Rio

Rio was kindly lent me by Brian Millsap after my losing Shunkar aka Birdbrain. He is a three year old passage Harris's hawk from Texas, and an experienced rabbit hunter. I am still figuring him out. After my many years of emotional falcons and Accipiters he seems a solemn, stolid little owl.

Speaking of Birdbrain-- here is something I wrote to Matt this AM:

"Got a weird series of calls yesterday, first from the local game warden who told me to call the folks who run the lodge at Quemado Lake. They claim to have handled a bird "like a trained falcon"-- it flew down onto the guy's fist but it "scratched him" and he shook it off. It also flew down beside their dog and scared him. They couldn’t tell me how big it was ( "ten inches or a couple of feet") what color it was, or if it had cuffs or a band. They tried to feed it wild bird seed. They were to call back today but said it wasn't around today when I impatiently called, and promised to call if they saw it again. It is in the woods and 100 miles away, so I am a bit reluctant to go in case it is a (10 inch?) Aspered Coop*. But I'll check with them again."

*Cooper's hawk with Aspergillosis, which in advanced stages can make a bird seem tame or aggressive.)