Red-tailed Hawk (Chicken Hawk, Red-tail)

A magnificent large hawk with broad wings and a short, wide tail. Adults typically feature a rich brick-red tail (though absent in juveniles), brown upperparts, and pale underparts with a characteristic streaked belly band

Dark brown tips transitioning into distinctive pale grayish-brown or whitish banding against a darker brownish background, featuring a prominent thick white or ivory-colored central rachis

Strongly pennaceous through the upper vane with tightly interlocked barbicels, transitioning to a semiplume or plumulaceous structure near the base with loose, fluffy downy barbs

Stiff and firm along the vane for aerodynamic efficiency, with a smooth matte finish and softer, fluffy down near the calamus base

Robust pale ivory rachis combined with distinctive dark brown and pale greyish-white horizontal barring near the middle and basal sections

Extremely adaptable, found in deserts, scrublands, urban areas, agricultural fields, coniferous and deciduous forests, and grasslands

Widespread throughout North America, ranging from Alaska and northern Canada down through Central America and the Caribbean

Acts as an apex avian predator helping to regulate rodent and small mammal populations, serving as an important ecological indicator of grassland and forest health

Swainson's Hawk, Rough-legged Hawk, and Ferruginous Hawk, which share similar size profiles but differ in specific bar-pattern details and rachis coloration

Red-tailed Hawks have phenomenal vision, capable of spotting a mouse from a height of 100 feet, and are frequently featured in films and media whenever a hawk screech is needed

Good overall condition, mostly intact vane with minor wear at the extreme tip and some fluffy basal barbs remaining