What a nice day to spend being somewhat sick. I had a jack (male merlin)
come by and visit me for the whole day in Bothell!! He sat on this one tree
like a lot of merlins seem to do around here (maybe it's the same merlin and
he just likes that tree). He just relaxed sitting in the pouring rain and
then bam, he's off intercepting a robin or something. Misses, comes right
back to the tree (they're more fun to watch because an accipiter would just
leave, only once have I had a female cooper's come back after each miss like
this merlin). He did this about 3-4 more times, and then on his 5th or
whatever try, he caught a bird and went past his tree and landed in a dead
snag at the edge of the forest. He then ate his meal and I was expecting a
cooper's to come blasting out and snatch him but he had a good day and
wasn't breakfast or lunch for anyone. He then sat there for 3.5 hours!! The
longest I've EVER had a raptor (fun to watch raptor) sit around my house. I
figured he was happy from his success and decided to hunt later on here for
dinner (as he was making all those flights at the birds, starlings were two
trees down from him and a lot more activity was going on while he was
hunting, good news for him). At around 3:45, a starling was in a tree a ways
away, and I was thinking that he should be getting ready to hunt again and I
was about to go to the other side of the house to see what he was up to and
I looked up and he was all ready in his favorite tree! lol. So, I waited and
then bam! He was off after something, but then he did something that made me
frown, he flew right by me and left! What a butthead. Oh well, I'm glad he
was around as long as he was and I'm sure he'll be back. I'm sure he's the
jack I've talked about before. Talk to you all later.

Blake Iverson
Arlington, WA
coopershwk at hotmail.com

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