What I found when a Cooper's has eggs, she lays perfectly still, even when you're under the nest. You wouldn't even know the nest was active, but usually her tail will be visible, sticking over the top of the nest.
I’m in Mississippi, looking forward to seeing first Coopers this summer, usually July? That’s when I’ve seen red birds get zapped in the past no matter the thickness of cover. Amazing to see.
Just don't tell the birdwatchers. They disapprove very much. That said, if you just talk or sing at your resident local corvids and raptors, they'll learn that you are attempting to communicate, and can come to understand some concise words and sounds meaning certain things. (I have a whistle song for "I'm filling the birdbath, now!")
I'm really good at finding coops nests where I live! They're my favorite species to fly! I only looked for two of my 5 nests this year because I'm flying a Finnish gos this year. Unfortunately, the numbers are really low compared to last year. Last year, both nests produced 5, with 9 being fledged in total. This year, they were at 2 each, but one has already lost one.
Everyone saying "theyre agressive when they're on eggs" and "no its once they hatch!" It's all whether they're comfortable or not. Our resident female knows all the neighbors and you can get up right underneath her nest anytime of the year and she is fine with it. (Her fledglings even get left in our garden with us while we're working. We're apparently her babysitters.) However, a road crew last year caught ALL her fury and had to retreat to their vehicles and go down the road. They dont like strangers. Poor Ben! (This pair probably also dont like that their kiddos get recommended for snatching lol) Our resident pair was disrupted by first a red tail and then horrible weather and are courting a 3rd time. I really worry now that they don't have time to raise their clutch successfully before the small birds migrate. They usually fledge in early July, have fledged as early as early June and as late as mid-august. I worry this batch would not fledge till late September.
I am currently observing a nest that was coopers hawk last year but never saw activity in it. The female was injured last June, and I didn't see her again. This year, I noticed that in mid to late March, new twigs started being added to the old nest. For two months, I have been watching, documenting everything I see and notice. I took some poor photos. I became so confused with the details of the ID. Cooper's hawk, Falcon and Kestrel. A process of elimination is needed. I am continuing to document everything. So, in the end, maybe I can know my Arizona raptors behavior is unique to itself. I had a professional wildlife photographer come to photograph the nesting family for proper I D photos. The results I'm told are Cooper's Hawks. I trust that. Then there is this behavior I'm seeing, as the weeks progress, there are changes to behaviors. Your subscribers' comments stating the female stay on the eggs are relatable as that too is what I saw, tail feathers. I have been run off by the male the week the eggs may have started hatching. The female stayed motionless while on the nest. The male herded me with his wings until he made me turn back on the trail the way I came from before I got any closer to the nest. In the last three weeks, I noticed different calls the raptors make. For two months, I heard their call and feel I learned it. I recorded it and ran it through an ID App, the results were Merlin! Now, what I'm documenting is mimicking sounds of their prey. I will hear a Dove call. It's the raptor on its perch, dives into the Palo Verde tree, and as the doves see it coming, they take flight, and one is quickly captured. Last week, mid-morning, raptor parent "A" makes a dove call and flys toward the Palo Verde tree, flushes doves, Raptor Parent "B" captures a dove! Well, that was enlightening! I know Hawks team hunt, I have seen it before. I have never heard them mimick other birds. As the temperature is over 100° in the past week, the babies are now visible on the edges of the nest. On my walk, I heard the sound of chirping, I knew it was the baby raptors. As I approached the disruption bandaries, I heard a western Cardinal and found a female in the Palo Verde tree near the raptor nest. Then next thing was such a surprise, as I heard another cardinal call, then another, the third with just a little different pitch. As I got there I could see the raptor parents were not in the nest and there were two babies chirping, one was sounding like the Cardinal in the nearby tree!! Whatever is going on has me intrigued so much I've subscribed to your channel and watch everything that could possibly help me learn. Thank you Ben Woodruff, hope things are progressing with you. M.E. in A.Z.
