Hawk Nest Babies

Finding a second hawknest was a good discovery but this nest is a very deep bowl in the saguaro.

Normally social birds, the hawks in this family were very private.  It was many, many weeks before these two babies showed themselves.

Mom sat high on the power lines and started squawking 

as soon as she saw me coming.

 Always sitting and waiting--I never saw these

 little guys flapping their wings and never saw the parents feeding.

But each day there they were.

One day after taking pictures I noticed a large bird figure in a nearby tree.  To my surprise, there was a third baby hawk already out of the nest.

I snapped a few pictures and then left.

The next morning a second baby hawk had fledged the nest and I was lucky to find it branching close to the big deep nest it had left.

On the last day of my adventure with this family, the last of the three babies was high on top of the saguaro ready to fledge the nest and find its siblings.

But it was a little hesitant, looking up and around.  It looked down and steadied itself; it was fidgety, one foot up and then down and then up again. 

Mom came down from the high power lines to give her last baby conference.  I watched for a while but I was sure it would not happen before my eyes.  I took a final shot and walked away...

Three Nestlings

Hawk watching was very good this spring in the Carefree area, with more than one nest to watch.  Two of the Harris Hawk nests were especially fun, with three nestlings in each!

The trick was to get all three of them in the same shot!

Very curious little things....

After hatching the nestlings grow quickly.  They need to stay cool, especially those living in the extreme heat of the beautiful Sonoran Desert, which is rich in both habitats and species.

The Sonoran Desert covers approximately 100,000 square miles, including most of the southern half of Arizona.  It is lush compared to most other deserts, with many desert trees, including mesquite, palo verde, ironwood, catclaw and ocotillos. 

The desert has many large upright cacti, including barrel cactus, beaver-tail and prickly pear cactus, the teddybear and jumping cholla, and, of course, the mighty saguaros.  And this is where these nestlings call home!

The young fly around six weeks after hatching, or at least they try...

Flying Bunny

Harris Hawk parents and the hawk group are great providers for the baby hawks.  Cooperative attention to the nests and hunting together in groups assures that the babies have a better chance to make it to adulthood.  

When hunting the group of hawks surround their prey.  They may flush it out for another to catch or take turns chasing it.

These little guys line up to take bits of meat from mom's beak.

 Beginning four to five weeks after hatching, the adult female will tear up small pieces of prey for the nestlings to eat.

Prey is delivered to the nestlings 10 to 15 times a day.

Most of the hunting is done by the males and mom generally cares for the nestlings.

 Once the feeding is done mom flies away with her meal and the nestlings are left to peck at the rodent or bird corpses on their own.