"The food's so-so, but the entertainment is amazing!"

I was eating lunch on my back porch, as I do most pleasant days here in North Florida, when two red-tailed hawks began tussling over what appeared to be a squirrel. They dive-bombed each other with a great deal of squawking before perching and glaring at one another. Their lunch seems to have taken it on the lam.

The "chickenhawk" nesting season runs through June, so it's possible these were two dads each competing for lunch for the brood. I'll tell you one thing though--while these raptors sat there having a pissing contest there was a marked absence of songbirds and rodents in the yard. When our diva dachshund was a pup in the range of 5-7 lbs., I'd accompany her out in the back yard and do some glaring myself up at the trees. I had no doubt that from the air she looked like she had a large bull's-eye painted on her back. Fortunately, she outgrew the danger within a few months. I wouldn't mind if the raptors put a dent in the rodent population now that the dog's past her mouser days, but I'd hate to see them scare off the songbirds.