Hey, friends, thanks so much for you input and greets (and patience). So there I was tonight, going down the same hill at the same time with binoculars and camera in the passenger seat and, shocking!, I know, but No bird.
Last night after I had seen the impressive wingspan and looked so briefly up into the bird's face perched on the streetlight pole, thinking I had indeed identified Peregrine markings, and that was that, I guess I felt sure enough that I had seen what I had seen, that I didn't take extra measures to circle around and make sure. All of this happening while I'm operating heavy machinery mind you in the blind spot (since I was below the crest) of a car coming down the hill behind me, so the whole thing was a bit disorienting, and now today it just seems a little too fantastic to me to have been a part of such a synchronous event. We are talking 5, not even 10 seconds. So I can only doubt myself.
I mean sometime we see what we want to see. Twenty plus years ago, I sat on a humongous rock at the edge of the Pacific Ocean at the end of a trail called Damnation Creek Trail near Crescent City, California and excitedly watched my first (and only) whale frolicking in the wild, until 20 or so minutes later, my friend pointed out that I was watching waves crash against a rock out in the sea. LOL. (True story - and I was irritated that this person let me suffer under a delusion, and with such zeal, for that length of time.)
What I thought I remember that was so beautiful about the flight - but my mind could have added it - was the articulated feathers on the bottom of the wings, that, for example, in the picture above, does not belong to the peregrine. And I don't remember much of a tail, but that could have been hidden by the angle. But I did see an image of a peregrine fledgling in flight that showed articulated bottom feathers. But I thought this bird was more of the grey and white coloring. I thought it was an adult.
Anyhow, live and learn I guess. Sure wish I'd taken 5 more seconds to look at it. I've been trying to find reports of what birds of prey might be seen in this neighborhood, but did not yet come up with a good source for that information. There are tons of old tall trees (large branches from which nature often brings down into the yards). Oh yeah - one thing is I don't have a lot of experience with crows. I think I thought they were more the size of a magpie, but if they are closer to twice that size - this bird definitely qualifies.
Okay, after I've exhausted y'all with my narratives, I feel obligated to provide you with some kind of valuable photographic evidence of some kind down the road. So that will be my quest. No falcon sightings (on my part) downtown today. Hope you are well!
|