One for Throwback Thursday to this past October and a photoshoot with HawkQuest.

These awesome raptors are found in the southwestern United States and I have never seen one in the wild unfortunately. Thankfully, events such as the one I did a couple of months ago allow me to photograph them.

Here, this hawk is seen flying just above the ground as it returns to its trainer. No doubt this is not something you would want to see if you were a rabbit or mouse. 😉 

I find Harris’s hawks entirely fascinating as they have some behaviors that are quite unlike other raptors. They are extraordinarily social, oftentimes hunting and breeding in groups.

Next weekend, weather permitting, I am going to take part in a raptor photoshoot. Certainly, I prefer to get my pics of creatures in the wild but these events are great ways to see creatures I wouldn’t normally plus they are fantastic ways to work on perfecting technique.

This image is from a couple years ago at the last event I went to. The raptor group, Nature’s Educators , put on a heck of a show that included two Harris’s hawks.

I think of any raptor that I have never seen in the wild, I find these the most fascinating. They are the only raptor that hunts in packs, literally, just like wolves do. That, to me, is insane and just beyond cool!

Boy, these guys are so danged cool! As I was just beginning to prep my end of year photo projects this past weekend, I happened across bunches that I hadn’t shared, including this one.

Taken at a photo shoot with Nature’s Educators almost a year ago, this was one of a pair of these awesome raptors that serve as ambassadors for the group.

I have never seen a Harris’s hawk in the wild so photographing them was a treat. That plumage and those eyes are just stunning – plus these guys hunt in packs, just like wolves! How cool is that?

That is some seriously intense focus in this raptor’s eyes, eh?

The yellow around the eyes and the yellow gape really coupled with that intense stare draw attention to its face. Throw in those red-ish and dark browns of the plumage and this is one beautiful bird.

This captive hawk was one of two I had the opportunity to photograph at a raptor photo shoot with Nature’s Educators back in October.

This type of hawk rarely comes to northern Colorado so it was a great opportunity to see something I wouldn’t be able to otherwise.

What a stunning raptor. This past weekend I took part in a photo shoot event allowing me to get some way cool captures of raptors, including ones like this that don’t normally come to northern Colorado.

The vast majority of my pics come from truly wild wildlife but every now and then I enjoy taking part in an event with a controlled environment like this. It gives the opportunity to get up close and personal with the animals and is a good time to experiment and refine photographic skills.

Best of all, the funds for these events support a great non-profit, Nature’s Educators.

This particularly Harris’s hawk was one of a pair that put on a fantastic flight demonstration. Both are actually hunting birds, used by their owner in the ancient art of falconry.

Harris’s hawks are typically found in the southwestern United States. Most notably, they are very social and in fact hunt in packs – just like wolves! That has to scare a lot of rabbits!