Red Tail

Red Tail, a photo by UpstateNYPhototaker on Flickr.

If you have even a remote interest in birding and you live anywhere near the Washington County Grasslands, I would strongly urge you to take a ride. The grasslands are a series of mostly private parcels in rural Washington County (I think of Washington County as being mostly rural) that together make up a large open area of extreme importance to birds. Mostly known for its raptor population, it is a go to spot for birds such as the short eared owl.

It was a clear and sunny day today albeit a bit cold. I saw too many red tailed hawks to count, several coopers hawks, an American Kestrel and a few unidentified raptors off in the distance.

This image was taken with the D7000 and 80-400VR (the old one not the new one that has just come out). Once again this lens left me a bit short as far as how much lens I'd ideally like to have. This is a heavy crop of the original image.