Entry Two: Cooper Hawk and Red-Tailed Hawk Observed in Local Park
One of the most exciting observation I made were the hawks in my local park. The Cooper Hawk was just perched on top of what looked like a nest box while the Red-Tailed Hawk was circling above the neighboring golf course. I was very fortunate to snap pictures of both.
I was shocked to see hawks in a local park that I’ve lived 15 minutes away from for my 20 years of being alive. I always thought they lived deep in the woods and preyed on small mammals. I was very wrong.
Red-Tailed Hawks are very adaptable and they can live in deserts, woodlands or even farmlands, but they require open space to hunt (Biokids, University of Michigan). This could explain why the one I saw was circling a golf course, which is just an open grass field. Cooper Hawks, however, prefer the woods more than an urban setting. Their bodies and tail feathers even seem more streamlined, making it a skilled flyer that can navigate the trees in a forest (All About Birds). However, since Cooper Hawks prey mainly on small birds, it may be there for the abundant pigeons, seagulls or House Sparrows present in the park.
To give background the pond in Almansor doesn’t look the greatest, but it supports various fish species, turtles, frogs, various waterfowl and tertiary consumers such as Great Blue Heron and Double-Crested Cormorant. It’s more than just a few animals, there’s a complete ecosystem.
It made me think about the Oak Grove Disc Golf Course that had plans to be improved, and how it could be beneficial to biodiversity around it if the correct design was implemented and resources were managed. According to a study about the effects of a golf courses’ fertilizer and pesticides on salamanders, it showed that there was no significant impact on the ground and surface water from the chemicals. As a result, the salamanders, an “indicator” species, were doing fine (Conette, 2014). It further pushes the idea that golf courses could be beneficial to conservation or at least not damage it.
With that being said, it’s important to strike a balance between the renovation of a golf course and the health of its environment.
Work Cited
“Cooper's Hawk.” , Life History, All About Birds - Cornell Lab of Ornithology, www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Coopers_Hawk/lifehistory.
“Could Golf Courses Actually Boost Conservation?” Conservation, 14 May 2014, www.conservationmagazine.org/2014/04/could-golf-courses-actually-boost-conservation/.
“Red-Tailed Hawk.” , Life History, All About Birds - Cornell Lab of Ornithology, www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/red-tailed_hawk/lifehistory#at_behavior.
Web, Animal Diversity. “Critter Catalog.” BioKIDS - Kids' Inquiry of Diverse Species, Accipiter Cooperii, Cooper's Hawk: INFORMATION, www.biokids.umich.edu/critters/Accipiter_cooperii/.
Web, Animal Diversity. “Critter Catalog.” BioKIDS - Kids' Inquiry of Diverse Species, Buteo Jamaicensis, Red-Tailed Hawk: INFORMATION, www.biokids.umich.edu/critters/Buteo_jamaicensis/.
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