Last Sunday I was at the Magnuson dog park with my girlfriend and her pup taking advantage of a warm sunny day. As we walked across the large field I spotted a Cooper's hawk flying in low and fast. A tree full of starlings saw it first and flushed. It flew over the dirt field and started soaring on the warm thermal off the large dirt field. Then another Coopers show up and shared the thermal. I spent some time talking about Accipiters to my new to birding girlfriend, and as if on que a Bald Eagle flew in from the lake and started working the thermal a few hundred feet higher. While pointing out the differences between them a Peregrine Falcon flew in low and fast from over the NOAA complex and right into the building flock of raptors. The Peregrine started to soar ( don't think I have ever seen one soar for so long) with the others and I had a field day showing my budding birder the comparative differences between them. Then the Peregrine stooped and dove on what I thought was a crow at first but turned out to be a third Coopers. They both flew back to the thermal over the field and circled together of about 15 min... So, one Eagle, three Coopers and a Peregrine all together. Not bad for a dog walk.

Bill