For the Birds
http://www.selahnews.com/articles/416/1/For-the-Birds/Page1.html
Contributor Submission
By Contributor Submission
Published on 06/25/2008
Up Crusher Canyon Road, just past the end of the new sidewalk, is a
draw on the north side of the road with a stand of trees that has
hosted a red-tailed hawk nest for years. Following a recent City of
Selah annexation, the stand is now within the city limits. This year,
not only has the nesting pair returned to the nest, but a juvenile hawk
born last year has also returned with them. The juvenile is the same
size as the adults, but is more vocal, hoping someone else will feed
it.
Pictured: Two Redtail Hawks, parent and fledgling, sit in a nest above Crusher Canyon Road. Michael Martin photo.
Pictured: Two Redtail Hawks, parent and fledgling, sit in a nest above Crusher Canyon Road. Michael Martin photo.
Red-tailed hawks fledge in Selah
By MICHAEL MARTIN
Conservation Chair, Yakima Valley Audubon Society
Up Crusher Canyon Road, just past the end of the new sidewalk, is a draw on the north side of the road with a stand of trees that has hosted a red-tailed hawk nest for years. Following a recent City of Selah annexation, the stand is now within the city limits. This year, not only has the nesting pair returned to the nest, but a juvenile hawk born last year has also returned with them. The juvenile is the same size as the adults, but is more vocal, hoping someone else will feed it.
If you slow down along this area, you can usually see one or more hawks sitting in trees around the nest. Today, I counted four hawks, which tells me this year’s hatchlings have fledged. Our Selah red-tailed raptor family can be seen daily sitting in the trees, or circling above the open fields ranging from south of Crusher Canyon to north of Pleasant Hill.
Red-tails have a wide variation in color. Of course, the tell-tale sign is the bright brownish-red top of the tail seen when a hawk circles. But red-tails can be very dark, or from underneath, can appear with white underwings and a smaller darker area. A key identifier is that red-tails, being within the buteo family, have wing tips that look like fingers (as opposed to falcon wings, which are sharp-pointed). The red-tailed hawk only weighs on average 2.4 pounds, but its wingspan extends four feet or more. The female is the larger of the couple. It’s a striking bird.
Also within the Selah City limits are a number of species nesting in the cliffs off of Naches Avenue just a few blocks west of Lince Elementary School. In addition to the multitude of bank swallows nesting in the holes in the cliff, a pair of American kestrel falcons are also nesting there, and a pair of kingfishers have selected a hole as their home. Kingfishers usually dig a four-foot long tunnel into the bank of a river or stream for their nest. Apparently, our kingfishers have decided that a ready-built home beats out the drag of a daily commute to the Yakima River. Some residents of the Hillcrest area have reported finding little fish on the sidewalk when they take their walks.
All of these sightings are an exciting variation to the crows and sparrows usually seen within the city limits.
Conservation Chair, Yakima Valley Audubon Society
Up Crusher Canyon Road, just past the end of the new sidewalk, is a draw on the north side of the road with a stand of trees that has hosted a red-tailed hawk nest for years. Following a recent City of Selah annexation, the stand is now within the city limits. This year, not only has the nesting pair returned to the nest, but a juvenile hawk born last year has also returned with them. The juvenile is the same size as the adults, but is more vocal, hoping someone else will feed it.
If you slow down along this area, you can usually see one or more hawks sitting in trees around the nest. Today, I counted four hawks, which tells me this year’s hatchlings have fledged. Our Selah red-tailed raptor family can be seen daily sitting in the trees, or circling above the open fields ranging from south of Crusher Canyon to north of Pleasant Hill.
Red-tails have a wide variation in color. Of course, the tell-tale sign is the bright brownish-red top of the tail seen when a hawk circles. But red-tails can be very dark, or from underneath, can appear with white underwings and a smaller darker area. A key identifier is that red-tails, being within the buteo family, have wing tips that look like fingers (as opposed to falcon wings, which are sharp-pointed). The red-tailed hawk only weighs on average 2.4 pounds, but its wingspan extends four feet or more. The female is the larger of the couple. It’s a striking bird.
Also within the Selah City limits are a number of species nesting in the cliffs off of Naches Avenue just a few blocks west of Lince Elementary School. In addition to the multitude of bank swallows nesting in the holes in the cliff, a pair of American kestrel falcons are also nesting there, and a pair of kingfishers have selected a hole as their home. Kingfishers usually dig a four-foot long tunnel into the bank of a river or stream for their nest. Apparently, our kingfishers have decided that a ready-built home beats out the drag of a daily commute to the Yakima River. Some residents of the Hillcrest area have reported finding little fish on the sidewalk when they take their walks.
All of these sightings are an exciting variation to the crows and sparrows usually seen within the city limits.