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Red-tailed Hawk
A Red-tailed Hawk article appeared on cnn.com recently explaining how the bird had swooped down onto a puppy being walked by a boy. That a this hawk would identify a puppy as prey is not nearly as eye-opening as the tenacity of an attack taking place with a human not 5 feet away. Believe it or not, this magnificent raptor is notoriously shy of people and will normally vacate a vicinity when a human is within 50 yards, even during mating season. Contrast this with the goshawk, which will outright knock you off your horse if you approach within 100 yards of their nest!! The dog survived. He has the boy to thank. The fella kicked the bird—twice! The hawk gave way the second time. Let’s hope that this brave, young boy feels no ill-will toward this remarkably adaptable raptor. If I knew him, we’d discuss the bird. I’d explain that winter is tough on birds-of-prey. Much of their food is hibernating:
Also, insects like grasshoppers are gone and many songbirds have migrated south. Times are tough. But…no word describes this raptor better than “generalist.” Some will migrate south to cope with winter. But most will adjust their diet. Thus, even your puppy is potential food. Perhaps I could instill in this young boy admiration for this raptor once I explained that one of the key factors to his success as a hunter is his vision. If our eyes had the same eye-to-body proportion as his, they would be the size of a tennis ball. We’d also sport a third eyelid—a reticulating membrane that would shield our eye during an attack to prevent injury from struggling prey. We might hope that this boy would marvel at the needle-sharp point that is the tip of this bird’s beak, and the incredible strength of the 4 claws that are the main source of death to prey. But maybe these facts would mean little to a boy who just fought off a bird intent on killing his beloved puppy. Imagine the trauma! But then, he did save his dog. So maybe we could continue to educate him on the ways of the red-tailed hawk. We might explain that he was small once, and helpless, completely dependent on his parents for food and warmth. And how might our hero react when we explain that this airborne assailant is one of the lucky ones as nearly 2/3 of all red-tailed hawks die in their first year? Perhaps his anger toward the bird will begin to abate as we explain these things. And maybe if we went on educating… The bird can be found around homes more and more frequently because his numbers have been steadily increasing due to human activities. Red-tailed hawks prefer open patches interspersed with tress and other tall perches. Fire suppression in some parts of the country and partial forest clearing in others have created ideal habitat for the red-tailed hawk. Again, he is fortunate. Other raptors such as the broad-winged Hawk are in sharp decline due to this altered landscape. “Was mine full grown?” our hero may suddenly ask. At 18 to 24 inches, he certainly is full grown. He weighs about 2 pounds and sports a whopping 4 foot wing span.
There are an amazing variety of morphs, though. For instance, his chest can range in color from white to deep chocolate or reddish brown. In fact, there is such a pronounced geographic variation that in Canada and Alaska he is known as Harlan’s red-tailed hawk. In the upper Midwest, Eastern Montana and Southern Alberta he is called Krider’s red-tailed hawk . “I just wish he didn’t attack my puppy,” our young friend exclaims suddenly. Well, not to worry. He is a partial migrator and will move to points further north as the weather warms. It’s there that he will select a mate for life. They’ll display affection for one-another with astounding aerial acrobatics, including a talon-entwined free-fall toward the ground. The male and female will work together on nest construction—building two or three—before settling on the most ideally situated. The great-horned owl, barred owl, American crow, red-shouldered hawk, broad-winged hawk, Swainsons hawk, and Ferruginous hawk will all take advantage of the extra unused nests.
Like many raptors, due to a high protein diet, the transition from helpless down feather-covered chick to independent fledged generalist is remarkably quick--about 45 days. To reach this milestone, the parents will feed the chicks ten to fifteen times per day. This will constitute eight to eighteen ounces of meat. Parents will fend off weather, starvation, predation (eagles and great horned owls eat red-tailed hawk chicks), disease, and parasitism. By now, I would surely have touched the heart strings of our young dog-rescuing hero as he can wholly relate to being dependent upon parents. So, this might be a good time to speak about a sad but necessary part of being a red-tailed hawk chick. Ornithologists have coined the term “siblicide” to describe the domination of one chick over another to the point where the weaker of the two dies. This is true of the red-tailed hawk. It may seem cruel, but food evenly dispersed among several chicks, will leave all undernourished. As a result, all would die. The boy does not like the sound of this. But we must push on. It could be worse, we explain. The dominate Eagle chick does not just out-compete its sibling for food, it outright attacks and kills its younger and weaker sibling! The nourishment required of eagle chicks is massive. There is no way the parents could feed both, so one is selected for destruction. Our hero is silent. Yet, he remains with me. Let’s shift his focus to grown red-tailed hawks . The behavior patterns are fascinating. He is generally shy of humans, yet will hunt our yards and ignore moving motor vehicles. He’ll meticulously prune himself, one feather at a time! This accomplished parasite removal, waterproofs the feathers (via oil from a gland), and cleans and repairs damaged feathers. His feathers molt, too. Slowly, one or a few at a time—never all at once. Because the process is slow, the bird is never vulnerable. Compare, for instance, the slow shedding of the skin by a snake. Make no mistake, a snake is vulnerable during this process. Red-tailed hawks and other raptors engage in head-scratching. They are removing feather lice. This requires precision as a careless bird can do himself irreparable damage. A vacant look has developed in the eyes of the young hero. Let’s bring him back. Red-tailed hawks practice yoga! The boy smiles. He is back. Let’s explain. As an ambush predator, red-tailed hawks sit still on high perches for long periods. These bouts of inactivity require stretching. The bird will look downright comical as it expands a wing, lifts a leg and arches his body in the direction of the open wing. Sometimes, a forward stretch entails awkward flapping. A comical display indeed that is often mistaken by an observer as an aborted take-off. Soaring is the main method of migration for the red-tailed hawk. He’ll ride a thermal draft (hot pockets of rising air) upward. This conserves energy, as a migrating red-tailed hawk has a long way to go. At times, the raptor will rise so high, he will be out of view to our naked eye. When ready, he drifts downward again, and catches the next thermal up. Red-tailed hawks play a vital role in the eco-system. By consuming prey, they help control certain animal populations. And what a diet! Just look at what’s on the menu:
“And dogs, too,” the boy says with a twinkle in his eye. “And the occasional small dog,” I agree. “But now that you know what to look for, I say pointing to the tall evergreen from whence the attack had come, “you can easily protect your dog.”
The boy nods his head and I am relieved. Amazing really, that he understands. After-all, the raptor did try to eat his puppy!
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