The annual winter influx of Cooper’s Hawks in downtown Holyoke continues to offer some interesting sightings and encounters.

The hawk above was one of two immature birds I found in Heritage State Park at dusk one day this week, just across Appleton Street from the police station. I first heard one hawk calling; and, when I went to inspect, I started hearing calls from a second hawk nearby.

Eventually the hawk pictured here chased the other from its tree, and then continued its evening rounds:

(c) Greg Saulmon

(c) Greg Saulmon

The hawk below, an adult, was one I found while birding Holyoke with a writer from the Valley Advocate, as he was working on this week’s cover story about my efforts here.

I spotted it as we were standing below the American Kestrel nest near Cabot and Race streets; the hawk was a little out-of-place dot in a tree near Hamilton Street.

(c) Greg Saulmon 2014

When we went to inspect, we found that it was sitting in a tree growing in an alley right behind an apartment building; anyone on the fourth floor would’ve had a great view of this bird. It sat for just a few minutes, and then dove from its perch in pursuit of a nearby group of pigeons.