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SidneyB次元官网网址檚 little hawk with pluck continues to thrive

Stolen from its nest by eagles, Spunky the hawk continues to astound observers
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A hawk that survived growing up in an eagleB次元官网网址檚 nest in Sidney continues to astound bird experts B次元官网网址 especially for its sheer pluck.

A red-tailed hawk chick was apparently taken by a pair of eagles back in late May or early June, and dropped in a large nest near Somerset Road, close to Roberts Bay in Sidney. Observers saw two hawklets in the nest B次元官网网址 but only one survived. A few experts figured at the time the hawks were taken as a food source for the young eaglets.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoXuP_9c6Rg

But the male hawk, or Spunky, as heB次元官网网址檚 become known to most people who have been watching his amazing survival, was never eaten. (HeB次元官网网址檚 also known by a few other names, like Stephen Colbert, Hawklet and Little Big Bird.) He fledged from the nest before his adoptive sisters and has been flying weeks prior to the young eagles and shows signs of normal hawk behaviour B次元官网网址 aided by some well-meaning human neighbours.

B次元官网网址淚 thought his chances were zilch at first,B次元官网网址 said Dave Hancock, founder of the Hancock Wildlife Foundation which monitors eagles via cameras placed around the province.

B次元官网网址淏ut I didnB次元官网网址檛 say so at first. You have to be optimistic. And you can, because he does new things every day!B次元官网网址

Hancock said observers have seen the hawk fly around the entire Roberts Bay area, and even soar with the family of eagles closer to the airport land. That bodes will for the hawk, Hancock said, as it exposes him to some of the things hawks normally do.

https://youtu.be/Uq_Cm8C01cs

However, says Dr. David Bird, Emeritus Professor of Wildlife Biology, McGill University, it was the hawkB次元官网网址檚 attitude that helped him survive.

B次元官网网址淚t was the attitude of the little hawk, in between its eagle B次元官网网址榮iblingsB次元官网网址,B次元官网网址 he explained, B次元官网网址渆specially its aggression in getting food from the other eagles.B次元官网网址

Bird added the abundance of food brought by the parent eagles also played a role. Had the eaglets been starving, or bored, they could have easily dispatched the hawk. And thanks to the fact hawks grow faster than eagles, it was able to fly out of the nest first B次元官网网址 coming back for food, which at times it took right out from under the eaglesB次元官网网址 beaks.

Bird said the hawk is at the stage now where itB次元官网网址檚 trying to forage for food. ItB次元官网网址檚 been seen pecking at seaweed on nearby beaches B次元官网网址 behaviour of eagles, not generally of hawks, he said. For the hawk to survive in the long-term, Bird continued, it needs to forage for mice, rats, small rabbits and even carrion B次元官网网址 and stay away from other eagles. He explained that once predators like eagles and hawks leave the nest, itB次元官网网址檚 almost an every-bird-for-itself situation.

B次元官网网址淭hey effectively donB次元官网网址檛 like each other.B次元官网网址

How the hawk survives after the eagles have all left and migrated north, will be a key factor.

Hancock said hawks either stay in a general area or move around. He said there have been hawks in this area from as far away as Puget Sound and Alberta. He added some food hawks typically eat has been left in the open for it to sample, in the hopes of getting it used to that sort of prey.

Bird added itB次元官网网址檚 a shame the hawk was never banded or had a tracker attached to it, as from a scientific level, seeing how the story goes B次元官网网址 and potentially ends B次元官网网址 would be fascinating.

Both Bird and Hancock agree that the hawkB次元官网网址檚 survival this long has been unique B次元官网网址 especially how itB次元官网网址檚 been so public and visible for interested humans.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 a wonder to me, as a biologist, that heB次元官网网址檚 made it this far,B次元官网网址 Hancock said.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 a wonderful story,B次元官网网址 added Bird, who lives in Sidney. B次元官网网址淲e may never see something like this happen again soon B次元官网网址 and itB次元官网网址檚 right in my back yard.B次元官网网址

Both Bird and Hancock say the hawk seems to have also adopted the neighbourhood, showing little fear of people, but not letting them near him B次元官网网址 which is a good thing. Some people have suggested it be captured and habituated to other hawks.

But Bird said thatB次元官网网址檚 not going to happen as long as the hawk is healthy and has a fighting chance B次元官网网址 something itB次元官网网址檚 already shown to have all on its own.

There is now talk of creating a movie or documentary about the hawk, especially with the abundance of photos and video out there.

Bird said the whole thing has created new stories for people in the Sidney neighbourhood B次元官网网址 stories they hope to share early next month, during a planned gathering in that part of the community.

By then, Bird said, itB次元官网网址檚 likely the hawk will be long gone. But the experience and the stories remain.

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