Photo by Cleve Nash
I set up in the south parking lot and not much action other than the adult female coming and going every thirty minutes or so.
But there’s been a lot of action on the ridge that divides the north and south faces. The north side female has always hated turkey vultures and chases them all year long. Two years ago the vultures nested high on this same ridge and hatched two young. Last month they were seen copulating near the same old nest site. Today she has been chasing them relentlessly with her single chick “Solo” following her and trying to duplicate her moves. He hasn’t learned to gain altitude and stoop. He instead tries to catch up by just flying. Being a single chick, he has no siblings to chase and spar with, so Mom and Dad will have to do.
Some years back, I watched the south side female with a 6 foot piece of eel grass in her talons flying across the face of the rock with her only chick she had that year chasing the length of grass.
-Bob
