Those red eyes...

#eurasiangoshawk
#accipitergentilis
#birds
#helsinki
#finland
#march
#spring

March 1st, the first day of spring – at least according to the calendar. A degree or two above 0 C, fog and even some rain for the first time in ages. I went for a photo walk in the afternoon despite feeling tired only because I could then put my photos in a new folder named ”kevät” (the Finnish for ’spring’).

My mood changed for the better as soon as I got out. The fog looked nice, and it was not cold anymore. I could get appropriately gloomy photos! In the end, the photo walk was wonderful – no matter how soaked my socks, shoes and trousers got while walking through the wet snow and slush. I visited the goshawk forest and saw the old female and the male (pictured). It looked like they were already having some couples time near an old nest of theirs. Unfortunately I accidentally spooked the female and it left. Damn, I should have been more careful. I took a few photos of the male as it does not mind people and then left them in peace. Still, it was very exciting to see that they both survived the winter.

I then headed to a golf course in Tali to see what it looked like in the mist, taking photos of the ugliest scenes I could find along the way. Derelict office buildings, fences, and melting snow revealing what it has collected during the winter. At least I can’t see any “land mines” (dog poop) in the photo. The golf course looked quite spooky in the mist. There were a few people skiing in the distance, and I even found castle ruins.

#helsinki
#finland
#tali
#eurasiangoshawk
#accipitergentilis
#spring
#march
#photowalk
#birds

No good goshawk photos yet this year. I see them often perching on transmission towers and tall buildings in the winter. Usually I don't bother taking photos of the distant hawks, but sometimes hooded crows start harassing them and make the scene a bit more interesting visually.

#eurasiangoshawk
#accipitergentilis
#hoodedcrow
#corvuscoronecornix
#birds
#helsinki
#finland
#winter
#january

The sky was clear early in the morning today so I decided to go for a walk, hoping to get some nice photos in the morning light. The forecast said clouds would arrive in the afternoon, and I thought I would have a few hours. Nah, the clouds came way faster than expected – about 30 minutes after I had left. It was slightly annoying, but I decided to walk to the neighborhood of Etelä-Haaga anyway. I seldom go there so at least I could find something new to photograph.

On my way there, I spotted a familiar lady perching on one of her favorite viewpoints. It looked like she was not too pleased to see me. I "ambushed" a food delivery driver as well. Eventually I reached Etelä-Haaga and walked around the neighborhood for a while and took some photos of locations that could look interesting in better weather. Better weather? It's becoming more unlikely by the day...

#helsinki
#etelähaaga
#finland
#eurasiangoshawk
#accipitergentilis
#autumn
#fall
#october

Holy moly! I've been dreaming of getting these two in the same photo for years.

"Don't bother going for an evening walk. You're not gonna photograph or even see anything", I thought earlier today. Fortunately I managed to give the finger to those thoughts and went to the woods and started photographing mushrooms. (The photos are crap to be honest, I have to try again later.) I then decided to head to the coast and see if could find anything interesting there. A minute or two later I caught a glimpse of a raven that was chasing something. I followed the ruckus and noticed two ravens on the roof of a nearby apartment building. After a few seconds the birds took off, and suddenly a goshawk appeared out of nowhere and started chasing one of the ravens. They disappeared behind trees, so I don't know if the hawk caught it.

We Finns don't smile in public, but I was not able to keep a straight face after I checked the photos :)

#eurasiangoshawk
#accipitergentilis
#commonraven
#corvuscorax
#helsinki
#finland
#august
#summer
#birds

"Don't laugh at me, I'm a majestic hawk!"

I encountered this derpy teenager while I was looking for photogenic bilberries a few days ago. The goshawk had parked its bum on soft moss. It's appealing, I get it. At first I was worried that it had somehow injured itself but fortunately it was fine. It had not fully grasped the concept of flight just yet. Huh, what an unusual hawk... It stayed there for quite a while and even took naps.

I checked up on the youngster today. It and its two siblings were much better fliers already so I probably won't see them doing this anymore.

#eurasiangoshawk
#accipitergentilis
#hawk
#helsinki
#finland
#summer
#july

I stopped by at the goshawk nest briefly on Thursday evening to see if I could get a group photo of the kids before they leave the nest. I think this is my best photo of them but still nothing to write home about. They were exercising their flight muscles and squabbling with each other. If someone walked on the path under the nest, the youngsters watched them curiously. The people on the other hand were oblivious to them. I guess very few of the passerbys are aware of the nest.

The next generation of urban goshawks. Often called the most hated bird in Finland, their population is in decline despite being a protected species but Helsinki is their stronghold. These hawks still face persecution elsewhere. Last night I read in a newspaper that someone had shot goshawk chicks in northern Finland. Fortunately the police has caught the bastard.

#eurasiangoshawk
#accipitergentilis
#goshawk
#helsinki
#finland
#june
#summer

I have photographed our neighborhood goshawks many times this year, but almost always the male as it does not mind people that much. The female has been much more skittish. However, this photo is of her. I visited the pair's nest last Friday just to see the female. Its chicks have grown so it does not spend every minute with them in the nest anymore, but rather keeps an eye on them in some nearby tree. More importantly, the female does not fly away when it sees me pointing a camera at it.

My best chance at getting photos of it. Not very exciting photos though because it stays still for long periods of time. The big goshawk looks at me for a while but mostly whatever else it finds interesting once I stop moving. This is the easiest time of the year for it: guarding the chicks and feeding them with the meals the male brings to the nest. Not much else to worry about – a summer vacation of sorts perhaps?

When the chicks leave the nest, the female will start hunting again and turn back into its usual skittish self.

#eurasiangoshawk
#accipitergentilis
#birds
#hawks
#helsinki
#finland
#summer
#june

I debated with myself about whether or not to post this photo. I decided for it because this is part of nature as well. The hawk did not kill the squirrel out of malice – it's got its own chicks to feed, and I don't want to see them starve. I enjoy photographing both Eurasian goshawks and red squirrels. But do I want to get them in the same photo? Yeah, it'll most likely be something like this.

Two days ago I visited the local goshawk nest to see how the pair was doing. The female was at the nest, and I took a couple of bad photos of it through the branches and then left it in peace. The male should be easier to photograph, I thought. I know from which direction it likes to approach the nest, so I decided to "ambush" it. A while later I heard a thud and its call.

My heart skipped a few beats: "It landed right behind me..."

I turned around slowly, and there it was. It called the female, presumably to let it know that dinner was coming.

#eurasiangoshawk
#accipitergentilis
#redsquirrel
#sciurusvulgaris
#helsinki
#finland
#spring
#may
#birds

A bird walk on another grey day in Helsinki. I had low expectations, but it actually turned out alright.

Song thrushes have joined the choir in the woods. Yep, they are skilled singers – one of my favorites. I checked up on the local goshawk pair. The female had started incubating eggs, and I found the male nearby pruning its feathers. Suddenly it noticed a hooded crow flying overhead. The hawk stared at it with murderous intent for a moment and flew after the crow.

Then I walked to the coast and spotted a Eurasian wryneck in a grove. It is not a particularly rare bird in Finland, but I don't think I have ever seen it before. I hope it stays there so I can try taking a better photo. Finally a lesser spotted woodpecker surprised me by appearing right next to me while I was walking home. It did not mind me, the juicy grubs hiding in the bark were more interesting.

#songthrush
#turdusphilomelos
#eurasiangoshawk
#accipitergentilis
#eurasianwryneck
#jynxtorquilla
#lesserspottedwoodpecker
#dryobatesminor
#helsinki
#finland
#spring
#april
#birdwalk
#birds