Wildlife At Home Depot

I love nature. It's bloody, cruel and funny. Wonder if this will cause Home Depot stock to drop.

Personally, I shop at Lowe's.

NORTH OLMSTED, Ohio — One visitor to Home Depot has been hunting for more than home improvement items.

A Cooper's hawk has been flying above the stocked shelves at a suburban Cleveland store for more than a week while feeding on pigeons that live in the rafters.

The brown bird's three-foot wing span casts a moving shadow across the concrete floor, causing customers and workers to duck and cock their heads toward the 25-foot ceiling.

The hawk entered the store through an open door while chasing a pigeon last Saturday. It caught its prey above the electrical aisle, worker Craig Warth said. Witnesses saw the hawk rip the pigeon apart and feed until nothing was left but feathers and claws.

"It wasn't a pretty sight," said Terry McGuire, assistant manager. "Some of the customers were upset. Some said it was the neatest thing they had ever seen."

Workers said about 15 pigeons were living in the store, but since the hawk arrived, few are left. Cooper's hawks are a protected species, so the bird can't be harmed or killed.

Local wildlife experts say the hawk will likely leave when the pigeons are gone.

One of the Amazon links is to the Home Depot Bird Feeder kit. Wonder if it includes pigeons.

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  • 1 - Bruce Kratofil

    Feb 25, 2004 at 4:39 pm

    The wire services were a little slow picking up this story -- over the weekend some wildlife experts stayed in the store after hours and safely snared the hawk, and then took it to a good-sized park not far away and released it.

    Cue the "Born Free" music.....

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