?
I suppose it could but it seems pretty unlikely to me out there in the wide open spaces.
Just amazing how raptors look relatively compact when they’re perched, then they take off and—especially in shots like these—you understand just how big and powerful their appendages are as they unfold before you! Not a clue what he’s carrying, but so glad you shared this “mystery” with us because what fantastic images they are!
When raptors ‘unfold’ the difference is amazing isn’t it. Thanks, Chris.
If I was the architect and the builder I am pretty certain that my choice of building materials would be unusual to say the least. If it works – do it.
He undoubtedly would be told if the piece was wrong.
Yet another brilliant shot – and yes I did notice and appreciate the leggings.
“I did notice and appreciate the leggings”
I figured you would, EC. I have confidence in you in the legging department… 🙂
Spectacular, Ron! Simply spectacular!!! Pity the critter whose final glance is of those yellow talons coming straight at them!
Diane, your comment made me think of something I forgot to point out in my text. In that second photo we can see that this bird’s tarsi are feathered all the way down to his feet. Ferrugs and Rough-legged Hawks are our only buteos that exhibit that trait.
One of your daily one-in-a-million shots. Don’t know what he is carrying, but the first photo looks like he has on the feather version of hair extenders. What a wing span.
Ha, I wish it WAS daily. Thanks, Lyle.
Almost looks like a piece of wasp/bee nest to me but, as you noted, REALLY hard to tell. Certainly not anything I would think of as nesting material!
2nd COVID vaccination knocked me on my ass for about 24 hrs. Knew it could happen, just didn’t think it would be THAT bad.😲 MUCH better today tho not entirely “over it”. Joe just did the sore arm/tired thing fortunately. 😉
Hmmm, I never thought of a wasp or bee nest, Judy.
Sorry you had a bad reaction to the second poke. Glad you feel better and that you now have both of them behind you. It’s a good feeling isn’t it.
Yes, it IS good to have them both in – good thing this didn’t happen with the 1st or I’d be having “thoughts” about a 2nd….😉 I’m sure I’d have done it anyway after a couple of weeks to think about it…..
Outstanding shots. They really show off the size and power of those wings. A straight on shot like these gives you a much better opportunity to appreciate their wings compared to the normal in-flight shots we most often see.
I will cast my vote for the moss, but had you not given a couple suggestions I would not have had any idea.
Thanks, Everett. Regarding the nesting material I have no idea which way to lean. All three things I mentioned seem to be possible and it might even be something else I didn’t think of.
These photos are incredible – they show the amazing size of the wings, you can see and literally feel the power in the down stroke on the first photo.
Thanks, Catherine. Glad you like them.
Having spent most of my life around and in, cow poop, I’m pretty sure that is the bottom side of a pile of cow manure that was sitting on grass. The edges are a little bleached out like an old cow flop.
Porcupine, I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s what it was. Cows are (far too) common in this part of the Centennial Valley.
For what it’s worth anyone who’s spent most of their life “around and in cow poop” has my respect… 🙂
Feel the same way about chicken poop? 🙂
Maybe a little less so…