Red-shouldered Hawk

A medium-sized hawk with a heavy-set body and beautiful translucent windows in the outer primaries during flight. Adults have a striking rufous-colored breast and 'shoulders' (lesser coverts). Their call is a loud, piercing 'kee-aah', often imitated by Blue Jays.

Distinctive alternating bands of warm rufous-brown and clean white. The distal band is brown with a rounded edge, followed by a crisp white bar. This 'checkerboard' or bold banding is a hallmark of the species.

Densely pennaceous toward the distal end for water repellency, transitioning to highly plumulaceous (fluffy) at the base for insulation.

Smooth and somewhat stiff at the tip; soft, downy, and flexible at the base. Matte finish typical of raptor body feathers.

Bold, high-contrast horizontal banding; warm reddish-brown melanin; significant downy plumulaceous section at the base.

Deciduous and mixed woodlands, often near water sources like rivers, swamps, or suburban parks with mature trees.

Year-round resident in California and the eastern United States into Mexico. Western populations (B. l. elegans) are concentrated along the Pacific coast.

Apex predator of small mammals, amphibians, and reptiles. They act as essential population controllers for rodents and snakes.

Cooper's Hawk (longer, more tapered feathers; thinner banding), Red-tailed Hawk (usually lacks such distinct, crisp white banding on body feathers).

Red-shouldered Hawks are highly territorial; they will often return to the same nesting territory for many years, sometimes even using the same nest tree year after year.

Fair to Good. Some separation of the barbs ('basal splits') is visible, likely due to mechanical wear or handling after falling.

Santa Monica College