A juvenile northern harrier (Circus hudsonius) dropped into the tall grass of the hillside and caught a black-tailed jackrabbit (Lepus californicus), which we heard calling for more than a minute afterward. The red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) was hovering just above the crest of the hill, eventually swooping down and stealing the harrier's quarry. It carried the rabbit off to a post in the salt ponds, standing guard over it for several minutes without starting to eat it.

A juvenile northern harrier (Circus hudsonius) dropped into the tall grass of the hillside and caught a black-tailed jackrabbit (Lepus californicus), which we heard calling for more than a minute afterward. The red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) was hovering just above the crest of the hill, eventually swooping down and stealing the harrier's quarry. It carried the rabbit off to a post in the salt ponds, standing guard over it for several minutes without starting to eat it.

The road less traveled! Thank you Waze! To avoid stopped holiday freeway traffic, I was rerouted via dirt roads through rural San Luis Obispo County, California -- and look what I got to see! This young BALD EAGLE flew very low overhead to show me its squirrel lunch, which it had stolen from a GOLDEN EAGLE (Bad photos of this as a separate observation).