Cooper's Caper

I'm sitting at my computer - commenting to Heather in point of fact - when two birds zoom past my window. One bird trails directly behind the other as if in hot pursuit. Their high-speed chase catches my eye and my immediate thought is that the pursuer is a bit larger than the pursued. I turn from the computer, follow their trajectory, and discover a Cooper's hawk bound hell for leather after some hapless mourning dove. My guess is that the dove was feeding at one of my backyard feeding stations when the hawk decided he simply needed a quick morning meal. Only the fact that mourning doves themselves are swift in flight saved it from dire consequences. After giving up the chase at the end of my street, the Cooper's hawk turned and settled on the top of the house across the cul-de-sac. It rested some few minutes, giving me beautiful views through my binoculars, before flying off into the woods.

Cooper's hawks are nature's bird eating machines. My mourning dove doesn't know (well, maybe it does) how close it came to being a mid-morning alfresco snack. (Oh, and please don't think I took the photo; I swiped it off the net.)
K-