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Hawks, Kites, Eagles, and Allies

28 Bird Species

Bald Eagle

Familiar to most as the avian symbol of the United States; adults are instantly recognizeable. They are dark brown overall with a gleaming white head and tail. The bill and feet are yellow, as is the eye. When soaring, the wings are held flat. At a distance, when the white head and tail blend in with more...

Length: 86 cm Wingspan: 183 cm

Broad-winged Hawk

This small buteo of the eastern forests has brown upperparts, a whitish throat, and rusty barring on the breast. The tail is broadly banded with black and white, with the central white band predominating. Juvenile birds have streaked breasts and thinner tail bands, with the black subterminal band pre more...

Length: 33 cm Wingspan: 81 cm

Common Black Hawk

Blackish overall with an orange-yellow cere and long legs. Some birds show white at the lores. The short black tail has a broad white band in the middle and a fine white terminal band. Juvenile: More brownish. The pale breast has dark streaks. The whitish tail has many wavy dark bands and a broader s more...

Length: 43 cm Wingspan: 122 cm

Cooper's Hawk

A crow-sized accipiter with a long tail and rounded wings. Females are noticeably larger than males. The crown is flat, forming a straight line from the bill to the forehead. Adults: Blue-gray above, with rusty barring on the breast and wing linings. The dark crown contrasts with the pale nape, creat more...

Length: 36 cm Wingspan: 69 cm

Crane Hawk

Unmistakable large hawk that is dark grayish overall, with unusually long red legs, a long tail, and a menacing white eye. Adult: Uniform gray on head, back and wings. Short black wingtips extend only about halfway down the tail. Black tail with gray tip and two white bands. Underparts heavily barred more...

Length: 48 cm Wingspan: 95 cm

Ferruginous Hawk

This is a very large buteo. On light morph individuals, the head appears mostly white with rufous and black streaking. The back and wing coverts are rufous with dark markings, while the flight feathers and primary coverts are dark. Underparts are mostly white with scattered rufous speckles. The tail more...

Length: 56 cm Wingspan: 135 cm

Golden Eagle

This large soaring raptor is dark brown overall with varying amounts of golden-brown on the crown and nape. Adults have some gray mottling on the tail, sometimes forming indistinct bands. Juvenile birds have white at the base of the tail and on the base of the primaries and secondaries, forming large more...

Length: 76 cm Wingspan: 203 cm

Gray Hawk

This raptor is smaller and proportionally longer-tailed than most other buteos. In all plumages, the white upper tail coverts form a u-shaped band at the base of the tail. Adult: Pale gray overall with fine white barring on the breast. The tail has bold black and white bands. Undertail coverts are wh more...

Length: 36 cm Wingspan: 81 cm

Harris's Hawk

This raptor is distinguished by its unique color pattern, broad wings, and long tail. At rest, the bird appears brownish-black overall, with conspicuous chestnut wing patches and leg feathers, and yellow facial skin between the eye and the cere. The tail is black with a white terminal band. In flight more...

Length: 43 cm Wingspan: 114 cm

Hook-billed Kite

The paddle-like wing shape of this raptor, with its broad primaries, bulging trailing edge, and narrow base, is unique among North American raptors. Yellow facial skin contrasts with the black bill tip. In flight, primaries are barred and translucent. Male: Dark gray overall with white barring on und more...

Length: 41 cm Wingspan: 86 cm

Mississippi Kite

This southern raptor is occasionally mistaken for a falcon, but the buoyant flight style is very un-falconlike. Adult: Dark gray overall, with blackish primaries and tail. The head is paler gray on females, whitish on males. A small black patch surrounds the red eye. In flight, the silvery white seco more...

Length: 33 cm Wingspan: 86 cm

Northern Goshawk

This species is the largest of the three accipiters in North America. Adult: Slate gray or brownish-gray above, with darker primaries and dark bands on the tail. The breast and belly are marked with very fine gray barring and fine black streaks. The undertail coverts are white with a few streaks. Th more...

Length: 48 cm Wingspan: 102 cm

Northern Harrier

Long rounded wings, a long banded tail, and a white rump patch in all plumages help to distinguish this species from all other North American raptors. At close range, note the ruff of feathers around the head that forms an owl-like facial disc. Males: Pale gray above, mostly white below. In flight, n more...

Length: 41 cm Wingspan: 97 cm

Osprey

This unique raptor, intermediate in size between eagles and buteos, is easily recognized by its bold pattern and unique flight style. The upperparts are blackish-brown with a banded tail. The head is mostly white with a bold dark line extending back from the eye. The underparts are white, with a spar more...

Length: 53 cm Wingspan: 137 cm

Red-shouldered Hawk

This medium-sized buteo is named for the upperwing coverts which form a rufous patch on the wings. Three distinctive subspecies, with western birds darker above and brighter rufous on head and breast than the widespread eastern form; Florida birds are extremely pale overall. Adult: Upperparts are dar more...

Length: 43 cm Wingspan: 81 cm

Red-tailed Hawk

This is the default large hawk species over most of North America. Unless you have evidence to the contrary, it is a Red-tail. It is also the most variable, with many different subspecies occurring throughout the range. Eastern birds and lighter western races are dark brown above with coarse white mo more...

Length: 48 cm Wingspan: 117 cm

Non-vegetated Areas

4 species

Ferruginous Hawk

Buteo regalis

Rimrocks and Mesas, Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains

Golden Eagle

Aquila chrysaetos

Alpine Slopes, Rocky Cliffs and Gorges, Rimrocks and Mesas, Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains, Alpine Tundra and Meadows, Dry Western Woodlands, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Red-tailed Hawk

Buteo jamaicensis

Rocky Cliffs and Gorges, Rimrocks and Mesas, Urban Landscapes, Suburban/residential Landscapes, Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains, Chapparal, Oak Savannah and Woodlands, Dry Western Woodlands, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Rough-legged Hawk

Buteo lagopus

Rocky Cliffs and Gorges, Saltmarshes, Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains, Alpine Tundra and Meadows, Boreal Forest

Salt Water

7 species

Bald Eagle

Haliaeetus leucocephalus

Estuaries and Bays, Rocky Shores, Tidal Mudflats and Shallows, Fresh Water Marshes, Lakes Resevoirs, Ponds and Rivers, Eastern Deciduous Forest, Western Confierous Forest, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Northern Harrier

Circus cyaneus

Coastal Dunes, Saltmarshes, Fresh Water Marshes, Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Osprey

Pandion haliaetus

Estuaries and Bays, Saltmarshes, Urban Landscapes, Suburban/residential Landscapes, Fresh Water Marshes, Lakes Resevoirs, Ponds and Rivers

Rough-legged Hawk

Buteo lagopus

Rocky Cliffs and Gorges, Saltmarshes, Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains, Alpine Tundra and Meadows, Boreal Forest

Steller's Sea-Eagle

Haliaeetus pelagicus

Estuaries and Bays, Coastal Cliffs, Ponds and Rivers, Boreal Forest

White-tailed Eagle

Haliaeetus albicilla

Estuaries and Bays, Coastal Cliffs

White-tailed Kite

Elanus leucurus

Coastal Dunes, Fresh Water Marshes, Open Country and Grasslands

Human-altered Areas

8 species

Cooper's Hawk

Accipiter cooperii

Urban Landscapes, Suburban/residential Landscapes, Open Country and Grasslands, Eastern Deciduous Forest, Western Confierous Forest, Dry Western Woodlands

Mississippi Kite

Ictinia mississippiensis

Urban Landscapes, Suburban/residential Landscapes, Open Country and Grasslands, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Osprey

Pandion haliaetus

Estuaries and Bays, Saltmarshes, Urban Landscapes, Suburban/residential Landscapes, Fresh Water Marshes, Lakes Resevoirs, Ponds and Rivers

Red-shouldered Hawk

Buteo lineatus

Suburban/residential Landscapes, Southern Wooded Swamps, Eastern Deciduous Forest, Southeastern Pine-oak Forest, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Red-tailed Hawk

Buteo jamaicensis

Roadside Hawk

Rupornis magnirostris

Urban Landscapes, Suburban/residential Landscapes, Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains

Sharp-shinned Hawk

Accipiter striatus

Suburban/residential Landscapes, Boreal Forest, Northern Wooded Swamps, Western Confierous Forest, Dry Western Woodlands

Swainson's Hawk

Buteo swainsoni

Suburban/residential Landscapes, Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Fresh Water

10 species

Bald Eagle

Haliaeetus leucocephalus

Common Black Hawk

Buteogallus anthracinus

Streams and Brooks, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Harris's Hawk

Parabuteo unicinctus

Fresh Water Marshes, Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Northern Harrier

Circus cyaneus

Coastal Dunes, Saltmarshes, Fresh Water Marshes, Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Osprey

Pandion haliaetus

Estuaries and Bays, Saltmarshes, Urban Landscapes, Suburban/residential Landscapes, Fresh Water Marshes, Lakes Resevoirs, Ponds and Rivers

Red-shouldered Hawk

Buteo lineatus

Suburban/residential Landscapes, Southern Wooded Swamps, Eastern Deciduous Forest, Southeastern Pine-oak Forest, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Short-tailed Hawk

Buteo brachyurus

Southern Wooded Swamps, Mangroves, Open Country and Grasslands, Southeastern Pine-oak Forest

Snail Kite

Rostrhamus sociabilis

Fresh Water Marshes

Steller's Sea-Eagle

Haliaeetus pelagicus

Estuaries and Bays, Coastal Cliffs, Ponds and Rivers, Boreal Forest

White-tailed Kite

Elanus leucurus

Coastal Dunes, Fresh Water Marshes, Open Country and Grasslands

Grassland and Scrubland

17 species

Cooper's Hawk

Accipiter cooperii

Urban Landscapes, Suburban/residential Landscapes, Open Country and Grasslands, Eastern Deciduous Forest, Western Confierous Forest, Dry Western Woodlands

Crane Hawk

Geranospiza caerulescens

Open Country and Grasslands, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Ferruginous Hawk

Buteo regalis

Rimrocks and Mesas, Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains

Golden Eagle

Aquila chrysaetos

Harris's Hawk

Parabuteo unicinctus

Fresh Water Marshes, Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Mississippi Kite

Ictinia mississippiensis

Urban Landscapes, Suburban/residential Landscapes, Open Country and Grasslands, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Northern Goshawk

Accipiter gentilis

Deserts and Sagebrush Plains, Boreal Forest, Eastern Deciduous Forest, Western Confierous Forest, Dry Western Woodlands, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Northern Harrier

Circus cyaneus

Coastal Dunes, Saltmarshes, Fresh Water Marshes, Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Red-tailed Hawk

Buteo jamaicensis

Roadside Hawk

Rupornis magnirostris

Urban Landscapes, Suburban/residential Landscapes, Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains

Rough-legged Hawk

Buteo lagopus

Rocky Cliffs and Gorges, Saltmarshes, Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains, Alpine Tundra and Meadows, Boreal Forest

Short-tailed Hawk

Buteo brachyurus

Southern Wooded Swamps, Mangroves, Open Country and Grasslands, Southeastern Pine-oak Forest

Swainson's Hawk

Buteo swainsoni

Suburban/residential Landscapes, Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Swallow-tailed Kite

Elanoides forficatus

Open Country and Grasslands, Oak Savannah and Woodlands, Southeastern Pine-oak Forest, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

White-tailed Hawk

Geranoaetus albicaudatus

Open Country and Grasslands

White-tailed Kite

Elanus leucurus

Coastal Dunes, Fresh Water Marshes, Open Country and Grasslands

Zone-tailed Hawk

Buteo albonotatus

Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains, Western Confierous Forest, Dry Western Woodlands, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Forest and Woodlands

21 species