Raptor Day

I decided to spend the morning driving around looking for raptors and Horned Larks, and I was rewarded on both counts. The low light and heavy cloud cover made photos fuzzy, but I did manage to snap some decent shots:
This Red-tailed Hawk flew right over me, crying that awesome scream; it was a tear-inducing moment.

I wandered over to Penns Valley, my old stomping grounds, turning onto good old Kline Road and discovering this:
This adult Bald Eagle wheeled over me too, though he didn't scream his wimpy little call, nor was there a Hollywood foley artist dubbing a RTHA cry over it.

The American Kestrels were everywhere. Here's one in mid-hover:

Then perched:
I just love AMKEs.

UPDATE: Forgot to add my terrible Horned Lark photo:I chose to post this one not because it was any sharper than the others but because I caught two birds in flight.

My full list, including where I saw each bird:

Bald Eagle 1 (chased him from Kline Rd in Penn Hall, along Penns Creek Rd, up to Beaver Dam Rd)
Sharp-shinned Hawk 1 (near Williams Rd)
Red-tailed Hawk 4 (3 along 220, 1 near the Baldie)
American Kestrel 5 (near Shingletown on Rt 45, Paradise Rd in Penns Valley)
Mourning Dove 30 (Airport Rd)
American Crow 70 (all over the place)
Common Raven 1 (flying along Rt 45 near Old Fort)
Horned Lark 20 (Williams Rd, Old Fort. People have seen at least one Lapland Longspur here lately, but I didn't see one)
Black-capped Chickadee 6 (everywhere)
White-breasted Nuthatch 2 (Indian Rd. in Penns Valley)
European Starling 20 (flocks on Airport Rd)
White-throated Sparrow 1 (Indian Rd)
Northern Cardinal 2 (Airport Rd)
House Sparrow 10 (Airport Rd)
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)