These large raptors, despite being relatively common across the US, are often prompt to abort their perches in response to approaching humans, earning them a rather shy reputation. This lovely lady, however, is much different.

The first time I met her was approximately a month ago. She was perched atop a dead tree overlooking a small canal. For the several proceeding days, she remained at her post from sunrise until late morning each day. This handsome hawk had such little concern for passing humans that groups could walk directly beneath her 20ish foot tall perch without reaction. I later learned from a fellow naturalist that she had captured a coot (a black bird similar to a duck, not a grumpy old man) and dropped it while landing on the very perch she frequented. The deceased bird then plummeted into the weedy waterway beneath. For days, it seemed as though Miss Redtail had been lamenting her lost meal. Before you read any further, I must note that I’ve never before heard of or encountered a red-tailed hawk with a taste for duck.

Several days following my last encounter with this stunning raptor perched atop her tree, I arrived at the park she calls home in the late afternoon, breaking my classic morning visitation cycle. Soon after beginning down the trail, two young women excitedly pointed out the “Cooper’s hawk” perched in the lower branches of a massive cottonwood tree. Sure enough, this coop turned out to be Miss Redtail. She was tearing apart yet another coot!

Despite her human tolerance, 3 excited onlookers was just too much so she hopped just a few feet higher. Before her short jaunt however, the lovely lady carefully considered how to reach the nearby branch, cocking her head from side to side. One could almost sense her memory of the last lost lunch. Considering Miss Redtail began only slightly above head height, this scenario was still somewhat profound.

Gingerly reaching the favored perch, she resumed consumption, daintily tearing off chunk after chunk of the fresh feast. Some pieces of the coot were only as large as the tip of her beak! The shifting backlight soon made it tough to closely watch, so I continued on. After perhaps 20 minutes, I looped back to this spot in the hopes of a golden hour finale. Miss Redtail remained in her perch, savoring every scrap of her redemption meal until all light had vanished and I bade her farewell.

Upon our next rendezvous, less than two weeks ago, this beautiful bird screamed from a short distance away as I was reached my car, preparing to leave her habitat. Until now, we had not crossed paths on this particular visit. Moments after I noted her location, Miss Redtail flew by, landing in the lower branches of a nearby mesquite tree. Watching her for several minutes, I snapped one lone picture of her peculiar profile (from that angle, anyway) before this captivating creatures flew, eye-level, right by my head. She passed within 10 feet! What an enchanting experience!