Birds in Nature - images of wild birds by Richard Ditch

Species Profile: Red-tailed Hawk

Species Name: Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)

Description: Length: 22 inches. Wingspan: 50 inches. A large bulky bird, plumage dark above, light below. Plumage highly variable. Most birds, especially in the eastern part of the range, show a dark band of streaking across the belly. Adult birds of the eastern form also show a prominent red tail, most noticeable in flight. Western birds may lack the belly band, may have less red visible in the tail, may have dark underparts. Immature birds have fine barring on gray-brown tail. Sitting birds often show characteristic white mottling on dark back.

Soaring birds show broad wings rounded on the ends. Dark bar on the leading edge of underwing, called the patagial bar, is diagnostic (but hard to impossible to see on the darkest plumaged birds).

Range: The Red-tailed Hawk is the most widespread of the large hawks in North America, extending from Mexico through the 48 states and into much of Canada and part of Alaska. Northern birds from Alaska, Canada, and the northern plains states move south in winter. Seen in most of the lower 48 at all times of the year.

Breeding Bird Survey Range Map
Christmas Bird Count Distribution Map

Behavior: Prey chiefly on rodents; take snakes and reptiles where they are plentiful. Often sits in open part of tree on edge of meadow or along highway margins watching for prey; flies down to take prey in talons. Also soars on motionless wings looking for prey below. Migrates along major mountain ranges, riding on updrafts.

Related or Similar Species: Red-tails are among 11 species of buteos in the US; as a group buteos are high soaring birds with broad tails and rounded wings. In Europe, the Buteo family of birds are known as Buzzards; unfortunately that label has been mis-applied in the US to vultures and causes confusion for Americans when talking about European hawks.

Identification: Fairly easy to identify in the east by red tail, belly band, and patagial bar on wing. Red-shouldered Hawk, of similar size, also sits in trees on forest edge, especially in winter in the northeast, but shows more extensive reddish barring on upper breast. Rough-legged Hawks also have a belly band, but the large terminal tail band and lack of a patagial bar separate rough-leg from red-tail.

In the southwest, red-tails aren't as easy, and care must be taken of dark morph birds that may be red-tails, rough-legs, Swainson's, or Harris's Hawks. Not all southwestern hawks are safely identifiable.

All forms of Red-tailed Hawk have a distinctive call: a harsh, descending keeeer. This call is often dubbed onto TV and movie soundtracks for any bird of prey.

Miscellaneous: Federally protected, but still persecuted by many who wrongly believe it is destructive of game species or poultry. Large numbers suffer from gunshot wounds; even with skilled medical care many cannot be saved or returned to the wild.

Advice on Finding and Photographing:

  • Drive slowly on low volume roads in farm country and look for large birds perched on utility poles of trees on the edge of open meadows. First year birds are usually easier to approach. Use car as a blind, shooting from the car window with the engine turned off.
  • Red-tails usually wait for the temperature to warm up a bit before taking to the air, as the raising current of warm air makes it easier to gain altitude.
  • In the east, late October through early November are the peak for southbound migrant red-tails. They prefer to follow the mountain ridges and not the coast. Highest numbers usually occur one or two days after the passage of a cold front, when strong northwesterly winds prevail.
  • Be careful of strong backlighting when taking photos: perched or soaring birds against a bright sky background require careful metering or compensation to avoid underexposure.