Field Guide/Birds/Buteo jamaicensis
| Red-tailed Hawk | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||||||||||||
| Scientific Classification | ||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||
| Binomial name | ||||||||||||||
| Buteo jamaicensis |
The Red-tailed Hawk, Buteo jamaicensis, is a large hawk.
Adults have a dark mark on the underwing, between the body and the wrist (the patagium). They have broad wings; some but not all colour variations have a red tail and a dark band across the belly. Eastern birds have a dark red tail; there are two main colour variations:
- Light morph birds are mainly brown on the upperparts and white on the underparts and underwings; they show a belly band.
- Dark morph birds are very dark brown on both upperparts and underparts; they have lighter parts on the underwings.
Other variations are:
- Harlan's Hawk has very dark plumage; the tail may be reddish or grey. It is found in the west from Alaska to Texas.
- Krider's Hawk is paler on the head than the eastern birds; the tail may be pinkish or white. It is mainly found in the central prairies.
Their breeding habitat is open country with high perches across most of North America. They build a stick nest in a large tree, cactus or on a cliff edge; they may also nest on man-made structures.
In most of the United States, Red-tailed Hawks are permanent residents. Northern birds migrate further south.
 |
|
Red-tailed Hawk, light morph, in soaring flight |
These birds wait on a high perch and swoop down on prey; they may also patrol open areas. They mainly eat small mammals, birds and reptiles.
In flight, these birds soar with wings in a slight dihedral, flapping as little as possible.
