Field Trip with Ed Sones
Raptors Up Close:
Field Trip with Ed Sones
By Beverly Penn
This was an amazing opportunity for our members to hear the remarkable story of Ed Sones’ and his team, and their rescue mission for birds in Central Texas and beyond. We learned so much about the biology of birds, and even more about Ed’s decades long experience in healing and releasing injured raptors. It was amazing to learn first-hand from those stunning birds that have remained under Ed’s stewardship, due to injuries that prevent them from being released into the wild, knowing that their new life’s purpose in prolonging their species is to help educate lowly humans like us in ways to protect their habitat and care for other injured avians we may encounter.
Mississippi Kite are slender, fairly small raptors with long, pointed wings who eat insects. They are not very common to the Austin area. Ed usually gets fledges from late nesters who are often injured or left behind during migration.
Eastern Screech Owls are a short, stocky bird, with a large head and almost no neck that is very common. Ed said that everyone has one in their back yard, they just don’t know it. They need nesting boxes because their habitat is becoming more and more limited. This sweet little owl did not like it when she saw the large raptors. She became very agitated, mewed in fear and pooped all over Ed.
If you hear a hawk, it’s probably a Red Shoulder hawk. They are more vocal than the Red Tailed Hawk. Beak trimming is important and wild ones trim their beak on prey and trees. They usually live in riparian areas and feed on frogs, snakes, etc. They are high strung and scream when they fly or hunt. Arial the screech owl was very nervous in in his company!
A classic species of the open country of the Great Plains and the West, but not in Texas. These elegant gray, white, and brown hawks hunt rodents and love grasshoppers. We see them when they migrate through twice a year from Argentina to the Great Plains.
The Red Tailed Hawk is the most widespread and familiar large hawk in North America, bulky and broad-winged, designed for effortless soaring. An inhabitant of open country, it is commonly seen perched on roadside poles or sailing over fields and woods. They mostly eat squirrels and Rabbits. This one did not have a name, nor did we know the gender. It was somewhat nervous about being in front of a crowd. It is being socialized for educational purposes.
With its long, earlike tufts, intimidating yellow-eyed stare, and deep hooting voice, the Great Horned Owl is the quintessential owl of storybooks. They are some of the most fearless raptors and will win in a staring contest with their enemy every time!
This powerful predator can take down birds and mammals even larger than itself, but it also dines on daintier fare such as tiny scorpions, mice, and frogs. It’s one of the most common owls in North America. Their feet are their greatest weapon.
The edges of their wing feathers are serrated, making flight silent. They are known to eat skunks which can be hazardous – they can lose an eye if the skunk spray gets into their eye.
