Peregrine Falcon Redux

New Years Eve afternoon I took a walk into Live Oak Canyon and it was a little windy and cold. I saw very little. The wash where Oak Glen Creek flows, but which is usually dry, had quite a bit of water in it. It wasn't very deep, perhaps five or six inches at most in spots, but it spanned four of five feet wide in spots. 

A peregrine falcon in Live Oak Canyon. 

New Years morning I took a walk into Live Oak Canyon and it was a little cold, mid to high-40s, but there was no wind and I found a treasure trove of birds, including a Cooper's hawk that let us walk right under its tree, a peregrine falcon that I saw in three trees over the course of the morning, a number of red-tailed hawks, watched several lesser goldfinches bathing in the waters of Oak Glen Creek and several Cassin's kingbirds.  

A look at its back. 

For awhile it looked like one of its talons was injured. It was holding it up against its body. But it eventually put it back down and it appeared to be okay. 

The most excitement was over the peregrine falcon. I saw it first in the same tree I saw it on December 13th. I walked around the tree trying to get photos at different angles. It flew away, then returned briefly, then flew away for good. 

Awhile later I saw it at a great distance in a little side canyon. I hiked up a hill and into the canyon and got a different view. The sun was at my back so the colors were nicer and I got a broader angle view of it. 

A photo in the tree without good light. 

It flew again into another tree some distance and I followed it, but the sunlight was not good and my photos were poor.