Red-tailed Hawk (also known as Hen Hawk, Chicken Hawk)

The Red-tailed Hawk is a powerful and iconic North American raptor with broad, rounded wings and a short, wide tail. Adults typically feature a rich rust-red tail that contrasts with pale underparts and a characteristic dark 'belly band'. They are master soarers, frequently spotted wheeling in circles over open fields or perched on roadside telephone poles.

Striking alternating bars of rich reddish-brown (rufous) and crisp white, with a white tip and softer greyish-white lower barbs. Melanin-based pigmentation creates the warm earth tones.

Mixed structure; the distal portion is pennaceous with interlocked barbs forming a distinct pattern, while the proximal base transitions into a plumulaceous (fluffy, down-like) texture lacking firm hooklets.

Soft and silky at the base due to downy barbs, becoming slightly stiffer and smoother along the upper patterned vane, with a matte finish.

Distinctive bold reddish-brown and white barring on a soft, semi-fluffy body feather with a rounded tip, clearly indicating a Buteo contour feather.

Extremely adaptable, found in virtually every open habitat type across North America including deserts, scrublands, urban areas, agricultural fields, grasslands, and deciduous or coniferous forests.

Widespread throughout North America, ranging from western Alaska and northern Canada down through all of the United States, Mexico, Central America, and into the Caribbean.

As apex avian predators, Red-tailed Hawks play a vital role in regulating rodent and small mammal populations, helping to maintain balance in local ecosystems.

Rough-legged Hawk, Ferruginous Hawk, and various other Buteo species, which can share similar reddish or brown barring on body feathers.

Red-tailed Hawks have incredible eyesight, capable of spotting a mouse from a height of 100 feet. Their iconic piercing scream is frequently used in Hollywood films to sound like any soaring eagle or hawk, regardless of which bird is actually on screen.

Good condition; barbs are mostly intact along the upper vane with minor natural fraying at the base, showing no signs of severe fading or pest damage.