Watching for Hawks

I took my daughter and her friend to the Sharon Center School playground today -- an excuse for me to look for migrating hawks. It's early yet, and the winds were mostly from the west-southwest, but I did spy at least one Cooper's Hawk high overhead. As I followed it, it executed a thrilling stoop, plummeting earthward with wings folded, like a falling stone, before I lost it in the trees. An ample reminder that hawks are predators, and presumably a good meal was had on the wing.

Mostly, there were migrating Tree Swallows. I counted about 30, virtually all of them moving in a west-southwest direction, contra the wind; but migration must happen, after all. It will only be a few more days until the Broad-winged Hawks really get going. I was disappointed not to see any today, but I was only out for a short while, at midday, not the best time, and there are many more prominent lookouts than Sharon School -- which at least affords a fairly wide horizon.

As we pulled out of the parking lot, we stopped to admire a beautiful, large Great Spangled Fritillary (butterfly) nectaring on some flowers.