About 5 pm yesterday, I glanced out a window of our condo and
saw a crow-sized hawk eating a Mourning Dove. It was sitting
on a maple branch 10 meters from the window, holding its dinner
firmly with a claw and bending down to take bites. At first I
thought it was a Cooper's but, on closer scrutiny, concluded that
it was a Northern Goshawk, far south of its summer haunts in
the coniferous forests of Canada.
The exact location was Bismach Drive in Valley Park Condominium,
just south of Edsall and east of 395. Although we are inside the
beltway, I have seen six other raptors while making local walks during
the past 12 years: Bald Eagle, Cooper's Hawk, Sharp-shinned Hawk,
Red-shouldered Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, and Broad-winged Hawk.
The hawks may be attracted by our large populations of doves, pigeons
and starlings!
Dex Hinckley
703-354-1342
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