Posted by Jim Hackley on October 10, 2010 at 1:13 AM
We had one of our resident Cooper's Hawk come by the water tray we leave out in the desert but on this morning I witnessed some interesting behavior. Over the period of about 15 minutes watching this hawk he was constantly regurgitating. This happened about 5-6 times. My assumption is that this was due to a recent meal that just did not agree with him or this hawk got sick just like we do at times. Curious as to what others might think would cause this.
Thanks,
Jim
Posted by Jim DeWitt on October 10, 2010 at 1:38 AM
An anorexic accipiter? A bulimic buteo?
Most owls and raptors cast - regurgitate - lumps called pellets, that consist of the solid, indigestible bits of the prey. I'd guess that's what was going on here.
Posted by Dickson Smith on October 10, 2010 at 5:43 PM
That is exactly what it is doing. Every day birds of prey will cast up a pellet of undigested materials from the previous days meals. Most of the time this occurs in the mornings. Birds of prey have a crop, 1st stomach, just like most other birds where the digestion starts. They have to cast up this undigest material to keep their crop healthy. If they don't they will get sick and it can cause death. You can actually tell what the bird has eaten by analyzing the pellet. I'm a master falconer and have watched this with my birds many a time, but never thought of getting a photograph of it. Great pic on a wild bird.
Discussion
2 repliesThanks,
Jim
Most owls and raptors cast - regurgitate - lumps called pellets, that consist of the solid, indigestible bits of the prey. I'd guess that's what was going on here.