| Group | Vultures, Eagles, Hawks, and Falcons |
| Code | ABNKC19030 |
| Order | Falconiformes |
| Family | Accipitridae |
| Author | (Gmelin, 1788) |
| Rank | G5 (definitions) |
| Occurrence | SM (definitions) |
| Scale | C (definitions) |
| Western UP | Menominee, Ontonagon, Baraga, Iron, Delta, Houghton, Gogebic |
| Eastern UP | all |
| Northern LP | Mason, Mecosta, Midland, Missaukee, Manistee, Lake, Montmorency, Kalkaska, Leelanau, Roscommon, Gladwin, Oceana, Ogemaw, Osceola, Oscoda, Otsego, Presque Isle, Wexford, Newaygo, Antrim, Cheboygan, Charlevoix, Clare, Alpena, Alcona, Arenac, Benzie, Isabella, Grand Traverse, Iosco, Emmet, Crawford |
| Southern LP | Montcalm, Monroe, Macomb, Livingston, Lenawee, Lapeer, Shiawassee, Kent, Kalamazoo, Jackson, Van Buren, Muskegon, St. Clair, Sanilac, Tuscola, Washtenaw, Wayne, Oakland, Ottawa, Calhoun, Branch, Berrien, Barry, Gratiot, Allegan, Clinton, Ionia, Huron, Hillsdale, Eaton, Genesee |
Forested or Mixed Forested/Nonforested Landscapes
1st alternative:
(Northern Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
or (Assorted Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
or (Mixed Northern Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
or (Any Lowland Deciduous (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
or (Mixed Lowland Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
containing:
Stand/Gap Openings - grassy
2nd alternative:
(Northern Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
or (Assorted Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
or (Mixed Northern Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
or (Any Lowland Deciduous (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
or (Mixed Lowland Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
adjacent to:
Riparian
view decision rule term definitions
| Habitats | Regen | Sap | Pole | Sm Saw | Lg Saw | Uneven |
| Aspen | no | no | no | no | no | - |
| Paper Birch | no | no | no | no | no | - |
| Oak | no | no | no | no | no | no |
| Assorted Hardwoods | no | no | no | YES | YES | YES |
| Northern Hardwoods | no | no | no | YES | YES | YES |
| Spruce/Fir | no | no | no | no | no | no |
| Hemlock | no | no | no | no | no | no |
| Jack Pine | no | no | no | no | no | no |
| Red Pine | no | no | no | no | no | no |
| White Pine | no | no | no | no | no | no |
| Conifer Plantations | no | no | no | no | no | - |
| Mixed Upland Hardwoods | no | no | no | no | no | no |
| Mixed Northern Hardwoods | no | no | no | YES | YES | YES |
| Mixed Upland Conifer | no | no | no | no | no | no |
| Mixed Pine | no | no | no | no | no | no |
| Swamp Hardwoods | no | no | no | YES | YES | YES |
| Balsam Poplar & Swamp Aspen & Swamp Birch | no | no | no | YES | YES | YES |
| Bottomland Hardwoods | no | no | no | YES | YES | YES |
| 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 | YES | YES | YES |
| Mixed Lowland Conifer | no | no | no | no | no | no |
| Non-Forested | none | |||||
| Special Features | Riparian, Stand (Gap) Openings |
The Red-shouldered Hawk is a reclusive inhabitant of forested wetlands, where it typically feeds on frogs, snakes, crayfish, and young waterbirds.
Habitat: Red-shouldered Hawks prefer extensive, mature floodplain and swamp forestland, interspersed with marshy openings, oxbows, and backwater bayous. However, widespread destruction and fragmentation of riparian habitats has forced the species to rely to a greater extent on upland forests, where human-made grasslands may replace wetland openings as hunting habitat and cause increased dietary dependence on small mammals. Forest stands dominated by American beech and sugar maple are frequently selected for nesting; oak and pine stands are rarely used.
Management efforts throughout the Lower Peninsula should focus on preservation of wetland complexes and buffer zones, especially forested riverine areas.
Habitat: Breeding: Moist hardwood or mixed woodlands, wooded swamps bottomlands and wooded margins of marshes often close to cultivated fields. Rare in mountains. Wintering: Same as breeding.
Special Habitat Requirements: Cool, moist, lowland forests with tall trees for nesting.
Habitat: Bottomland woods, wooded stream-sides, swamps. In east, nests in deciduous and mixed forests, with tall trees and relatively open understory, often along rivers and swamps. May move into more open habitats in winter.
Diet: Includes small mammals, amphibians, reptiles, birds. Diet varies with region and season. Main items often mammals such as voles and chipmunks, at other times frogs and toads; may eat many crayfish in some areas. Also eats snakes, small birds, mice, large insects, occasionally fish, rarely carrion.
Nest: Site is usually in deciduous tree, sometimes in conifer, located in fork of main trunk or at base of branches against trunk, usually 35-65 feet above ground. Nest is platform of sticks and other material, lined with bark, moss, and sprigs of green vegetation. Nest may be used for more than one season.