I made a very interesting stop this afternoon along Hairetown Rd in Washington Co., TN. First I flushed 3 Bobwhite, proceeding on a few yards and trying to ID the smaller birds in the area, I spotted a Barred Owl on a low limb a mere 30 yards away, partially hidden by a tree trunk. Several minutes latter the owl flew off another 30 yards. I immediately started hearing the chatter of a Belted Kingfisher which never seemed to let up. It then became apparent that the Kingfisher was very upset about the presence of the owl around its little oxidation pond. The owl would fly between trees on opposite sides of the pond as would the chattering Kingfisher. One was harassing the other but it was hard to say for certain who was harassing who, maybe it was mutual. After about five minutes of this harried dance, I heard the cry of a Red-tailed Hawk from near by. The hawk must have been attracted by all the fuss that the Kingfisher was making. The owl turned toward the direction of the hawk's cry and assumed a threat posture, with its wings pulled forward and fanned around its face. It was at this point I saw the hawk fly over the owl and land in a tree across from the pond. The hawk made three or four more cries and moved on. When the hawk showed up the Kingfisher wasn't seen or heard again. Besides the interesting SHOW, the mix of birds seen in this little area was impressive.
Northern Bobwhite - 3Red-tailed Hawk Mourning Dove
Barred Owl
Belted Kingfisher
Downy Woodpecker - 2
Pileated Woodpecker - 1
Carolina Chickadee - 2
White-breasted Nuthatch - 1
Carolina Wren - 5
Northern Mockingbird - 1
White-crowned Sparrow - 1 (at least)
Northern Cardinal ++
David Hunt
Gray, TN
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