A "Ground-dwelling" Caracara in Flight

On my walk along the Medina River Greenway on Wednesday, October 19, a large bird took off from the top of a tree. At first I thought it was a black vulture, but as soon as its wings and tail were fully spread in a soaring glide, I realized it was a caracara. It proceeded to demonstrate its flying ability which, for a bird that is supposed to be primarily ground-dwelling, is absolutely beautiful.

I seem to have a special rapport with the large, soaring birds. The caracara has a wingspan of close to four feet, about the same as a large hawk. It is just a little bit smaller than the ospreys featured in previous posts.

In addition to circling overhead several times coming fairly close on one pass, this caracara seemed to make a point of flying between me and the sun on a couple of passes. While making it more difficult to photograph, this made the pattern of its plumage especially vibrant. It also appeared symbolically appropriate given this Mexican eagle's (as it is also known) role in legend and folklore.

For more photos of caracaras, see also the posts of Thursday, September 1 and Thursday, September 15.