VA-Birders:
At 8:40 AM this morning (4/19) while driving south on Town Center Pkwy in
Reston VA, I saw a beautiful adult Northern Goshawk. It was in the
middle of the road plucking away at a Starling clutched in its talons and
paid little attention to me as I stopped about 50 feet in front of it.
Since the traffic was backing up, I slowly moved the car to within about
2-3 feet of the hawk and it finally took flight, and much to my surprise,
so did the Starling! The Starling dived into a nearby bush just ahead of
the Gos, which flared off and landed a short distance away.
The exact location is Town Center Pkwy where Bowman Towne Dr changes to
Town Center Dr (go figure) at Reston Hospital (behind Reston Town
Center). This location is about 3-4 blocks west of the intersection of
Barron Cameron Ave and Reston Pkwy.
The Gos was mostly facing away from me but I was able to see the black
cap, which contrasted with the lighter medium blue-gray back, and upper
wings, and the bold white eyebrow. The tail had dark barring (4?) and
was rounded.
What a way to start the day!
Chuck Welborn
Reston, VA
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