Hawk hunting pigeons

[half-dutch]

At the KMart at Nicollet and Lake in Minneapolis, there is a flock of pigeons that numbers several hundreds.

Last Thursday going home from the Super Market I saw a large hawk make a strike at one, but missed.  This was a pretty dark bird overall and much bigger than a Coopers or a Sharpshin and heavy bodied not at all slender.  The attack was a straight line shot from a street light roost on a bird sitting on the shorter parking lot light post.  It seems to me that the attack was launched from a perch about a block away.  The target flew off and there was no chase, the attacker just returned to its previous roost. 

I could not get over into the turn lane and go into the parking lot to get a closer look.  The main flock of pigeons didn't actually seem to notice, and there were even some stragglers.

Is it possible that goshawks are starting to come into the city in the winter?  From a goshawk I would have expected a chase.  There are certainly plenty of pigeons, and the local falcons have gone south...  I know they are supposed to avoid human concentrations, but then so are loons and they are now common city residents and rest here when passing through in the spring.  We are getting all kinds of wild life in the Cities these days and not all of it goes around just on two legs.