Red-tailed Hawk

It's been only a little more than a week since I watched this Red-tailed Hawk soaring against the blue sky, but since then the monsoon has set in and I doubt that he's done much soaring since then. It seems too early for these birds to be pairing up and acting territorial, but they must be thinking about it already. He (or she) was sticking close to another Red-tail, and protesting loudly at my presence near last year's nest. That scream is powerful and majestic, and whenever I hear it dubbed into the soundtrack along with images of an eagle soaring, I always think that the hawk is being snubbed and the eagle is getting credit for something he doesn't have. :-)