I stood before the large picture window in our kitchen this morning and watched a Coopers Hawk systematically devour a small bird. Bit by bit he picked it apart until there was nothing left but a few feathers fluttering in the breeze.

This window looks out upon our side yard which is dominated by an apple tree, a pluot tree, and two cherry trees in various stages of spring awakening. Just beyond our neighbor’s fence stands a tall, dead plum tree. I spied the Coopers Hawk going about its breakfast business on one of the large limbs of this tree. This was an immature bird who’s markings are quite different from those of an adult so it took me a few minutes to correctly ID it. What a striking bird! It looked to be about a foot and a half tall. Its long tail feathers, horizontally striped in alternating bands of dark and light brown hung over the branch where it was perched. Its wing feathers were dark brown with scattered patches of white. When it turned to the side I noticed its breast streaked in light brown and white, its hooked beak and yellow eyes intent on gobbling up its prey.

I knew that I was witnessing something special and not often observed by humans. This was the same bird that I spotted in the same tree four days ago. I was hoping to see it again but never thought that I’d be treated to such a show. There’s much mystery surrounding the workings of nature, especially the behavior of animals. The goings about of animals is more often than not hidden from our view. Equal amounts of patience, luck and awareness of my surroundings came into play this morning as the scene with the hawk unfolded outside our kitchen window. I could just as easily have missed it but I always scan these trees hoping to spot something special.

While reading up on the Coopers Hawk in my bird guide, I learned that it preys mainly on small birds which it catches in mid-flight. It can often be found around bird feeders. On any given day I routinely observe ten or more species of songbirds flittering around our suet-filled feeder. While the hawk was feeding, our yard was devoid of birds and birdsong. With an apex avian predator in their midst, they knew better than to hang around.  With such variety and easy pickings this Coopers Hawk will most surely be back.