Here we go! Several days ago, I watched as red-tailed hawk, Amelia, laid her first egg of the season. By now, her clutch (usually 1-3 eggs) should be complete. We cannot see into the nest, so do not know how many eggs there are. However, we can watch the behavior of Christo and Amelia and know that they are now in their brooding stage and will be taking turns sitting on the nest for the next few weeks.
Looking back, these are likely the last mating photos I'll have for this season:
Christo has a feather stuck on his bill.
We only see this for a brief time each year, so there's always excitement and a lot of effort put into observing this action, which only lasts seconds.
Part of the courtship activity includes Christo presenting Amelia with gifts of food. Below, he delivers a mangled pigeon to her. He will continue to provide her with food throughout the brooding time.
This is Christo in the nest. He's standing up, and when he lays down, he's nearly invisible.
Christo leaving the nest:
Christo again, arriving at the nest.
Amelia:
This is pretty much the view of her at this point, peeking over the edge. We will have to wait for the tree to leaf out to know whether or not we'll be able to see her at all.
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