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| Pictures Courtesy of Carolina Kids' Conservancy |
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Red-Tailed Hawk
Scientific Name: Buteo jamaicensis
Family Name: Accipitridae
Subfamily: Buteos
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| Pictures Courtesy of Carolina Kids' Conservancy |
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Our most common buteo; wings broad and fairly rounded; plumage extremely variable. Most adult Redtails, especially in the east, show a belly band of dark streaks on whitish underparts; dark bar on leading edge of underwing, contrasting with paler wing linings. Note reddish uppertail; paler red undertail; variable pale mottling on scapulars, contrasting with dark mantle and often forming a V in perched birds. A Great Plains bird, "Krider's Hawk," has paler upper parts, whitish tail with pale reddish wash and, in flight, pale rectangular patches at base of primaries on upperwing. Many southwestern Redtails lack belly band and have uniformly light underparts. Dark phase of western form has dark wing linings and underparts, obscuring the bar on leading edge and belly band; tail is dark reddish above. In "Harlan's Hawk," formerly considered a separate species, the dark phase has dusky-white tail, diffuse blackish terminal band; shows some white streaking on its dark breast; may lack scapular mottling. "Harlan's Hawk" breeds in Alaska and Canada, winters primarily in central United States. Immatures of all forms have gray-brown tails with many blackish bands; otherwise heavily brown-streaked and spotted below. Habitat variable: woods with nearby open land; also plains, prairie groves, desert. Preys on rodents. Distinctive call, a harsh, descending keeeeer. [National Geographic Society, Field Guide to the Birds of North America Second Edition, National Geographic Society, Washington, D.C., 1987]
A well-known and common buteo; nests in woodlands, feeds in open country. The uniformly colored tail of the adult -- reddish above, light pink beneath -- and the dark belly band are the best field marks. The tail of the immature is finely barred. Body is heavier than other buteos', plumage extremely variable. Flying head-on, light wrist area gives impression of a pair of "headlights." Often perches on poles or treetops, rarely hovers. Harlan's race, recently merged with Red-tailed, is an uncommon buteo of the plains and one of the most difficult hawks to identify. In all plumages it strongly resembles typical Red-tailed, but the tail is mottled dark on white, with a terminal band -- never barred. The primaries, always black-tipped, are finely barred, unlike those of Rough-legged and Ferruginous Hawks. Two color phases interbreed, and the offspring show a mingling of characteristics. Some western birds resemble Harlan's, but lack the dark terminal tailband. Red-tailed Hawks prey on rabbits and rodents. Call is a high scream, often imitated by jays. [Robbins, Chandler S.; Bruun, Bertel and Zim, Herbert S., A Guide to Field Identification Birds of North America, Golden Press, New York, 1983]