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Project Noah Nature School
Parabuteo unicinctus
Harris' Hawks (Parabuteo unicinctus) are dark brown in color with copper or reddish colored shoulder patches. Their tail is long with white feathers near the vent and at the tip of the tail. When in flight the underside of the wings are also coppery in color. Their legs are long and yellow and their beak has a yellow base and black tip.
The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum is a 98-acre (40 ha) zoo, aquarium, botanical garden, natural history museum, publisher, and art gallery founded in 1952. Located just west of Tucson, Arizona, it features two miles (3.2 km) of walking paths traversing 21 acres (8.5 ha) of desert landscape. The nonprofit organization focuses on the interpretation of the natural history, plants and animals of the Sonoran Desert.
Harris' Hawks practice a behavior known as "back-standing". Several birds will stand on top of each other. This may serve several important purposes. The view from the Harris hawk on the top of the stack will allow it to see over a greater area and spot prey or predators. It is also thought that this behavior may help to provide shade when each bird holds open its wings shading the one under it.
Spotted on Nov 5, 2013
Submitted on Dec 10, 2013
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