In December, there is an abundance of Raptors at Bosque del Apache. Red-tailed Hawks watch patiently for prey from high perches. Northern Harriers cruise the meadows and fields in search of a meal. Bald Eagles sit majestically on bare branches in the midst of a pond. American Kestrels swoop down to the levees to retrieve small critters and insects. This American Kestrel was a star on the loop that circles through the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge. Every day we were there last week, it would perch in a tree above the levee at the edge of a particular pond until it saw prey, then would fly down to attack. It was so predictable that cars congregated on the side of the road and birders and photographers would walk down the road to whichever tree the Kestrel had selected for its perch for a better view. We stopped a couple of times.
