Not everyone would welcome a neighbor who stops in unexpectedly to bathe, eat and then leave without a word. But that’s not a problem for an Echo Park woman named Anastasia, who has become accustomed to a pair of hawks dropping by to enjoy the backyard of her home on Avalon Street near Preston Avenue:
“This hawk [pictured], probably an immature Cooper’s Hawk, and its partner are living in the high trees that border our backyard. They come to our backyard pond everyday to take a bath and occasionally eat a bird. They have chased all the pigeons away.”
Photo by Anastasia
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{ 16 comments… read them below or add one }
The other day a hawk sat on my fence on my driveway I could not believe it at first, I tried to get a photo but it flew off before I could get the camera out it looked just like the one pictured above.
I’d be careful taking pictures of hawks I was you. I heard they’re scared all sorts of ways by flashes. And one time, I had one come scoop up my mouse from my hand when I was a little girl feeding my mouse. Didn’t even get scared by my mom waving a broom. Yeah, it WAS a YELLOW broom! But my Dad had the baseball on anyways, full BLAST!
Looks like the Cooper’s hawk that’s been visiting on Lemoyne Street. The finches in my aviary go crazy when they see him. I have to tell them he’s not carrying wire cutters.
Very cool pic. If your lucky, you can catch owls screeching around the Elysian Park area.
…what an immature coopers hawk….
Yes we live on Laguna ave. and daily for hours at a time, they can be seen from my back yard and front porch about eye level as they cruise on by. It’s an amazing thing to be so close to the city and have these nice neighbors. I have lived in Echo Park since 97′, these fined feathered friends have been up in a palm tree near Laguna ave and where the stairs are that go up to the next street are.
Uh, welcome to Echo Park/Elysian Park people ! Hawks have been around here forever ! Its the peacocks that used to run around here that are now the rarest of sights>you act as if you’ve seen a rare one eyed crested dodo bird ! Big deal !
Yesterday evening, I saw a hawk by the side of the road on Stadium Way near the 5 freeway entrance confronting what looked an injured rattlesnake. I was so shocked by the sight that I nearly swerved into oncoming traffic.
@sowhat
Thank you for showing us the error of our ways, and impressing us with your vast knowledge of Echo Park fauna. You’re not a tool at all.
in Pasadena, we’ve got a pair of these hawks living in a pine tree over the house. It’s always a thrill to see them swooping around our yard. Tho’ our dogs keep a close eye on them; they’re too big to get carried away… but I’m not sure the dogs know that…
Lovely hawk photo! We’ve also had a pair of owls around recently and I’ve been treated to their back & forth calls on occasion. But the most exotic bird I’ve seen was a heron, perched high in an evergreen tree on a local street. No doubt on a day excursion from the river down the hills from us.
Cooper’s Hawks are protected birds and their presence in an area slated for development requires additional mitigations under CEQA. If you live somewhere where developers are tearing down small scale existing homes and building new stucco boxes, It a good idea to document these birds every chance you get.
What if they’re stucco hawk boxes?
@ chris l.
Oh yeah man , your welcome, anytime
Warm Regards,
Tool with hipster wrist tattoo.
I was going to chime in about my myriad hawk and hummingbird experiences and how they never get old, but sowhat sucked all the wonder out of my life just now. Or just sucked.
Beautiful pic!