A Close Encounter

On a sunny day in May, I was biking by an empty beach at Heckscher Park. I passed a large roped off area between the pedestrian path and the water. The site has been posted because of nesting Piping Plovers. I spotted two of them, and saw one scurrying across the sand on some important mission. A tiny bird in a very large area.

Suddenly, a Cooper’s Hawk came out of nowhere, unannounced and unwelcome. It swooped down, talons out, and made pass at the diminutive bird. It missed it by inches as the plover raced for cover in the tall grass. The hawk winged it up to a nearby tree and perched on the very top. It sat there, quietly disappointed. Suddenly, like its attack on the plover, it was mobbed by two Red-winged Blackbirds that dive-bombed it without mercy and ruffled more than just a few of its feathers. I felt like cheering as the Cooper’s hightailed it north. The sign at the protected area warned No Entry, No Vehicles, No Pets. It neglected to say “No Hawks”.

No one else witnessed the incident and I have to admit I felt privileged to be there at the right moment to experience such a minor but such a dramatic two minutes.