Red-tailed Hawk (also known as the American Buzzard or Hen Hawk)

The Red-tailed Hawk is a powerful, heavy-set raptor with broad, rounded wings and a short, wide tail. Adults typically display a rich brick-red upper tail surface, though juveniles possess brown-banded tails. They are masterful soarers often seen circling gracefully over open fields or perched prominently on roadside utility poles.

Rich dark brown to blackish tips shading into warm chestnut and lighter brownish-gray tones toward the base, featuring subtle darker transverse barring on the lighter vane side

Tightly interlocked pennaceous barbs with strong hooklets creating a firm, aerodynamic vane, with minimal soft plumulaceous barbs at the extreme base

Firm, stiff, and smooth with a semi-matte finish, designed to withstand high air resistance during flight without fraying

Strong asymmetry, distinct emargination on the outer web, robust white-to-tan central shaft, and rich chocolate-brown coloration with hints of reddish-brown banding

Extremely adaptable, inhabiting deserts, scrublands, urban areas, agricultural fields, grasslands, deciduous and coniferous forests from sea level to timberline

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

Serves as a top avian apex predator helping to regulate rodent and small mammal populations, acting as a crucial indicator of healthy terrestrial ecosystems

Rough-legged Hawk, Ferruginous Hawk, and Swainson's Hawk, which can be distinguished by specific barring patterns, shaft color, and precise wing feather proportions

Red-tailed Hawks have incredible vision, estimated to be eight times sharper than human vision, allowing them to spot a mouse from 100 feet in the air

Good overall condition, showing clean intact barbs with no major fraying, fault bars, or significant sun bleaching, suggesting it was naturally molted in healthy condition