Red-shouldered Hawk

Buteo lineatusOrder: FALCONIFORMES Family: Kites, Eagles and Hawks (Accipitridae)

Codes: Common Name: RSHA Scientific Name: BUTLIN ITIS Taxonomic No.: 175359

Birdman Mel's Backyard Tips

Overview

Red-shouldered Hawk: Large hawk with brown upperparts and head. Underparts are white with rust-red barring. The wings are finely barred above with red-brown shoulders and pale below with red-brown wash and dark tips. Tail is dark with thick white bands.

Range and Habitat

Red-shouldered Hawk: Resident in the eastern woodlands and west of the Rocky Mountains; also in New England and the Great Lakes region during the summer.

Topo Map: Hawk-like Body

Listen to Call

Similar Sounding

Voice Text

"Kee-yer"

Interesting Facts

By the time they are five days old, nestling Red-shouldered Hawks can shoot their feces over the edge of their nest. Bird poop on the ground is a sign of an active nest.

The Red-shouldered Hawk and the Barred Owl occupy the same range in the eastern United States. They prefer the same moist woodland habitats and eat similar animals. The hawk is active during the day, and the owl is active at night.

A group of hawks has many collective nouns, including a "boil", "knot", "spiraling", "stream", and "tower" of hawks.

Bird Term Glossary

Author

Gary Owen Dick

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Red-shouldered Hawk

● Song: "Kee-yer"

● Foraging & Feeding: Red-shouldered Hawk: Diet of consists of small mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and large insects. Hunts while perched or soaring.

● Breeding & nesting: Red-shouldered Hawk: Two to six brown marked, white to blue eggs are laid in a large stick nest lined with finer materials and built in a tree. Eggs are incubated for 28 days by the female; male brings her food on the nest.

● Similar species: Red-shouldered Hawk: Broad-winged Hawk lacks red shoulders, has black-and-white bands on tail of even width, and a crisp black border on underwings.

Flight Pattern

Soars on thermals., Fairly rapid stiff wing beats., Soars on flat wings and glides on slightly drooped wings.

● Range & Habitat: Red-shouldered Hawk: Resident in the eastern woodlands and west of the Rocky Mountains; also in New England and the Great Lakes region during the summer.

^BreedingMonogamous, Solitary nester

^PopulationFairly common

^MigrationSome migrate

^Weight17.6 Ounces

Hawk-like Body

Underparts

Belly, undertail coverts, chest, flanks, and foreneck.

Upperparts

Back, rump, hindneck, wings, and crown.

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America