# Birds of prey question...



## Testudo Man

The question being...do any birds of prey either fly, or hunt in pairs?...

Several days ago, I watched a pair of birds, travel from one part of the sky, right across to the other, until they flew out of sight...At one point they came into contact with each other too...

I only had my camera phone on me, but just managed to get a shot of them, but because of the vast distance involved, the pic is not conclusive.


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## Woodsman

As far as I am aware the only birds of prey which hunt together are the american Harris Hawks.
I suggest it was much more likely that you witnessed mating behaviour.
Several native species indulge in courtship flights.
It's about the right time of year too.


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## paul 61

*bird of prey*

Harris hawks will hunt together called a "cast",


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## Testudo Man

Woodsman said:


> As far as I am aware the only birds of prey which hunt together are the american Harris Hawks.
> I suggest it was much more likely that you witnessed mating behaviour.
> Several native species indulge in courtship flights.
> It's about the right time of year too.


Thanks for your opinion...I have been told, by two locals, that there are a pair of Peregrine Falcons in the area?...and I wondered if it was possible, that that might have been what I saw?..



paul 61 said:


> Harris hawks will hunt together called a "cast",


Cheers, and also interesting too.


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## laurencea

yes, pairs will be together. i've seen kestrels and heard of peregrines too. at this time of year they're getting ready to breed, so they could be searching for good hunting grounds.

Harris' hawks hunt together, actually flushing prey and driving it towards the females to catch, but it's not unusual to see two UK BoP in the same area, but they don't hunt in that way.

In the summer the male tends to hunt as the female will be on the nest... later, as the chicks grow, she will hunt as she's larger and can catch bigger prey.

i've also seen a Hobby 'couple' hunting over the same area with their fledgling with them as they show it how to hunt - that put a huge dent in the local Martin population!


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## Testudo Man

laurencea said:


> yes, pairs will be together. i've seen kestrels and heard of peregrines too. at this time of year they're getting ready to breed, so they could be searching for good hunting grounds.
> 
> Harris' hawks hunt together, actually flushing prey and driving it towards the females to catch, but it's not unusual to see two UK BoP in the same area, but they don't hunt in that way.
> 
> In the summer the male tends to hunt as the female will be on the nest... later, as the chicks grow, she will hunt as she's larger and can catch bigger prey.
> 
> i've also seen a Hobby 'couple' hunting over the same area with their fledgling with them as they show it how to hunt - that put a huge dent in the local Martin population!


Excellent...its all interesting stuff...

I must admit, when I saw them come together mid-air, I wondered what was happened...It was a good sight to watch...just a shame I was at work, so no camera or binoculars:bash:


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## laurencea

it could also be two males disputing a territory, or even females doing the same. at this time, i'd go for courtship/mating


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## GRS

I've been watching sparrow hawk,goshawk and buzzard all engaging in display flight hehaviour over the last few weeks.Have sat and watched peregrine hunting as a pair off the coast of Dorset too,an amazing sight.Not quite sure why harris have been mentioned,being an American species it was never going to be this species you observed.


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## Woodsman

GRS said:


> I've been watching sparrow hawk,goshawk and buzzard all engaging in display flight hehaviour over the last few weeks.Have sat and watched peregrine hunting as a pair off the coast of Dorset too,an amazing sight.Not quite sure why harris have been mentioned,being an American species it was never going to be this species you observed.


I have seen Harris hawk escapees living wild in cheshire.Also various exotic falcons.
Pergrines et.al may sometimes hunt in pairs, but normally hunt alone.


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## GRS

Woodsman said:


> I have seen Harris hawk escapees living wild in cheshire.Also various exotic falcons.
> Pergrines et.al may sometimes hunt in pairs, but normally hunt alone.


I see reports of single escapees living wild but hadn't caught up with communal groups of Harris out there,interesting.


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## Zoo-Man

More than likely it was courtship behaviour that you witnessed. Many species of raptor take part in courtship flights, often involving swoops & turns. Some species will do a food hand-over in mid-flight, where the male passes prey to his mate to prove his worth.


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## fergie

Zoo-Man said:


> More than likely it was courtship behaviour that you witnessed. Many species of raptor take part in courtship flights, often involving swoops & turns. *Some species will do a food hand-over in mid-flight, where the male passes prey to his mate to prove his worth.*


That's what I was also thinking. Down in our local forest where we have Peregrines, Sparrowhawks and Buzzards there has been a surge in Raptor activity and I have seen the food pass on numerous occasions, especially this time of the year. Hopefully with this new camera I'll be able to get a few pics this season.


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## Testudo Man

Ive been working back in the same area this week, and I have seen numerous activity, which is similar to what I had 1st described in my original post...I was watching two Sparrowhawks? flying together yesterday, then another joined them...and then one more...That meant 4 of them, all together, flying very close to each other. All I had on me, was my basic camera phone, so I did manage to get some very poor shots over these last few days......After the 4 Sparrowhawks? flew off, I then saw a much larger bird some way off in the distance...I am assuming this was a buzzard?...

Anyway, some poor quality pics then...


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## becky89

They look like kestrels, well the top one is anyway  Very cute little falcons 



Testudo Man said:


> Ive been working back in the same area this week, and I have seen numerous activity, which is similar to what I had 1st described in my original post...I was watching two Sparrowhawks? flying together yesterday, then another joined them...and then one more...That meant 4 of them, all together, flying very close to each other. All I had on me, was my basic camera phone, so I did manage to get some very poor shots over these last few days......After the 4 Sparrowhawks? flew off, I then saw a much larger bird some way off in the distance...I am assuming this was a buzzard?...
> 
> Anyway, some poor quality pics then...
> 
> image
> 
> image
> 
> image
> 
> image


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## SilverSteno

They're kestrels, bit unusual to see four together as unfortunately they have declined a lot over the last few years! What you have probably been witnessing is either courtship behaviour or territorial behaviour, if it is the latter then it is likely that there is a nest nearby and the neighbours have been getting too close to where one pair is nesting.

Golden eagles are known to hunt cooperatively but this doesn't seem to be too common and I don't know if it has been recorded in the UK, during nesting the female spends most of her time with the chicks and it is the males job to do the hunting.

Many BoP will gather in groups, especially red kites and white tailed eagles, both of which are very sociable, and also buzzards.

Edited to add: It also looks like a male in your top photo


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## Testudo Man

becky89 said:


> They look like kestrels, well the top one is anyway  Very cute little falcons


Yes, it seems they are Kestrels(my mistake:blush...I'll get this bird watching/I.D.ing up to scratch one day:whistling2:



SilverSteno said:


> They're kestrels, bit unusual to see four together as unfortunately they have declined a lot over the last few years! What you have probably been witnessing is either courtship behaviour or territorial behaviour, if it is the latter then it is likely that there is a nest nearby and the neighbours have been getting too close to where one pair is nesting.
> 
> Golden eagles are known to hunt cooperatively but this doesn't seem to be too common and I don't know if it has been recorded in the UK, during nesting the female spends most of her time with the chicks and it is the males job to do the hunting.
> 
> Many BoP will gather in groups, especially red kites and white tailed eagles, both of which are very sociable, and also buzzards.
> 
> Edited to add: It also looks like a male in your top photo


Cheers...It seems this area is full of Kestrels then, because I was in that area all week and saw them daily...Clear skies helped.

I did film the 4 together, but it was on my crappy camera phone, so nothing came out (apart from me swearing) when 2 became 4 kestrels...

2 of them were flying together, when all of a sudden another one came up at them, fast(from below) then another one joined them...so all 4 were cruising the sky in close proximity...then they seemed to go their seperate ways, in pairs.


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## jamestheball

Australian Wedge tails hunt in pairs often, but not as complex as harris hawks who hunt like wolves.


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## SybilD

*Testudo Man - Was this ever answered?*



Testudo Man said:


> The question being...do any birds of prey either fly, or hunt in pairs?...
> 
> Several days ago, I watched a pair of birds, travel from one part of the sky, right across to the other, until they flew out of sight...At one point they came into contact with each other too...
> 
> I only had my camera phone on me, but just managed to get a shot of them, but because of the vast distance involved, the pic is not conclusive.


---------------
Apologies if this has already been answered, I am new to the site. I live in the San Francisco Bay Area and we have a lot of the same birds of prey that also live in England. I would suggest it was likely a pair of Golden Eagles. They have fairly large wingspans, are mostly brown, often near areas with lots of tall trees or farmland, and because they mate for life, if they don't have chicks they are caring for at the time, will travel and hunt together.


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## SilverSteno

SybilD said:


> ---------------
> Apologies if this has already been answered, I am new to the site. I live in the San Francisco Bay Area and we have a lot of the same birds of prey that also live in England. I would suggest it was likely a pair of Golden Eagles. They have fairly large wingspans, are mostly brown, often near areas with lots of tall trees or farmland, and because they mate for life, if they don't have chicks they are caring for at the time, will travel and hunt together.


Unlikely, there is only one Golden eagle in England and he lives in the Lake District (if he is still alive which I'm sure he is). Golden eagles are mostly found in the Scottish Highlands and are pretty rare.


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## Podarcis

Interesting photos though. Well done. IMO what forums like this should be for. People with a passion for natural history sharing things. Brilliant.

(It would be great if they were golden eagles!)


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## Testudo Man

SybilD said:


> ---------------
> Apologies if this has already been answered, I am new to the site. I live in the San Francisco Bay Area and we have a lot of the same birds of prey that also live in England. I would suggest it was likely a pair of Golden Eagles. They have fairly large wingspans, are mostly brown, often near areas with lots of tall trees or farmland, and because they mate for life, if they don't have chicks they are caring for at the time, will travel and hunt together.


WOW, this thread is old!!!...and yes thanks, all my questions were answered. As was suggested, probably Kestrels/Buzzards, or maybe even the local Peregrines???

No chance of them being Golden Eagles though:whistling2:not in my neck of the woods: victory:.


Here are some pics I took of Buzzards "displaying". I took these back in March this year and since they were a great distance away, the pics are heavily cropped.



















In this last photo, the Buzzards lock talons and tumble together.


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## waterdragon555

Testudo Man said:


> The question being...do any birds of prey either fly, or hunt in pairs?...
> 
> Several days ago, I watched a pair of birds, travel from one part of the sky, right across to the other, until they flew out of sight...At one point they came into contact with each other too...
> 
> I only had my camera phone on me, but just managed to get a shot of them, but because of the vast distance involved, the pic is not conclusive.


 
My fave bird of prey,the golden eagle,does.


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