Red-Tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)


Group	Vultures, Eagles, Hawks, and Falcons
Code	ABNKC19110
Order	Falconiformes
Family	Accipitridae
Author	(Gmelin, 1788)
Rank	G5 (definitions)
Occurrence	SM (definitions)
Scale	C (definitions)

County List:


Western UP	all
Eastern UP	all
Northern LP	all
Southern LP	all

Rule:

Mixed Forested/Nonforested or Nonforested Landscapes

Nesting and Foraging Habitat Requirements may be distributed over the COMPARTMENT

Nesting Habitat 1st alternative:
      (Any Upland Deciduous (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven)) 
      or (Any Upland Mixed (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven)) 
   adjacent to:
      (Any Upland Deciduous (Regen))
      or (Any Upland Mixed (Regen))
      or (Jack Pine (Regen))
      or (Conifer Plantation (Regen))
      or Field/Pasture
      or Sedge Meadow

Nesting Habitat 2nd alternative:
      Savanna

Foraging Habitat 1st alternative:
      (Any Upland Deciduous (Regen))
      or (Any Upland Mixed (Regen))
      or (Jack Pine (Regen))
      or (Conifer Plantation (Regen))
      or Field/Pasture
      or Sedge Meadow
   containing:
      Perches

Foraging Habitat 2nd alternative:
      Savanna

view decision rule term definitions

Habitat List:

Habitats	Regen	Sap	Pole	Sm Saw	Lg Saw	Uneven
Aspen	YES	no	no	YES	YES	-
Paper Birch	YES	no	no	YES	YES	-
Oak	YES	no	no	YES	YES	YES
Assorted Hardwoods	YES	no	no	YES	YES	YES
Northern Hardwoods	YES	no	no	YES	YES	YES
Spruce/Fir	no	no	no	no	no	no
Hemlock	no	no	no	no	no	no
Jack Pine	YES	no	no	no	no	no
Red Pine	no	no	no	no	no	no
White Pine	no	no	no	no	no	no
Conifer Plantations	YES	no	no	no	no	-
Mixed Upland Hardwoods	YES	no	no	YES	YES	YES
Mixed Northern Hardwoods	YES	no	no	YES	YES	YES
Mixed Upland Conifer	YES	no	no	YES	YES	YES
Mixed Pine	YES	no	no	YES	YES	YES
Swamp Hardwoods	no	no	no	no	no	no
Balsam Poplar & Swamp Aspen & Swamp Birch	no	no	no	no	no	no
Bottomland Hardwoods	no	no	no	no	no	no
Tamarack	no	no	no	no	no	no
Northern White Cedar	no	no	no	no	no	no
Black Spruce	no	no	no	no	no	no
Mixed Lowland Hardwoods	no	no	no	no	no	no
Mixed Lowland Conifer	no	no	no	no	no	no
Non-Forested	Savanna, Fields/Pastures, Sedge Meadow
Special Features	Edges, Perches

view size class definitions

Literature:

Yunger, J. 1991. Red-tailed Hawk. Pages 174-175 In: R. Brewer, G. A. McPeek, and R. J. Adams, Jr. (eds.) The atlas of breeding birds of Michigan. Michigan State University Press, East Lansing. 594 pp.

Habitat: Red-tailed Hawks nest at the edge of forests, in wooded fence rows, or in large trees surrounded by open areas. Large woodlots surrounded by open fields and pastures for foraging appear to be ideal habitat. During the Atlas Habitat Survey, 36 red-tails were recorded. Similar numbers were observed in dry deciduous forest, mesic deciduous forests, and old fields. A smaller number of reports were in hayfields, wet deciduous and wet mixed forests, row crops, and pasture.

In the northern part of their range coniferous trees are used for nest sites, while farther south deciduous trees are preferred.

DeGraaf, R. M. and D. D. Rudis. 1986. New England wildlife: habitat, natural history, and distribution. GTR NE-108. Broomall, PA:USDA, Forest Service, Northeastern Forest Experiment Station. 491 pp.

Habitat: Breeding: Deciduous and mixed woodlands interspersed with meadows, brushy pastures, open bogs, and swampy areas. Common to both the cold-temperature conifer forests and temperate deciduous woodlands. Wintering: Similar to breeding habitat.

Special Habitat Requirements: Large tees for nesting and perching.

Kaufman, K. 1996. Lives of North American Birds. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, Massachusetts. 675 pp.

Habitat: Open country, woodlands, prairie groves, mountains, plains, roadsides. Found in any kind of terrain that provides both some open ground for hunting and some high perches. Habitats may include everything from woodland with scattered clearings to open grassland or desert with a few trees or utility poles.

Diet: Varied, includes small mammals, birds, reptiles. Diet varies with location and season. Mammals such as voles, rats, rabbits, and ground squirrels often major prey; also eats many birds (up to size of pheasant) and reptiles, especially snakes. Sometimes eats bats, frogs, toads, insects, various other creatures; may feed on carrion.

Nest: Site is variable. Usually in tree, up to 120 feet above the ground; nest tree often taller than surrounding trees. Also nests on cliff ledges, among arms of giant cactus, or on artificial structures such as towers or buildings. Nest is a bulky bowl of sticks lined with finer materials, often with leafy green branches added.