Red-tailed Hawk

Description:

Large, broad-winged hawk. Raspy cry. The pair (5th photo) frequently called to each other. I observed them to feed on what appeared to be squirrels, and once a snake. Nest is huge - built in the largest tree in the vicinity (4th photo). Several favorite perches were frequented the surrounding area. Mobbing from smaller birds (2nd photo) was quite common.

Habitat:

Generally "woodlands, fields, plains, and deserts", but in this case, the largest suburban yard in the neighborhood with large, mature trees. The nest tree was only a few yards from my front porch.

Notes:

These photos were taken between late April and early May of 2008 (I can claim no credit for the first image - it was a lucky instance of "no-time-to-look-just-point-up-and-hope-for-the-best".). During the spring of that year, I was utterly thrilled to have a pair of these breathtaking creatures nest in my front yard. I watched them every chance I got! I can't convey how thrilling it was to see them every day, and to hear them call to each other. Though this spotting ended in tragedy (one day I found a headless and badly decomposing hawk carcass in a forgotten corner of the yard. Given the very sudden disappearance of both birds, I am forced to consider the possibility that they may have been shot or poisoned), I maintain hope that other retails will eventually settle in the nest tree.