Last evening around 6:30, a small coopers hawk swooped out of nowhere, at the speed of light, and took a cardinal that hangs around the compost pile and the trees and bushes around the pile.

It happened so fast that, even if I had a camera, I wouldn't have had time to catch the event. The hawk perched on the shed with his catch, just for a minute. I called to DH to get the camera, but the hawk took off soon after.

Too bad about the cardinal; I'd rather he (and I suspect it was an immature male) pick up one of the #@&! squirrels.

Walking the dogs around 3:00 pm today, looked up and saw a couple of the usual red tails that we see so often through summer and autumn. Although they are regulars, I never think of them as common. They also did a bit of calling. Is there a prettier sound?

As I was watching the red tails, I noticed a very large bird passing over them, flying higher. Although I can't be sure, judging by the size, shape, and flight pattern, I'm pretty sure it was a bald eagle. There is one that occasionally flies over, it's reported, but I've never seen it myself. It was much bigger than the red tails and flying quite a bit higher.

I'm pretty excited about the recent raptor convention. I must remember to bring the camera along more often.