Of Hawks and Squirrels

Nature sure is funny. Unexpected things crop up everywhere, and my backyard was the recent site for something truly fascinating.

Now, in the summer, I am lucky enough to be able to write sitting in my beautiful sunroom, overlooking a park-like yard. It isn't huge, but large enough to be sectioned into a yard my husband mows, and then a split rail fence separates the second half that we have let go wild. My husband, Mark, has set up various bird and squirrel feeders and we enjoy observing the animal activity throughout each season. My cats are quite amused by it all, too, if not a bit frustrated.

Periodically, we have other visitors that partake of the treats they can find. Deer are often seen wandering and nibbling as they pass through our little piece of wild suburbia, but in the last few days, two hawks have taken up residence, and it is this occurrence that has captured my attention recently.

Looking up from my writing the other day, I noticed my three cats all clustered around the sliding door that leads into the yard. When I followed their gaze, I saw the object of their attention. A large hawk had come to rest on the top of the split rail fence and was hunched over, studying something on the ground below him. A squirrel, quite oblivious to the spectre that loomed above her, was busily snatching up the fallen seeds from the bird feeder high on a pole.

I was afraid I would witness a kidnapping and murder as the hawk would undoubtedly swoop in, grab the tasty morsel and fly off with his meal, or attack and devour it right in front of me. I didn't really want to witness that, but my curiosity got the better of me. I waited, but the hawk just kept watch. At one point, the squirrel looked up, jumped up to the lowest rail and then to the top, inching closer and closer to the bird. Thinking that surely the hawk would strike at that point, I braced myself for what I thought would play out in front of me, but...nothing. The hawk simply stared at the squirrel and I laughed. Incredible!

The squirrel jumped back down and resumed her meal. Eventually, the hawk spread his wings and took off. When he turned mid flight, I thought that he just needed to gather speed to swoop in to make the grab, but he simply passed over the squirrel and sailed up and over our small tool shed and was gone.

I thought about that all day and was puzzled. Today, as I was preparing to write, I saw my friend the hawk sitting atop the rail again, watching a squirrel nibble the fallen seeds. Nature sure is funny sometimes.