Tag: raptorhunt

April 19th – Sometimes it’s necessary to point out the less pleasant side of nature. Sorry.

I occasionally get messages and mail from people worried, because they’ve seen pairs of almost intact bird wings at Chasewater or near other places where water bird congregate. The finders of these grisly leftovers sometimes think these are signs of human cruelty.

Relax, they aren’t – but they are a sign that nature is red in tooth an claw. Foxes and avian predators will take birds who roost close to the edge of the lake, or in the case of raptors, take birds on the surface – gulls, ducks, small geese, even swans on occasion in the case of Reynard if he’s hungry and brave enough. 

There isn’t much meat in the wings, which are mostly bone, skin, feather and sinew, so they are discarded as being not worth the effort. Experienced predators cut them off cleanly, and one often finds them discarded. This pair, I think maybe from a gull, were near the dam on Pool Road. I’ve seen 7 pairs so far this year.

Nature is horrid sometimes.