“I have a big red hawk that swoops down and perches right next to a dove nest off my back porch. I know when he or she arrives as all the birds and squirrels go utterly silent.
Come to think of it, I haven’t seen much of either the last few months. The hawk must have a nest close by.”
My office has two windows that look out into the edge of a 100 acre wooded area full of hawks and owls.
Over the years I noticed a cycle of when the squirrels and chipmunks were prolific, the raptors would move in and pick the off. Have seen both owls and hawks nail little critters right at the window.
When food is plentiful the hawks simple gut the animal on the ground, fly off with the innards and leave the carcass on the ground.
And it’s always attention getting when it goes totally silent outside.
I looked out in our back yard one afternoon and saw a red tailed hawk sitting on our wooden fence, looking sort of lost and confused. A squirrel was sitting about ten feet from him on the same fence, just chewing him out. Then I had to turn to pick up the phone (my brother announcing the birth of his first grandchild) and the hawk flew but he was actually scared of that squirrel. I’m guessing that the hawk was a fledgling.
You know, you may be onto something. Why do squirrels, who have all day to harass each other all over my roofs and decks and trees and porches and in my attic just randomly run out into the road to end it all?
I think the raptors are flushing them out right around the time we’re all hitting the road - and squirrels. We also have tons of the rock squirrels around here and now they’re running in the roads for no reason in broad daylight.