Hi Tweets & Diann,

Spotted a single Turkey Vulture Cathartes aura getting bombed by a couple of
crows over Garden City Boulevard in central Richmond BC this afternoon.
Pointed it out to a couple of fellow commuters as we hustled to catch the
connecting bus into Vancouver. It was heading E into an increasingly strong
(~25-30 km/hr) SE breeze as the latest Pacific Low began moving in. The
winds have been sort of southerly the last few days, and that seems to be
pumping some raptors through.

Yesterday, on a southerly fresh breeze, in the short (10 min) walk to and
from the bakery where I pick up a sandwich for lunch, I saw 1 Sharp-shinned
Hawk Accipiter striatus, 2 Cooper's Hawks A. cooperi and at distance a large
accipiter being mobbed by crows. It could have been a very large hen
Cooper's, but why I think this last was a Northern Goshawk A. gentilis were
the crows mobbing it: they showed the greatest respect. They kept to a tight
compact group always well behind and above the raptor from which an
individual would detach itself and dive on the hawk, quickly rejoining the
mob, much unlike the usual abusive swarming of a Sharpie or a Coop.

Kelly McAllster writes:
>...I didn't spend much time looking up at them [vultures] since
>it was the peak of frog breeding season and a person has to have priorities.

But there's help for those who have reversed priorities, Kelly-- please,
don't let this thing ruin your life any longer. <grin>

Michael Price
Vancouver BC Canada
mprice at mindlink.net